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A new genus Plesiomedetera gen. nov., is described from Late Eocene Baltic amber. The genus is placed in the extant subfamily Medeterinae and includes five recognized and two doubtful species, all poorly described by Meunier in 1907–1908 and never reported again. Plesiomedetera flammea (Meunier, 1907), comb. nov. and P. mustela (Meunier, 1907), comb. nov. are described and illustrated, and a key to recognized species of this genus is compiled. The other eight extinct genera from Baltic amber are briefly reviewed, belonging to extant subfamilies ?Diaphorinae, Dolichopodinae, Medeterinae, Peloropeodinae and Sciapodinae, and a key to these genera is compiled. The following new combinations (comb. nov.) are proposed: Plesiomedetera decora (Meunier, 1907), P. elegantula (Meunier, 1907), P. vana (Meunier, 1907), P. lasciva (Meunier, 1907), P. lepida (Meunier, 1907), Medeterites atterraneus (Nazarov, 1994), M. gestuosus (Meunier, 1907), M. gulosus (Meunier, 1907), M. latipennis (Meunier, 1907), Palaeoargyra planipedia (Meunier, 1907), Palaeomedeterus praeconcinnus (Evenhuis, 1994), P. concinnus (Meunier, 1907), P. tertiarius (Meunier, 1907), Prohercostomus ciliatus (Meunier, 1907), P. devinctus (Meunier, 1907), P. gracilis (Meunier, 1907), P. minutus (Meunier, 1907), P. morbosus (Meunier, 1907), P. smicrus (Meuffels et Grootaert, 1999) and P. inumbratus (Meunier, 1907). Sciara pusilla Meunier, 1899 is considered nomen nudum, rather than unplaced species of Dolichopodidae. Dolichopus smicrus Meuffels et Grootaert, 1999 (unnecessary new name) is placed in synonymy with Prohercostomus minutus. In all, 53 recognized, 5 doubtful and 10 unplaced species from Baltic amber are listed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species, Crusopimpla klopfsteinae sp. nov. (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Pimplinae) is described from Upper Eocene Baltic amber. This is the first reliable finding of Darwin wasps of the subfamily Pimplinae in Baltic amber. The systematic position of Pimpla succini Giebel, 1856, the previously described species from Baltic amber as a taxon of uncertain systematic status (Ichneumonoidea incertae sedis) is established. The diagnosis of the genus Crusopimpla, previously known from impression fossils from the Tadushi Formation (early Eocene), is amended. Finding of a representative of the subfamily Pimplinae confirms that Baltic amber is an extremely selective oryctocenosis that only approximately reflects the true biological situation. The studied fauna is shown to have broader connections with other fossil localities than previously assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of studying the tissues of the leaf phytoleim of the fossil Taxodium dubium from the Eocene Tavda flora of Western Siberia. Feulgen testing showed the preservation of Feulgen-positive, heterogeneously stained nuclear structures and small granular chromocenters in the cells. The nuclei were red–violet-stained and chromocenters were stained more intensely. This indicates the occurrence of aldehyde groups of deoxyribose in the nuclear chromatin and demonstrates the specific presence of DNA. Additional staining of the preparations with alcian blue and Ehrlich's hematoxylin displays cell walls and the adjacent intracellular material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The false flower beetle Cyrtanaspis kerneggeri Perkovsky et Odnosum sp. nov. is described from Baltic amber. The new species is similar to the extant C. phalerata, from which it differs in the absence of a hair pattern on the elytra and pronotum, in the subsecuriform last palpomere, and the shape of antennomeres; it differs from C. sauteri in the elytral shape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New bird taxa are described from the early Eocene Bumban Member of the Tsagaan-Khushuu locality in southern Mongolia. Bumbanortyx transitoria gen. et sp. nov. is a small galliform bird that combines morphological similarity with the fossil families Quercymegapodiidae and Gallinuloididae. The somewhat larger Bumbanipodius magnus gen. et sp. nov. also shows similarities with Quercymegapodiidae, but is close to Argillipes aurorum from the early Eocene of England in the structure of the tarsometatarsus. Bumbanipes aramoides gen. et sp. nov. shows the greatest similarity with modern Aramidae (Gruiformes). Bumbaniralla walbeckornithoides