Caucasian moose

{{Short description|Extinct moose subspecies}}

{{Refimprove|type=animal|date=June 2019}}

{{Subspeciesbox

| name = Caucasian moose

| image = Elch.PNG

| status = EX

| extinct = yes

| genus = Alces

| species = alces

| species_link = Moose

| subspecies = caucasicus

| authority = (Weretschagin, 1955)

}}

The Caucasian moose, also known as the Caucasian elk{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qn1A9Y1OA2oC&q=Caucasian+elk&pg=PA14|title=Elsevier's Dictionary of Mammals|last=Wrobel|first=Murray|date=2006-11-18|publisher=Elsevier|isbn=9780080488820|language=en}}{{Cite journal|last1=Manaseryan|first1=Nina|last2=Gyonjyan2|first2=Andranik|title=THE CHANGE OF THE ANTHROPOGENE FAUNA OF ARMENIA|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335662214|journal=Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology, Institute of Zoology, NAS of Republic of Armenia.}} (Alces alces caucasicus) is an extinct subspecies of moose found in the Black Sea and the Caucasus Mountains of Eastern Europe and Asia Minor, in modern-day European Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and eastern Turkey and north and west Iran.

Taxonomy

The subspecies was first described by {{Interlanguage link|Nikolay Kuzmich Vereshchagin|ru|Верещагин,_Николай_Кузьмич}} in 1955.{{Cite book |last=Барышников |first=Геннадий Федорович |url=https://www.zin.ru/publications/fauna_keys/Keys_173_Baryshnikov_2009.pdf#page=114 |title=Млекопитающие фауны России и сопредельных территорий. Копытные Непарнопалые и парнопалые (свиные, кабарговые, оленевые) ч. 1 |date=2009 |isbn=978-5-02-026347-5 |language=ru}} In 1999, Danilkin questioned whether they were sufficiently distinct from A. a. alces to merit a separate subspecies.{{Cite book |last=Давыдов |first=Андрей |url=https://www.google.ru/books/edition/%D0%9B%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%8C_%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BF%D1%83%D0%BB%D1%8F%D1%86%D0%B8%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%8F_%D0%B1%D0%B8/XVgvDwAAQBAJ?hl=ru&gbpv=1&dq=%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B7%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9+%D0%BB%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%8C&pg=PA151&printsec=frontcover |title=Лось: популяционная биология и микроэволюция |last2=Сипко |first2=Т. |last3=Рожков |first3=Юрий |last4=Проняев |first4=А. |last5=Холодова |first5=М. |date=2022-05-15 |publisher=Litres |isbn=978-5-04-070618-1 |language=ru}}

Extinction

The subspecies was quite common until the mid-19th century, when populations began to decrease due to overhunting. It became extinct sometime in the beginning of the 20th century.

Predators

Among its likely predators were the Anatolian or Persian leopard (also called the Caucasus leopard), Asiatic black bear, Eurasian brown bear, steppe wolves, the Asiatic lion (now restricted to India's Gir Forest) and the now-extinct Caspian tiger; The Eurasian lynx, golden eagles and the Asiatic cheetah—now restricted to Iran—all may have occasionally preyed on calves.

See also

References

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