Архив автора: admin

SALINE SOILS OF RUSSIA (HISTORY OF STUDY, DISTRIBUTION AND GENESIS)

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Chernousenko G.I., Pankova E.I., Khitrov N.B. Saline Soils of Russia (History of Study, Distribution and Genesis) // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 3. 2025. P. 78-113. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

 

In this article we have summarized the studies on the distribution and genesis of saline soils in Russia from the early 20th century to the present. Emphasis is placed on the ones carried out by the V.V. Dokuchaev Soil Science Institute, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2027. Maps of the distribution of saline soils of varying chemistry across Russia are analyzed. The factors, sources, and mechanisms of soil salinization in different regions of the country are considered. Brief information is provided on the types of saline and solonetzic soils in all administrative units of the country where they occur, their areas, predominant degrees, depths, and chemistry, as well as the genesis of salinization. The largest areas of saline and solonetzic soils are found in southern Russia, due to a combination of an arid climate, poor drainage, and the presence of saline rocks. This determines the predominantly chloride salinization of the soils of the Caspian Lowland. Further north in the Volga Federal District, the area of saline soils decreases, with chloride-sulfate salinization becoming predominantly present. Gypsum appears, and, more often in solonetzic and irrigated soils, soda also appears. Saline soils form underlain by saline loess-like loams and clays or at close proximity to mineralized groundwater. In the Central Federal District, saline soils are localized, as the area is better drained, and the soil moisture index is close to 1. They are primarily found in the south and southeast of the district. At higher elevations, sulfate-based saline soils develop on saline rocks and where mineralized groundwater approaches, while soda-based salinization is more common in the lowlands. Significantly fewer saline soils are found in the Northwestern Federal District, where saline soils are confined to the coast, forming under the influence of the sea and on marine saline sediments. This determines the predominantly sulfate-chloride and chloride types of salinization of coastal soils. Saline soils are found in the steppe and forest-steppe zones and in the Ural Federal District. In addition to climate, salinization is facilitated by outcrops of saline, often gypsum-bearing, rocks and a loamy soil texture. The chemistry of salinization is predominantly sulfate. Saline soils of the Siberian Federal District are divided into two sharply distinct regions. The western part of the district, which belongs to the West Siberian Plain, is where solonetz and solonetzic soils most often form, with soda chemistry dominating; the salinization type is continental, associated with climate and poor drainage of the territory. The eastern part of the district is characterized by smaller areas of saline soils; solonetz is extremely rare, and the chemistry is predominantly sulfate. Salinization is determined by gypsum-bearing saline deposits and the waters that erode them, including groundwater. Lake Baikal separates the soils of different salinization types. West of Lake Baikal, sulfate salinization clearly predominates, while to the east, a significant proportion of soils exhibit soda salinization, which is prevalent in eastern Transbaikalia. The causes of salinization in Transbaikalia are similar to those in Western Siberia. Both regions lack saline rocks, gypsum, and salt deposits; salinization is primarily continental in origin, and soda-based chemistry or soda-based chemistry predominates. The chemistry and causes of salinization in the soils of the Far Eastern Federal District are different. In the Lena Valley, in the absence of saline rocks or deposits, sulfate-chloride and chloride-saline soils form under permafrost conditions. Permafrost prevents chloride salts from leaching from the profile. In northern Yakutia, Chukotka, and on the country’s eastern coast, predominantly chloride salinization is determined by proximity to the sea and the presence of marine sediments. In Kamchatka, in a zone of increased seismic and volcanic activity, the presence of saline soils is determined by hydrothermal systems, leading to the formation of alum-type salinization.

Keywords: soil salinization maps of Russia, salt accumulation factors, chemistry, depth, degree of salinization, salt genesis, areas of saline soils, administrative units of the Russian Federation.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-3-78-113

EDN: IJHMMC

PREDICTIVE ASSESSMENTS OF THE IMPACT OF MODERN GLOBAL WARMING ON THE LANDSCAPE-ZONAL CONDITIONS OF THE VOLGA RIVER BASIN

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Kolomyts E.G. Predictive Assessments of the Impact of modern global Warming of the Landscape-zonal Conditions of the Volga River Basin // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 3. 2025. P. 114-135. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