gen. et sp. nov. is described based on a coracoid, morphologically intermediate between those of Walbeckornis and Messelornithidae (stem Gruiformes). The presence of unnamed Messelornithidae in the fauna of the Tsagaan-Khushuu locality is also noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remains of the stem anseriforms Presbyornithidae dominate among the avian material from the Tsagaan-Khushu locality in southern Mongolia (Naran-Bulak Formation; upper Paleocene–lower Eocene). Revision of the materials previously attributed to Presbyornis showed that they actually belong to two taxa of Presbyornithidae plus one or two taxa of stem Phoenicopterimorphae. The relatively large presbyornithid is morphologically similar to smaller specimens of Presbyornis pervetus Wetmore, 1926 from the lower Eocene of the United States. Another small form described here as Bumbalavis anatoides gen. et sp. nov. is morphologically more advanced than Presbyornis. Thus, the Mongolian materials do not confirm the presence of significant body size dimorphism in Presbyornis. Stem Phoenicopterimorphae from Tsagaan-Khushu are tentatively assigned to Juncitarsidae, to which the holotype of Presbyornis mongoliensis Kurochkin et Dyke, 2010 also belongs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The species Xeris dorbnikensis Manukyan sp. n. (Hymenoptera, Siricidae) has been described from the Eocene of Baltic amber. Previously, the family Siricidae was known from this locality only from the find of one species Eoxeris klebsi (Brues, 1926). The data on another siricid species of the genus Xeris are given without specifying the species rank. The faunistic links between the communities from the Eocene Baltic amber and modern Himalayan biota have been revealed. The paleontological history of the family Siricidae has been overviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of the holotype of Striatolamia tchelkarnurensis Glickman, 1964 (Lamniformes: Odontaspididae), presumed to be an invalid species, in the Collection of the State Darwin Museum, described from the Chegan Formation of South Turgay (West Kazakhstan) and including more than 30 isolated teeth from one individual, showed that the species is valid. Morphological characters of the teeth of S. tchelkarnurensis, a terminal taxon of a genus that became extinct in the late Eocene, correspond to the evolutionary trend of the genus—an increase in the size of teeth and an increase in their cutting function due to a change in the shape of the crown and root. The article provides a redescription of the species in accordance with the requirements of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (1999). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ten Middle Miocene imprints of Oecophylla Smith, 1860 (Stavropol Region, Russia) are described and redescribed from the collection of the Arthropoda Laboratory of the Borissiak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Oecophylla has distinctive features of the wing venation, allowing the identification of fossils. Based on our study of extant ants, a procedure for identifying externally similar forewing imprints of Formicinae using the example of Oecophylla (Bembridge, United Kingdom) is proposed. It seems that the oldest Oecophylla is recognized now among early and middle Eocene ants from North America, a continent no longer inhabited by weaver ants, despite the apparently suitable climatic conditions. We suggest that historical distribution of weaver ants was determined by their ecology and behavior, and competition within ant assemblages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new genus and species of soft-winged flower beetles (Coleoptera, Malachiidae), Aliattalus intercalaris gen. et sp. nov., are described in the Late Eocene Baltic amber. The new genus is assigned to the tribe Palpattalini because the male possesses specific structures: an elongated, ventrally curved, domed pygidium with an elongated and bilaciniate apical sternite is combined with large palps, in which the second and third segments are closely adjacent to each other and enlarged. This species in appearance is similar to the genus Palpattalusinus Tshernyshev, 2020, also known in amber: both have similarly fused and enlarged palps with a small cup-shaped first segment, but the apical palpomere in the new species is curved inward and rounded at the apex, rather than elongated to form a tube. