A new species of the late Miocene charadriiform bird (Aves: Charadriiformes), with a summary of all Paleogene and Miocene Charadrii remains.

A new species, Cherevychnavis umanskae sp. nov., (Aves: Charadriiformes) from the late Miocene of Ukraine is described, and all known fossils of the suborder Charadrii from the Paleogene and Miocene are summarized. The combination of preserved characters allows us to assign the new species to the suborder Charadrii but its more exact systematic position remains uncertain. Morphologically, the new species is most similar to the extant Haematopus and Recurvirostra, and in terms of size to Haematopus, but it clearly differs from all extant genera of Charadrii. The current remains fill the temporal and spatial gaps in the fossil record of charadriiform birds; they constitute the first record of the Charadrii in eastern-most Europe, and add to our still insufficient knowledge of the late Miocene birds.

Identifying Bird Remains Using Ancient DNA Barcoding.

Bird remains that are difficult to identify taxonomically using morphological methods, are common in the palaeontological record. Other types of challenging avian material include artefacts and food items from endangered taxa, as well as remains from aircraft strikes. We here present a DNA-based method that enables taxonomic identification of bird remains, even from material where the DNA is heavily degraded. The method is based on the amplification and sequencing of two short variable parts of the 16S region in the mitochondrial genome. To demonstrate the applicability of this approach, we evaluated the method on a set of Holocene and Late Pleistocene postcranial bird bones from several palaeontological and archaeological sites in Europe with good success.

Range shifts or extinction? Ancient DNA and distribution modelling reveal past and future responses to climate warming in cold-adapted birds.

Global warming is predicted to cause substantial habitat rearrangements, with the most severe effects expected to occur in high-latitude biomes. However, one major uncertainty is whether species will be able to shift their ranges to keep pace with climate-driven environmental changes. Many recent studies on mammals have shown that past range contractions have been associated with local extinctions rather than survival by habitat tracking. Here, we have used an interdisciplinary approach that combines ancient DNA techniques, coalescent simulations and species distribution modelling, to investigate how two common cold-adapted bird species, willow and rock ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus and Lagopus muta), respond to long-term climate warming. Contrary to previous findings in mammals, we demonstrate a genetic continuity in Europe over the last 20 millennia. Results from back-casted species distribution models suggest that this continuity may have been facilitated by uninterrupted habitat availability and potentially also the greater dispersal ability of birds. However, our predictions show that in the near future, some isolated regions will have little suitable habitat left, implying a future decrease in local populations at a scale unprecedented since the last glacial maximum.