Using Virtual Endocast to Measure Total Endocranial Volume of Orkhon Hyena Fossils

A new method using virtual endocasts derived from computer tomography (CT) scans has revealed insights into the brain volume of fossil hyenas from the Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape. The study measured the total endocranial volume, including the frontal sinuses, of a cave hyena skull from the Bag-Nariinam hollow in Mongolia. This non-destructive approach allowed researchers to compare the findings with known brain volumes of extant and extinct hyaenids, providing evidence that Mongolia may have been one of the last habitats for cave hyenas during the Upper Pleistocene. The research also sheds light on the dispersal history of two cave hyena species—Crocuta spelaea and Crocuta ultima—in Asia, with Mongolia serving as a potential border between their ranges. Additionally, findings from Tsagaan-Agui Cave suggest that hyenas persisted in this region until the middle of the Last Glacial Maximum, long after their disappearance from Siberia.

Khatsenovich, A. M., Klementiev, A. M., Korost, D. V., Stepanov, N. V., Rybin, E. P., Chistyakov, P. V.,. (2024). Using Virtual Endocast to Measure Total Endocranial Volume of Orkhon Hyena Fossils. Problems of Archaeology, Ethnography, Anthropology of Siberia and Neighboring Territories, 30, 339–345. https://doi.org/10.17746/2658-6193.2024.30.0339-0345