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Mongolia, fossil mammals are known from the Upper Jurassic, Lower and Upper Cretaceous, all series of the Paleogene and Neogene, as well as the Pleistocene. Over 335 new species and more than 185 new genera of fossil mammals (not including synonyms) were described from Mongolia up to the end of 2019. The most important results in the last hundred years of research, that most strongly influenced the development of mammal paleontology, have been: (1) the discoveries of extremely rich Paleogene and Neogene localities containing numerous fossils of various mammals by the Central Asian Expedition of the American Museum of Natural History (CAE AMNH) in 1922–1930, and subsequent expeditions; (2) the discovery and further study of the Late Cretaceous mammalian fauna by the CAE AMNH and the Mongolian Paleontological Expedition of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (1946–1949), the Polish-Mongolian Paleontological Expedition (1963–1971) and the Joint Soviet-Mongolian (Russian-Mongolian) Paleontological Expedition (JSMPE, JRMPE); (3) the discovery by the JSMPE in the late 1960s–early 1970s of the Early Cretaceous Höövör mammalian fauna, at the time of its discovery the most diverse and richest in Asia; (4) the obtaining by the JSMPE of a large amount of data on the early Paleogene, the most important stage in the evolution of mammals; (5) detailed biostratigraphic study of the Oligocene and the Lower Miocene mammal fossils of the Valley of Lakes, as part of the Austrian-Mongolian project (1995–2018). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dispersed fossil pollen grains of Fagaceae from the Eocene sediments of the south of Primorskii Region have been analyzed using a scanning electron microscope. Fourteen types of Fagaceae pollen were identified: one of them represented the extinct genus Eotrigonobalanus, four were assigned to the subfamily Castaneoideae, two to the genus Fagus, and seven to the genus Quercus; four of the latter were produced by deciduous oaks (Quercus), one, by evergreen oaks (Cyclobalanoides), and two, by evergreen sclerophyllous oaks (Heterobalanus). The presence of pollen of the extinct genus Eotrigonobalanus in the study region was demonstrated for the first time. The data obtained are indicative of considerable diversity of the family Fagaceae in the Eocene of Primorskii Region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remains of a fossil cetacean, belonging to the family Basilosauridae, are for the first time found in the territory of the Baltic States. This finding is represented by a large vertebra and comes from the Late Eocene amber-bearing "Blue Ground" bed of the Sambia Peninsula in the Kaliningrad Region. The described fossil expands our knowledge on paleogeography and stratigraphic occurrence of Basilosauridae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

So far 107 families of chelicerates are known from the Rovno amber, which is comparable with those known from the Baltic amber (144 families) and three times more than in Bitterfeld amber; 19 families of arachnids reported from Rovno amber are not known in Baltic amber deposits. The tropical mite family Eupalopsellidae is excluded from the Rovno amber fauna. The mite family Autognetidae and spider genus Orchestina Simon, 1882 (Oonopidae) are reported from Rovno amber for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three species of chrysidoid wasps, Palaeobethylus longicollis (Chrysididae), Dryinus wunderlichi and D. reifi (Dryinidae) are recorded for the first time for Rovno amber from the basin of Styr River (Voronki), and one species, Palaeoanteon janzeni (Dryinidae), is recorded for the first time for Rovno amber from the basin of Stokhod River (Kukhotskaya Volya). Taking into account the new records of chrysidoid wasps and myrmiciine ants, a total of 64 species of Rovno hymenopterans (52%) are registered at Baltic amber. All known fossil records of the wasps in the superfamily Chrysidoidea are listed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incomplete skeleton of a juvenile sea turtle (Cheloniidae) is described from the terminal Bartonian (late Middle Eocene) of the Gorny Luch locality (Krasnodar krai, Russia) as Eochelone sp. The new find extends the known geographic distribution of turtles of the genus Eochelone Dollo, 1903, previously known in Europe only from the Lutetian of