Lemmus nigripes Pokrovski et al. 1984

Beringian Lemming Lemmus nigripes (True, 1894)

Type locality: Saint George Island, approx. 56.5950°N, 169.5168°W, Pribilof Islands, Alaska, USA [cytb sequence of a topotype: AY219164] (Miller & Kellogg 1955; Fedorov et al. 2003).

Synonyms: L. alascensis Merriam, 1900 [TL: Point Barrow, approx. 71.3338°N, 156.5970°W, Alaska, USA; cytb sequence of a topotype: AY219147] (Miller & Kellogg 1955; Fedorov et al. 2003); L. yukonensis Merriam, 1900 [TL: Charlie Creek (=Charley River), approx. 65.2968°N, 142.7363°W, Yukon River, Alaska, USA] (Miller & Kellogg 1955); L. obensis chrysogaster Allen, 1903 [TL: vicinity of Gichiga, approx. 61.9492°N, 160.3810°E, Magadan Region, Russia; cytb sequence of a topotype: KT877362] (Abramson et al. 2018); L. minusculus Osgood, 1904 [TL: Kakhtul River near its junction with Malchatna River, approx. 59.6514°N, 157.0733°W, Alaska, USA; cytb sequence of a topotype: AY219153] (Miller & Kellogg 1955; Fedorov et al. 2003); L. flavescens Vinogradov, 1926 [TL: Kamchatka, Russia; cytb sequence of the lectotype: KX455619] (Abramson & Petrova 2018); L. harroldi Swarth, 1931 [TL: Nunivak Island, approx. 60.3646°N, 166.2422°W, Alaska, USA] (Miller & Kellogg 1955).

Distribution: Beringian species, the range of which covers northeastern Asia (Chukotka, northeastern edge of the Magadan Region, and a local isolate on Kamchatka) and northwestern North America (Aleutian Islands, Alaska, and western edge of Yukon) (Fedorov et al. 2003; Abramson & Petrova 2018).

Comments: This species has no less than six synonyms introduced for samples from both sides of the Bering Strait. Most of these names were revised on the basis of sequenced topotypes (Fedorov et al. 2003; Abramson & Petrova 2018; Abramson et al. 2018). Several samples of Lemmus nigripes from Kamchatka and southern Chukotka share divergent cytb haplotypes, and populations in these regions can represent subspecies-level taxa. Hence, the intraspecific taxonomy of the Beringian Lemming needs to be revised based on an expanded molecular dataset.