Western North Pacific gray whales (WGWs), once considered extinct, are critically endangered with unknown migratory routes and reproductive areas. We attached satellite-monitored tags to seven WGWs on their primary feeding ground off Sakhalin Island, Russia, three of which subsequently migrated to regions occupied by non-endangered eastern gray whales (EGWs). A female with the longest-lasting tag visited all three major EGW reproductive areas off Baja California, Mexico, before returning to Sakhalin Island the following spring. Her 22 511 km round-trip is the longest documented mammal migration and strongly suggests that some presumed WGWs are actually EGWs foraging in areas historically attributed to WGWs. The observed migration routes provide evidence of navigational skills across open water that break the near-shore north–south migratory paradigm of EGWs. Despite evidence of genetic differentiation, these tagging data indicate that the population identity of whales off Sakhalin Island needs further evaluation.

We explored the patterning of genetic diversity within white-toothed shrews of the genus Crocidura from 14 localities across Vietnam. An analysis of cytochrome oxidase c subunit I (COI) and cytochrome b (cytb) gene fragments from 185 specimens of white-toothed shrews of the genus Crocidura from 14 localities across Vietnam revealed six deeply divergent (p-distance for both COI and cytb >10%) lineages, corresponding to the morphological species C. sokolovi, C. zaitsevi, C. phuquocensis, С . indochinensis, C. tanakae and, C. phanluongi. Crocidura sokolovi was distinct from all other Vietnamese white-toothed shrews (~13% on average for both cytb and COI). In addition to demonstrating the genetic separation of previously described species, substantial cryptic genetic diversity was revealed. Crocidura zaitsevi and C. tanakae each included two subgroups that corresponded to geographically remote localities, while C. indochinensis contained two distinct subgroups that exhibited co-varying patterns of morphological and ecological differentiation, suggesting that the individuals from Sa Pa represent a separate species (provisionally named Crocidura sp. AB1). Mitochondrial data generated for the type specimens of C. phanluongi from Yok Don and Bu Gia Map supported the validity of the species while an additional specimen from Binh Chau, South Vietnam originally referred to C. phanluongi exhibited a deep genetic split (cytb: 8.4%; COI: 8.7%) from a neighbouring population in Yok Don. We propose that the specimen from Binh Chau also represents an undescribed species (provisionally named Crocidura sp. AB2). Our cytb data were then compared to the sequences of 28 species of Crocidura from Southeast Asia available in GenBank, suggesting that three more species occur in northern Vietnam, namely C. wuchihensis, C. attenuata and C. fuliginosa/C. dracula. The discovery of fairly deep genetic divergences among Vietnamese Crocidura illustrates that the understudied and largely undescribed diversity of white-toothed shrews in Southeast Asia requires deeper scrutiny. It also shows the useful insights of mitochondrial markers as to the taxonomic resolution of this enigmatic group of mammals.

Fecal samples from the Siberian tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) and the Amur cat (Felis bengalensis euptilurus) from Far Eastern Russia, were examined for parasites. A natural sedimentation methodology was used and a complete examination of all the sediment was performed. This fecal investigation allowed us to isolate and identify several developmental stages of gastrointestinal, hepatic, and respiratory parasites. Five parasites were found from P. t. altaica: 11 trematodes (Platynosomum fastosum) and 4 nematodes (Strongyloides sp., Ancylostomatidae, Toxascaris leonina, and Toxocara cati). Five parasites were found from F. b. euptilurus: 1 cestode (Diplopylidium sp.) and 4 nematodes (Trichuris sp., Ancylostomatidae, Toxascaris leonina, and Aelurostrongylus abstrusus). In addition, trophozoites of the amoeba Acanthamoeba sp. were detected in tiger feces.

Analysis of nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region (495 bp) of sables (Martes zibellina) and pine martens (M. martes) from allopatric parts of the species ranges has shown a considerable interspecific genetic distance (>3%). In sympatric populations of these species in the northern Urals, differences between two species-specific mtDNA lineages are still large; however, classification of each individual nucleotide sequence with one of the two lineages is not correlated with whether the given animal is phenotypically a sable, a pine marten, or a potential hybrid (the so-called “kidas”). This indicates a high degree of reciprocal introgression of the sable and pine marten mtDNA in the northern Urals and suggests that their interspecific hybridization is common in the sympatric zone.