Oldest Dryas - Fauna

Fauna

Species are mainly Arctic; however, during the glacial maximum the warmer weather species had withdrawn into refugia. Starting in the oldest Dryas they began to repopulate Europe.

The brown bear, Ursos arctos, was among the first to arrive in the north. Genetic studies indicate north European brown bears came from a refugium in the Carpathians of Moldavia. Other refugia were in Italy, Spain and Greece.

The bears would not have returned north except in pursuit of food. The tundra must already have been well populated. It is likely that the species hunted by man at Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland by the end of the period were present during it:

Aves

• Gavia arctica, black-throated diver
• Podiceps nigricollis, black-necked grebe
• Cygnus cygnus, whooper swan
• Aquila chrysaetos, golden eagle

• Gavia arctica

• Podiceps nigricollis

• Cygnus cygnus

• Aquila chrysaetos

The above birds are primarily maritime. They must have fed in the copious glacial waters of the north just beginning to be released.

Fish

• Lota lota, burbot
• Thymallus thymallus, grayling
• Rutilus rutilus, roach
• Salmo trutta, trout
• Salvelinus alpinus, char

• Glacial stream

• Lota lota

• Salmo trutta

• Salvelinus

The smaller mammals of the food chain inhabited the herbaceous blanket of the tundra:

Cricetidae

• Discrotonyx torquatus, collared lemming
• Microtus oeconomus, root vole
• Microtus arvalis, common vole
• Chionmys nivalis, snowy vole

Leporidae

• Lepus timidus, Arctic hare

Sciuridae

• Marmota marmota, marmot

• Microtus oeconomus

• Microtus arvalis

• Lepus timidus

• Marmota marmota

In addition to the bears and the birds were other predators of these small animals:

Carnivora

• Felis lynx, lynx
• Alopex lagopus, Arctic fox
• Canis lupus, wolf

• Lynx (or Felis) lynx

• Alopex lagopus

• Canis lupus

• Icelandic horse, perhaps like Equus ferus

Man was interested in the large mammals, which included:

• Rangifer tarandus, reindeer
• Equus ferus, wild horse
• Capra ibex, ibex

At some point the larger mammals arrived: the hyena, wooly rhinoceros, cave bear and mammoth.

• Rangifer tarandus

• Capra ibex

• Wooly rhinoceros

• Mammoth