Belgium and Ukraine, the Bartonian of England and the Priabonian of Spain. In addition, the described specimen has common features with "Allopleuron" qazaqstanense Karl et al., 2012 from the Bartonian and, possibly, the Lutetian of Kazakhstan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Descriptions of four new radiolarian species from the material collected from the Cenozoic deposits of the submarine Vityaz Ridge (the island slope of the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench) are provided in the article. The descriptions of the new species Amphistylus gladiusiacus sp. nov. and Thecosphaerella tochilinae sp. nov. from the Upper Eocene–Lower Oligocene deposits are based on the criteria established for the class of spherical porous Sphaerellaria: the number of skeletal shells, the shape of the cortical shell, and the development of the system of spines and axopodial complex. The new species Stylotrochus bipedius sp. nov. and S. tripedius sp. nov. from the Lower Pleistocene are considered among stauraxon radiolarians of the class Stauraxonaria due to the discoid geometric shape of their skeleton. The history of changes in the systematic position of the family Spongodiscidae is reviewed, and a proposal is made to restore the name of the order Discoidea Haeckel, 1862. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on two females from the Danish amber collection of the Zoological Museum of University of Copenhagen, Dencyrtus vilhelmseni gen. and sp. nov. is described. The antennae of the new genus are very similar in structure to that of Eocencyrtus Simutnik, 2001 from the Rovno and Baltic ambers. However, the presence of the filum spinosum on the linea calva of the forewing disc indicates that it belongs to a different subfamily. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first Erotylidae of the subfamily Xenoscelinae from the Late Eocene Baltic amber, Warnis tvanksticus gen. et sp. nov., is described. The new genus is distinguished from closely related Xenoscelis Woll. and Zavaljus Reitt. by the presence of well-developed femoral lines on the first abdominal ventrite and also the shape of the pronotum, the body size, the absence of lateral carina on the elytra or pits at the base of the pronotum, and the presence of a gular pit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new subtribes Palaeorhamphina subtrib. nov. of the tribe Rhamphini and Eocenesibiniina subtrib. nov. of the tribe Tychiini, new genera Archaeoeugnomus gen. nov. (type species A. balticus sp. nov.), Palaeorhamphus gen. nov. (type species P. primitivus sp. nov.), and Eocenesibinia gen. nov. (type species E. prussica sp. nov.), new subgenus Palaeoleiosoma subgen. nov. (type species L. klebsi sp. nov.) of the genus Leiosoma Stephens, and new species Leiosoma klebsi sp. nov., Caulophilus rarus sp. nov., C. squamosus sp. nov., Ceutorhynchus alekseevi sp. nov., C. electrinus sp. nov., Dorytomus nudus sp. nov., Pachytychius eocenicus sp. nov., Archaeoeugnomus balticus sp. nov., Palaeorhamphus primitivus sp. nov., Orchestes tatjanae sp. nov., and Eocenesibinia prussica sp. nov. are described. Electrotribus Hustache, 1942 placem. nov. is transferred from the tribe Derelomini of the subfamily Curculioninae to the tribe Acicnemidini of the subfamily Molytinae. Succinostyphlus erectosquamata (Rheinheimer, 2007) placem. nov. et comb. nov. is transferred from the genus Electrotribus Hustache, 1942 to the genus Succinostyphlus Kuśka, 1996. These are the first records of representatives of the tribes Plinthini, Acicnemidini, Eugnomini, and Rhamphini in the Baltic amber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Paraseraphs Jung 1974 is an extinct group of gastropods that existed during the Late Paleocene and Eocene of Europe and the Caribbean. P. cantamessae sp. nov. is described; it differs structurally from its sympatric sister taxon and spatiotemporally from other members of the clade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new genus and species, Archaeogryon floridus Kononova et Simutnik, gen. and sp. nov., of the family Scelionidae (subfamily Scelioninae) from the Upper Eocene Rovno amber (Klesov locality, Rovno Region, Ukraine) is described. Another species, Brachyscelio grandiculus Kononova et Simutnik, sp. nov., is described in the same family in the genus Brachyscelio Brues, 1940, which has an unclear systematic position. Brief morphological descriptions of