Ursus kudarensis is an extinct species of the cave bear complex that lived in the Caucasus Mountains during the Pleistocene epoch, nearly 350,000–40,000 years ago.
Taxonomy The species was described in 1985 by Soviet paleontologist Gennady Baryshnikov during the excavations at the Kudaro cave complex, Georgia. It was initially defined as Ursus spelaeus kudarensis, a cave bear subspecies named after its type locality. Analyzing four fossil skulls and more than 200 molars and premolars from Kudaro III, Baryshnikov observed several distinct morphological features that deviated from the cave bear populations of Eastern and Western Europe, including less elongated skulls and archaic dental features.
See also Cave bear Brown bear Ursus kanivetz
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