Patterns of body size variation along geographical gradients have long been searched for and generalized into eco‐geographical rules. However, no rodent species has yet been analyzed in relation to the 3 dimensions of latitude, longitude and altitude. We analyzed geographical clines and dimorphism of body and skull size in the herb field mouse (Apodemus uralensis) across the species range, based on field data and on data from the literature. Sexual dimorphism in adult A. uralensis was not expressed at a large scale, while local patterns were inconsistent. Age‐dependent size changes were most expressed in adult individuals: most characters of adults exceeded in size those of subadults, while subadult–juvenile size differences were only significant in body weight and length, zygomatic skull width, length of cranial diastema and breadth of braincase. Despite central morphological niches along the clines being separated, A. uralensis populations showed a high degree of size overlap in morphological space. We found the species to be characterized by high size variability, with the largest individuals inhabiting the eastern and southern edges of the distribution range. Tail, hind foot and ear lengths were largest in the southern part of the range, in agreement with Allen's rule. The main measurements that we analyzed, namely body mass, zygomatic skull width and condylobasal skull length, show the presence of 3 clines in the size of adult A. uralensis: (i) a decreasing south–north cline, opposing Bergmann's rule; (ii) an increasing west–east cline, in accordance with Murphy's rule; and (iii) an increasing altitudinal cline.

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The work describes the results of assessing developmental stability and the degree of differentiation in Chionomys gud within Protected Areas of the Central and Western Caucasus. We characterised developmental stability in Chionomys gud in different eco-geographical conditions by means of fluctuating asymmetry levels (FA nm) in a series of cranium phenes in four geographical populations. Thus we estimated the effect of environmental factors on FA nm levels. We registered the highest FA nm value for the sample from middle mountains of the Central Caucasus, i.e. the vicinities of the village Elbrus. The environment conditions of the given sample were the most stressful for the species (annual average temperature below 5°C and annual average precipitation below 1000 mm). Two-way ANOVA for factors «annual average temperature» and «annual average precipitation» verified a correlation between FA nm levels and complex effects of the two climatic factors. We evaluated the levels of interpopulation phenetic distances by the analysis of frequencies of phenes of nonmetric cranial traits in Chionomys gud populations. Maximum phenetic distances were revealed between geographically distant (over 300 km) populations of the Central and Western Caucasus. The degree of morphological differentiation of the samples from the Central Caucasus, which are apart at the absolute distance of 20-60 km, was less pronounced. Our results suggest that the level of phenetic distances is determined not only by the effect of territorial isolation, but also by climatic peculiarities of a particular locality.

We studied the species diversity and abundance of small terrestrial mammals in the spring and autumn period of 2016-2019 in four groups of habitats of the protected area “Sarykum barkhans” of the Dagestan Nature Reserve: barkhan, floodplain forest, ailant plantations, the territory of the cordon. During the study period, 10 species of terrestrial small mammals were recorded – E. roumanicus, C. suaveolens, C. leucodon, M. musculus, M. macedonicus, A. fulvipectus, C. migratorius, M. socialis, D. sagitta, D. nitedula. Apodemus and Mus mice are the dominant species in the studied area. Mice of Apodemus and M. macedonicus were registered for the first time in the territory of barchans. Indicator species of xerophilic ecosystems – C. migratorius, M. socialis, D. sagitta, were recorded locally, exclusively in the only biotope of barkhan. H. auritus, S. pygmaeus, A. major, M. arvalis, A. terrestris, R. norvegicus, M. tamariscinus, which were previously noted by several authors, were not registered (both traces of vital activity and animals themselves) in the studied area during the whole period of research (2016-2019). Seasonal and annual fluctuations of species diversity and abundance taking into account groups of biotopes and small mammal habitats were revealed.