Department of Vertebrate Zoology

Employees of the Department of Vertebrate Zoology conduct taxonomic and morphometric research on reptiles, birds and mammals, both contemporary and fossil species from Poland and abroad, dated from the Late Oligocene to Holocene. 

Herpetological studies carried out in recent years have concentrated mainly on the fossil remains of snakes from various countries of the Western Palearctic, mostly from Oligocene and Miocene sites. Our employees have examined bird remains of extinct species from the Oligocene (about 30 mln years ago) up to recent species, the bones of which have been preserved in archaeological sites.
We also study the recent bat fauna and the comparative osteology of contemporary bird species. The results have been applied in identification keys determining bird species (mostly domesticated) based on bones. 

Our employees conduct research on zooarchaeology and taphonomy of remains of birds and mammals from many Polish archaeological sites including cave (e.g. Mamutowa, Nietoperzowa, Obłazowa and Ciemna cave), and open-air sites (such as Kraków Spadzista, Jaksice, and Wilczyce). In collaboration with scientists abroad, our researchers investigate archaeological sites in other European countries including Pavlov and Dolní Věstonice (Czech Republic), Szeleta and Istállós-kő caves, Bodrogkeresztúr–Henye (Hungaty), Bacho Kiro cave (Bulgaria). Our studies encompass bone remains not only from Palaeolithic sites, but also from younger historical periods, e.g. Neolithic site Sarakenos (Greece), Bronze Age Asva (Estonia), Maszkowice, and animal assemblages dated to the Middle Ages from the Main Square Kraków, Wawel castle, Dominican monastery in Krakow, monastery and castle at Grodzisko near Skała or from the castles in Bolków, Kędzierzyn Koźle, Nowy Sącz, and Ojców.

Our Department's staff conduct research on collections of animal remains from Miocene lignite deposits in Bełchatów, Pliocene deposits in Ręblice Królewskie, and numerous caves in the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland. A key part of this research at our Department is the study of Pleistocene materials. These include Poland's largest collection of mammoth remains (Mammuthus primigenius), discovered at the Kraków Spadzista site, as well as numerous remains of cave bears (Ursus spelaeus) and reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), primarily from cave sites. 

Our Department's staff maintain zoological collections from hard-to-reach areas of Cuba, Mexico, Algeria, and Syria. This section of the collection includes contemporary specimens, primarily from the Chiroptera and Rodentia orders, unique in Poland and Europe. The bat collection contains many typical specimens, primarily fossil species, making it one of the most important in the world. Our Department also utilizes a large collection of contemporary bird skeletons, numbering approximately 6,000 specimens (over 1,000 taxa), for its research. Representing not only nearly all European species (over 500 taxa), but also species from all continents (over 500 more). 

Detailed information about the ISEZ PAN Scientific Collections, as well as a list of technical curators for individual collections, can be found on the Scientific Collections Department website.