the new taxa are given; the inclusions are compared with representatives of the Recent fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protocopidosoma kononovae gen. et sp. nov. from Danish amber is described. The specimen is very similar to representatives of the extant genus Copidosoma Ratzeburg, 1844 and differs from them in the long and wide veins in the forewing, as in most encyrtids from Late Eocene European ambers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new genus of the family Parallelodontidae (Bivalvia: Arcoidea), Siptionella gen. nov., with four species from the Upper Eocene of Ukraine and Germany and the Maestrichtian of Denmark is described. From the Upper Eocene of Ukraine, two species, the type species of the genus S. prompta (Berezovsky, 2002), previously described by the author within the genus Porterius, and the new species S. demissa sp. nov. are described and figured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New bivalve species of the genus Acar from the Upper Eocene of Dnepropetrovsk (Ukraine) are described. The differences in ontogenetic development of these species from the close genus Barbatia are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glaesus gibsoni gen. et sp. nov. and Eocencnemus gedanicus sp. nov. are described from materials stored in the amber collection of the University of Gdańsk. Eocencyrtus zerovae Simutnik, 2001 is for the first time recorded in the Baltic amber. The encyrtids recorded in Eocene ambers are reviewed, and a key to the known genera is given. The fossil Encyrtidae cannot be placed with confidence in any of the established subfamilies. Their comparative morphology is analyzed. One of the diagnostic characters of the subfamily Encyrtinae, the presence of the filum spinosum, is recorded for the first time for fossil encyrtids (in G. gibsoni). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fragmentary remains of sea turtles (Cheloniidae sensu lato: Argillochelys sp., Puppigerus nessovi Averianov, 2005, and Cheloniidae gen. indet.) from the Ikovo locality (Lugansk Region, Ukraine; Lower Lutetian, Middle Eocene) are described. The genera Argillochelys and Puppigerus are recorded for the first time in Eastern Europe. The turtle assemblage from Ikovo is similar at the generic level to West European assemblages (Belgium, Great Britain) of approximately the same age (Lower-Middle Eocene). In the presence of P. nessovi, the Ikovo assemblage is similar to that from the Middle Eocene Dzheroi 2 locality (Uzbekistan). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of biodiversity and ecological evolution of Eocene Cetartiodactyla against the background of changes in the biosphere, biota, and paleogeography has provided a model for the origin, development, and dispersal of this group. The main trends in ecogenesis, occurrence data, relationships between the main evolutionary events and great abiotic and biotic events are considered and the possibility of Cretaceous origin of Cetartiodactyla is corroborated. Cetartiodactyla could have arise in the Late Cretaceous in Asia south of 30°-40° N or in the southern Indochina Peninsula; they diverged very early into Cetacea and Artiodactyla. The model proposed confirms monophyly of Cetartiodactyla, Artiodactyla, and Cetacea. The existence of a missing initial link explains considerable changes in the Archaeoceti structure (in particular, dentition), as compared to that of Artiodactyla. Eocene Artiodactyla were closer in ecology to the initial type of Cretaceous Eutheria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plates of the epithecal bony shell of turtles of the family Dermochelyidae from the Middle Eocene (Lutetian) of the Ak-Kaya locality (Crimea, Ukraine) are described. This material, determined as Dermochelyidae indet., is the first reliable record of fossil dermochelyids in northern Eurasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new species of Nummulites and one subspecies of Orbitoclypeus from the Eocene of the Crimean Mountains and Mangyshlak Peninsula are described in detail. Nummulites alexisi sp. nov. and Orbitoclypeus munieri major subsp. nov. come from the Upper Ypresian, while Nummulites ninikae sp. nov. is from the Lower-Middle Lutetian. The phylogenetic position of new taxa is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vertebrae of sea snakes from five Eocene localities in western Kazakhstan are assigned to