Notes on the genus Ochotona in the Middle East (Lagomorpha: Ochotonidae)

Pages	51-66
Citation	OBUCH, Ján, ČERMÁK, Stanislav a BENDA, Petr. Notes on the genus Ochotona in the Middle East (Lagomorpha: Ochotonidae). Lynx, new series. Prague: National Museum, 2006, 37(1), 51-66. ISSN 0024-7774 (print), 1804-6460 (online). Also available from: https://www.nm.cz/en/periodicals/lns/37-1/notes-on-the-genus-ochotona-in-the-middle-east-lagomorpha-ochotonidae

Lynx, new series | 2006/37/1

New records of Ochotona from Iran and Turkey are reported. The finding of a bone remain of the Recent age (from the Eagle owl pellet) from Turkey represents the first record of the genus and family in this country and exdends the range of the genus in the Middle East by approximately 600 km to the northwest. All new records from Iran belong to O. rufescens (Gray, 1842), the only known species in the region. Based on the comparison of the Persian material, the pikas from the Zagros and Kopetdag Mts are similar in size and probably do not represent two different subspecies. The newly reported pikas of the Recent age from the Armenian Highlands of Turkey and Iran slightly differ from those inhabiting the rest of Iran and are reported as O. cf. rufescens.

Cermak2006lynx.pdf