Eucladoceros orientalis (Artiodactyla, Cervidae) from the Lower Pleistocene of the Taurida Cave, Crimea, and Its Systematic Position

The large comb-antlered deer Eucladoceros orientalis (Radulesco et Samson, 1967) is recorded in the Early Pleistocene fauna (1.8-1.5 Ma) of Taurida Cave, Crimea. The proximal parts of two antlers, two incomplete upper jaws, a lower jaw, dentition, and a metatarsal bone are described. New data on the morphology of this species confirm its assignment to the genus Eucladoceros. E. orientalis, an autochthonous species of the Early Pleistocene fauna of the Northern Black Sea region, is characteristic of the Psekupsian faunal complex of southern Eastern Europe.