the species Palaeophis nessovi Averianov, 1997. The anterior trunk vertebrae have subcentral ridges, large posterior hypapophysis, and large synapophyses; the middle trunk vertebrae are slightly laterally compressed and their synapophyses are positioned highly; the posterior trunk vertebrae are strongly laterally compressed and have a well-developed haemal keel. Cladistic analysis has shown that the genus Palaeophis is not monophyletic; the genus Archaeophis is a more advanced palaeophiid than was previously thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caulophilus zherikhini, sp. nov. (Curculionidae: Cossoninae) is described from the Late Eocene Rovno amber. The new species is distinguished from all known species of the genus by its longer rostrum. It is especially similar to C. falini Davis et Engel, 2007 from Dominican amber, from which it probably differs also in the more strongly curved rostrum, less flattened body, longer and narrower profemur, and shorter elytral setae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

male of Ampulicomorpha succinalis Brues (Hymenoptera Chrysidoidea: Embolemidae) from the Upper Eocene Rovno amber (34-37 Ma) is described for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new genera and three new species of parasitic wasps from the family Scelionidae are described from the Late Eocene Rovno amber: Pseudotelea gracilis Kononova, gen. et sp. nov. (subfamily Scelioninae), Pseudidris striatus Kononova, gen. et sp. nov., and Ceratobaeoides cornutus Kononova, sp. nov. (subfamily Baeinae). The new taxa are compared with representatives of the Recent fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New taxa of Orthoptera Ensifera are described in the families Mogoplistidae [ Protomogoplistes asquamosus gen. et sp. nov. (Upper Cretaceous) in the subfamily Protomogoplistinae subfam. nov. and Archornebius balticus gen. et sp. nov. (Eocene), Pseudarachnocephalus gen. nov., P. dominicanus sp. nov., and P. latiusculus sp. nov. (all Miocene) in Mogoplistinae] and Gryllidae [ Eopentacentrus borealis gen. et sp. nov. (Eocene), ?Grossoxipha feminea sp. nov. (Miocene), and Apentacentrus copalicus sp. nov. in the subfamily Pentacentrinae, ?Cyrtoxipha electrina sp. nov. and ?Cyrtoxipha illegibilis sp. nov. (both Miocene) in Trigonidiinae, and Baltonemobius fossilis gen. et sp. nov. (Eocene) in Nemobiinae]. The Miocene genera Proanaxipha Vickery et Poinar and Grossoxipha Vickery et Poinar are transferred from the subfamily Trigonidiinae to Pentacentrinae. P. latoca Vickery et Poinar and Abanaxipha longispina Vickery et Poinar are redescribed; the male of the latter species is described for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new tribe of digger wasps, Protomicroidini trib. nov. (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae), including a single known species Protomicroides sororius gen. et sp. nov. is described from the Upper Eocene Rovno amber, Ukraine. The new tribe combines features characteristic of several tribes of the Crabroninae and is a sister group of the extant tribe Oxybelini. The most distinctive characters of the new tribe include nonelongate propodeum with strongly developed lateral keel and enclosed dorsal area; semioval postscutellum with a lamellate border; absence of pygidial plate, psammophores, and digging tarsal rakes; and considerably reduced forewing venation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than 4800 arthropod inclusions were isolated and identified from resin of various contemporary conifer trees in various parts of northern Eurasia. Their composition is compared with that in representative collections of Baltic and Rovno ambers (Upper Eocene) and with that in Dominican amber (Lower Miocene). The original composition of inclusions of Dominican amber is reconstructed for the first time using a procedure intended to reduce the effect of human bias. Taphonomical characteristics of resins and their effects on the composition of inclusions are studied. The actuapaleontological approach reveals a trend towards a decrease in the relative abundance of arboreal springtails and nematoceran dipterans and an increase in that of the true bugs, beetles, lepidopterans, and hymenopterans (especially ants) between the Eocene and the present. Relative abundances of spiders and mites show no clear trend. The available data on other arthropods are still insufficient for elucidating evolutionary