Russia

Mammals found only in Russia include the Baikal Seal (ARKive), the Snow Sheep (Ultimate Ungulate), the Black-capped Marmot (eol), the Palearctic Collared Lemming (SZMN), the Wrangel Island Collared Lemming (sevin.ru), the Siberian Brown Lemming (sevin.ru), the Amur Brown Lemming (sevin.ru), the Ciscaucasian Hamster (sevin.ru), Middendorff's Vole (Planet' Mammiferes), the Lemming Mountain Vole (sevin.ru), the Paramushir Shrew (Planet' Mammiferes), and the extinct Steller’s Sea Cow (Animal Diversity Web).

Birds unique to Russia as breeding species include Steller's Sea Eagle (ARKive), the Spoon-billed Sandpiper (ARKive), the Siberian Crane (ICF), the Red-breasted Goose (ARKive), the Baikal Teal (ARKive), the Siberian Grouse (IBC), the Vega Gull (Wikipedia), the Great Knot (ARKive), Nordmann's Greenshank (ARKive), the Little Curlew (OBC), the Gray-tailed Tattler (IBC), the Yellow-browed Bunting (IBC), the Dusky Thrush (Mangoverde), Naumann's Thrush (IBC), and the extinct Spectacled Cormorant (Naturalis).

Reptiles restricted to Russia include the Magnificent Viper Vipera magnifica (Vipera Caucasica), Orlov's Viper Vipera orlovi (ARKive), and the Naryn Thin-toed Gecko Cyrtopodion (or Mediodactylus) narynense (Google Books).

Endemic amphibians include the Long-tailed Clawed Salamander Onychodactylus fischeri (CalPhotos) according to a recent revision of the genus (Zootaxa pdf file) and perhaps the Primorye Newt Salamandrella tridactyla (Naturalis).

Three families of freshwater fish occur solely in Lake Baikal: the Abyssocottidae (zooex.baikal.ru) with six endemic genera, the Cottocomephoridae (zooex.baikal.ru) with three endemic genera, and the Comephoridae (zooex.baikal.ru). Other endemic freshwater fish include the Long-finned Char (ARKive), the Boganida Char (FishBase), the Muksun (theanimalworld.ru), the Tugun (NOAA), the Siberian Sculpin (sevin.ru), and the Aphips Chub (Ittiofauna). Endemic marine fish include the Navaga (eol), Brashnikov’s Snailfish (fish.dvo.ru), the Hook-eared Sculpin (fish.dvo.ru), the Sea Cockscomb (fish.dvo.ru), and an eelpout Lycodes sigmatoides (fish.dvo.ru).

Invertebrate families exclusive to Lake Baikal include a sponge Lubomirskiidae (Röpstorf), snails Baicaliidae (b-cabinet), and several amphipod crustaceans: Macrohectopidae (zooex.baikal.ru), Micruropidae (p. 2 of VIMS pdf file), Acanthogammaridae (naturalsciences.be), Eulimnogammaridae (naturalsciences.be), and Pallaseidae (naturalsciences.be). A beetle Sikhotealinia zhiltzovae (zin.ru) from the Russian Far East has been considered the sole living member of Jurodidae. Endemic Russian insects include a grasshopper Podisma tyatiensis (SZMN), the longhorned beetles Amarysius duplicatus (zin.ru) and Nadezhdiana villosa (SZMN), the ground beetles Jeannelius birsteini (zin.ru) and Carabus miroshnikovi (Krasnodar Krai Redbook), and several butterflies: Goldia pacifica (Picasa), Parnassius arctica (rusinsects.com), and Erebia arctica (rusinsects.com). Endemic freshwater mussels include Dahurinaia kurilensis (sevin.ru) and Nodularia lebedevi (sevin.ru).

Vascular plant species restricted to Russia include Bergenia pacifica (botsad.ru), Cassiope redowskii (plantarium.ru), Ermania parryoides (plantarium.ru), Galanthus panjutinii (plantarium.ru), Rhododendron sichotense (botsad.ru), Leontopodium stellatum (Kamchatka Red Book), Pulsatilla magadanensis (Rufford), Primula sachalinensis (Sakhalin Red Book), Campanula komarovii (plantarium.ru), Potentilla beringensis (sevin.ru), Hedysarum zundukii (plantarium.ru), Koeleria karavajevii (sevin.ru), Cotoneaster cinnabarinus (plantarium.ru), and Anemone uralensis (plantarium.ru). Endemic genera include Microbiota (botsad.ru), Miyakea (Sakhalin Red Book), Tridactylina (plantarium.ru), Sajanella (plantarium.ru), Borodinia (sevin.ru), Redowskia (sevin.ru), and Magadania (plantarium.ru).

Russia includes part of the Caucasus biodiversity hotspot (CI). Lake Baikal (BaikalScience.org) (FEOW) is the world’s oldest lake and has extraordinary levels of endemism including all of Russia's endemic families and over 1000 endemic animal species. The Russian Far East Temperate Forests (WWF) also are important for endemic species.