Carnivores of Syria 229 Doi: 10.3897/Zookeys.31.170 RESEARCH ARTICLE Launched to Accelerate Biodiversity Research
A peer-reviewed open-access journal ZooKeys 31: 229–252 (2009) Carnivores of Syria 229 doi: 10.3897/zookeys.31.170 RESEARCH ARTICLE www.pensoftonline.net/zookeys Launched to accelerate biodiversity research Carnivores of Syria Marco Masseti Department of Evolutionistic Biology “Leo Pardi” of the University of Florence, Italy Corresponding author: Marco Masseti (marco.masseti@unifi .it) Academic editors: E. Neubert, Z. Amr | Received 14 April 2009 | Accepted 29 July 2009 | Published 28 December 2009 Citation: Masseti, M (2009) Carnivores of Syria. In: Neubert E, Amr Z, Taiti S, Gümüs B (Eds) Animal Biodiversity in the Middle East. Proceedings of the First Middle Eastern Biodiversity Congress, Aqaba, Jordan, 20–23 October 2008. ZooKeys 31: 229–252. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.31.170 Abstract Th e aim of this research is to outline the local occurrence and recent distribution of carnivores in Syria (Syrian Arab Republic) in order to off er a starting point for future studies. The species of large dimensions, such as the Asiatic lion, the Caspian tiger, the Asiatic cheetah, and the Syrian brown bear, became extinct in historical times, the last leopard being reputed to have been killed in 1963 on the Alauwit Mountains (Al Nusyriain Mountains). Th e checklist of the extant Syrian carnivores amounts to 15 species, which are essentially referable to 4 canids, 5 mustelids, 4 felids – the sand cat having been reported only recently for the fi rst time – one hyaenid, and one herpestid. Th e occurrence of the Blandford fox has yet to be con- fi rmed. Th is paper is almost entirely the result of a series of fi eld surveys carried out by the author mainly between 1989 and 1995, integrated by data from several subsequent reports and sightings by other authors.
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