trends. Surprisingly, a small contemporary sample from Taimyr (N. Siberia) was inexplicably more similar to the Eocene amber than to other contemporary resins. No other significant differences in composition of inclusions, compared across different conifer genera or geographic areas, have been revealed. A more detailed comparison between contemporary and fossil hymenopteran and beetle inclusions reveals correlations with both age (= evolutionary change) and geography. The absolute dominance of ants, particularly Formicinae and Myrmicinae, and, among solitary hymenopterans, Ichneumonidae, Braconidae, and Pteromalidae, and a corresponding decline in the abundance of Scelionidae and Dolichoderinae in contemporary resins compared to amber reflect evolutionary changes. In contrast, the overwhelming abundance of Formicinae and consistent occurrence of sawflies in contemporary resins of northern Eurasia appear to be explained by geography. The Eocene assemblages of beetle inclusions are characterized by a wider and more variable set of dominant families, in sharp contrast to contemporary resins, which are uniformly dominated by Curculionidae, Chrysomelidae, and Staphylinidae. Additional analyses are needed to explain this difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A total of 5754 ant inclusions from 13 European collections of Baltic, Bitterfeld, Rovno, and Scandinavian ambers are studied and identified as belonging to 147 species, 57 genera, and 9 subfamilies. The taxonomic composition and relative species abundances of species in representative collections are analyzed and considerable differences between the above four types of amber are shown. These differences appear to reflect differences in ecological conditions rather than in age. The Baltic and Bitterfeld ant assemblages are shown to be most similar, the Scandinavian assemblage turns out to be most dissimilar to these, and the Rovno assemblage is shown to be intermediate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seventy-six thrips were discovered in Rovno amber. Among these, 67 were identified to suborder, 52, to family, 45, to genus, and 41, to species level. In total, five species, six genera, five families, and two suborders are recorded. No undescribed taxa have been found so far. All the identified thrips, except those of the genus Phloeothrips, belong to fossil taxa, previously known only from the Baltic and Bitterfeld ambers. However, the composition of species in the Rovno amber is highly unusual due to domination of Praedendrothrips avus Priesner, 1924. This species, rare in the Baltic amber, constitutes 49% of all the Rovno records. Thus, the Rovno amber, in contrast to the Baltic and Bitterfeld ambers, is characterized by poor taxonomic diversity of thrips and presence of a clearly dominant species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new caddisfly species of the fossil genus Archaeotinodes, A. igneusaper sp. nov., is described from the Upper Eocene Baltic amber. The new species is close to A. pauper Ulmer, 1912 and A. lanceolata Ulmer, 1912 from the Baltic amber, differing from these in the structure of the male genitalia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smicrips gorskii sp. nov. from the Upper Eocene Baltic amber, distinguished from all congeners by the dark color and very long antennomere 2 is described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oldest representative of the family Entelodontidae (suborder Suiformes), Proentelodon minutus gen. et sp. nov, is described from the Middle Eocene Khaichin Ula II Fauna in Mongolia. In addition to the genus Proentelodon, the new subfamily Proentelodontinae includes the genus Eoentelodon from the Middle-Upper Eocene of China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan. The new data bring clues to the origin and systematic position of Entelodontidae, features of their evolution, dispersal, and changes in taxonomic diversity. They also elucidate the early evolutionary stages of Suiformes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Eocene pufferfish genus Eotetraodon (Tetraodontidae) has previously been known only on the basis of E. pygmaeus (Zigno, 1887) from the lowermost Middle Eocene of Monte Bolca, Italy. To Eotetraodon we now add E. gornylutshensis sp. nov. from the uppermost Middle Eocene of the Kuma Horizon of the northern Caucasus (Gorny Luch locality). E. gornylutshensis