Birch mice (Sicista) in the fauna of Ukraine: analysis of zoological collections of natural history museums of the NAS of Ukraine

Materials on the findings of birch-mice in Ukraine are extremely incomplete and require verification, so estimates of the relative abundance of species and their distribution are made on the basis of collections of both academic collections of Ukraine: State Museum of Natural History (SMNH) and National Science Museum (NMNH), NAS of Ukraine. Collections of birch-mice accumulated in the DPM and NMNH for the entire period of its zoological collections are analyzed: according to the actual dates, the material covers the period 1928–1999 (several series of samples are attributed by funders as “1900–1915”, without explanation, in all cases such dates refer to collection of O. Browner). In total, there are 86 specimens of 4 species, forming two species groups. In general, the detailed records of 26 specimens of S. betulina, 12 of S. strandi, 6 of S. severtzovi, and 43 of S. loriger are described. For the latter species, the records are presented for three separate series: east (22) and west (14) of the Dnipro, and the Crimea (4). Each find is given with all the important details (collection, numbers, sample types, location, date, collector), and appropriate comments are given for all problem data: species identification, data publication, location, date or collector. The state of collections and the state of records about them is such that the number of clarifications significantly exceeds the number of records. Therefore, the use of published catalogs (especially the catalog of mammals of NMNH) is highly not recommended: in fact, all records require corrections related to problems of incorrect rewriting of primary label information, and its incorrect interpretation. In fact, this work is the first attempt to revize the available materials, but the audit is not complete due to the inability to review all samples and all primary labels simultaneously. Analysis of the distribution of specimens by months of the year showed that all species were collected mainly in May to July (67,8 % specimens), and the whole peak of seasonal activity, judging by the collection dates, covers 6 months and lasts from April to September. The issue of supplementing the collections is considered. The peak of the most massive filling fell on the 1920th, 1940th and 1980th (about 20–25 specimens were collected).