sp. nov. differs from E. pygmaeus by having much longer ribs and one less vertebra in the caudal peduncle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climatic changes in the western and central regions of Russian Eurasia in the Paleocene and in the first half of the Eocene were caused by the dynamics and rearrangement of the systems of marine seaways: the longitudinal one, which connected the Arctic Basin with marginal seas of the Northern Peri-Tethys, and the latitudinal one, which connected the latter seas with the Atlantic. As these systems were progressively reduced, the climate in the middle latitudes changed from paratropical to a subtropical monsoon climate with a moist summer, and later to a climate with a moist winter, and, in the Late Eocene, to a humid climate without any marked seasonal variation in precipitation. The type of flora changed in agreement with these changes. In the Paleogene, cold currents constantly influenced the climate of the Northwestern Pacific rim and facilitated the development of a warm-temperate mesophilic flora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new genera and eight new species of the gall midges subfamily Lestremiinae, viz. Berestella insuperabilis gen. et sp. nov., Monardia impellucida sp. nov., Xylopriona aristata sp. nov. (Micromyini), Aprionus improvisus sp. nov., A.? vlaskini sp. nov. (Aprionini), Vicemyia immediata gen. et sp. nov. (Peromyiini), Cordylomyia cauta sp. nov. (Campylomyzini) and Bryomyia necessaria sp. nov. (Bryomyiini) from the Late Eocene Rovno amber are described. New combinations, i.e., Cordylomyia declinata (Fedotova, 2004), comb. nov. and Cordylomyia magnifica (Nel et Prokop, 2006), comb. nov. (both are transferred from Neurolyga) are proposed. No species in common with the fauna from the Baltic amber are recorded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fossil beetles of the family Dermestidae are reviewed. Three new species are described: Dermestes progenitor and Megatoma electra from the Baltic amber and Dermestes vetustus from the Rovno amber (Late Eocene). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two species of early lagomorph, Strenulagus solaris sp. nov. (Monogolia, Khaychin-Ula 2 and 3 localities, Middle Eocene) and Gobiolagus hekkeri (Kyrgyzstan, Andarak 2 locality, terminal Lower Eocene), are described. A revision of Romanolagus hekkeri Shevyreva from the Andarak 2 locality has shown that it belongs to the genus Gobiolagus; consequently, the monotypic genus Romanolagus Shevyreva, 1995 is a junior synonym of Gobiolagus Burke, 1941. The diagnoses and species compositions of the genera Strenulagus and Gobiolagus are revised. Zaissanolagus gromovi Erbajeva from the Lower Oligocene of eastern Kazakhstan is shown to be the latest representative of the genus Gobiolagus and the family Strenulagidae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rovnosoma gracile gen. et sp. nov. is described from the amber collection of the Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kiev). A short comparative morphological analysis is provided. As all known Encyrtidae of the Late Eocene Rovno amber fauna, the new genus is characterized by long veins of the forewings. Archaic venation is combined in this genus with the presence of filum spinosum, transverse hypopygium not reaching the apex of the metasoma, and three-dentate mandibles. Such a combination of characters allows assigning the new genus to the subfamily Encyrtinae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new genus and species of uncertain taxonomic position within the family Encyrtidae (Chalcidoidea), Archencyrtus rasnitsyni gen. et sp. nov., from the Middle Eocene Sakhalin amber is described based on one female. This is the first record of Encyrtidae from the Sakhalin amber. The morphological characteristica of this genus and species and comparison with members of the Recent fauna are given. The new species is the first known fossil Encyrtidae with five funicle segments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new platygastrid species, Platystasius gracilis sp. nov., from an inclusion in Upper Eocene Rovno amber is described. The new species is assigned to the genus Platystasius Nixon, 1937. The morphological characteristics of the new species are described, and comparative analysis of the inclusion and a representative of the Recent fauna are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]