Prognostic landscape-ecological scenarios of the nearest future of biosphere have been considered for the first time by the example of a large region, such as the basin of the Volga River. The analysis was based on a method of regional landscape-ecological prognosis, developed by the author, using the methods of discrete mathematics. The analytic and cartographic models of future landscape-ecological conditions were obtained for 2050, 2075 and 2100. The mechanisms of shifts in the mosaic structure of vegetation, soils and landscapes have been revealed on the model territory under different scenarios of disturbing influence of climatic system, which are anticipated in the foreseeable future, i.e., before the end of XXI century. Forthcoming warming caused by human activities and accompanied by the superfluous increase of the surface river flow will occur at the expense of the relative decrease of evapotranspiration, especially, of the groundwater flow. A progressively increasing thermo-arid bioclimatic trend has been predicted, with a general shift of zonal boundaries to the north and with the corresponding changes in the water regime of soils and plant cover structure of the territory. The prognostic models showed the convergence of phytocoenoses into new zonal types of vegetation.

Keywords: global warming, Volga River basin, water balance, vegetation cover, nature zonality, empirical-statistical modeling, regional landscape-ecological prognoses.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-3-114-135

EDN: IKDWFM

REVIEW OF SOILSALINIZATIONINTHE RUSSIAN NORTH FOR THE PERIOD OF 1933-2024

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Chernousenko G.I. Review of Soil Salinization in the Russian North for the Period of 1933-2024  // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 2. 2025. P. 43-78. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

 

In this article the works on the soil salinization of the Arctic coast, adjacent subarctic regions of Russia and the Arctic Oceanislands are summarizes, and the definitions of saline soils and saline grounds are explained. Additionally, the distribution and types of frozen saline rocks in coastal zones, sources of salts and factors that determine the specifics of soil formation, including salinization methods and processes (such as leaching of rocks, exchange reactions, desulfation, freezing/thawing), are considered. The existing classifications of coastal soils are analyzed. The distribution, chemistry and degree of soil salinization are studiedusingthe analytical data: starting from the coast of the White Sea and the Ainov Islands of the Barents Sea in the west, to the Chukchi coast and Wrangel Island in the east. Salinization was registered on the coast of the White, Barents, Kara, East Siberian and Laptev Seas, on the Yugorsk and the Yamal Peninsulas, on Vaygach, Sharapovy Koshki, Bolshevik, Bolshoy and Maly Lyakhovsky, Faddeyevsky, Wrangel, Dunay islands, and the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago. The chemistry of soil salinization was thoroughly considered to find out that chloride-sodium chemistry dominates closer to the sea, in the peat soils and soils with a heavier granulometric composition. Meanwhile, on lighter rocks further from the coast, as well as inthe soils on marine terraceswith mobile chlorides washed out from the profile, sulfates begin to predominate, and their chemistry is mostly chloride-sulfate, sometimes with gypsum. In soils with gypsum, the proportion of magnesium is higher, or even dominant in some cases. Soil salinization varies from weak to solonchaks. The ongoing climate aridization will eventually redistributethe saline territories and, possibly, reduce their area due to permafrost degradation and a probable increase in precipitation. Aridization of the northern regions might change the dominant chemistry of salinization, meaning that the predominantly chloride type will most likelychange to chloride-sulfate or sulfate magnesium-sodium.

Keywords: chemistry, degree of salinization, genesis of salts, analytical data, climate change.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-2-43-78

EDN: BLLZXW

EMPIRICAL-SIMULATION PREDICTIVE MODELING OF FOREST ECOSYSTEMS IN THEIR CLIMATOGENIC MONITORING

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Kolomyts E.G. Empirical-simulation Predictive Modeling of Forest Ecosystems in Their Climatogenic Monitoring // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 2. 2025. P. 79-104. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

The article presents a strategy for studying the mechanisms of functional and structural organization of forest ecosystems as objects of terrestrial geosystem monitoring. The spatial-functional monitoring of forests is based on empirically established local and regional landscape-ecological connections, which are considered as mechanisms of metabolic reactions of forest ecosystems to certain climatic trends. This is the novelty of the basic and predictive empirical-simulation concept of regional and local geoecological monitoring developed by the author. Ordination analysis of landscape connections is aimed at identifying transitions of forest communities to critical states according to the main discrete parameters of biological circulation. Catenary landscape-ecological structures that form regional systems of localized natural zonality are capable of imitating the main directions and scales of geosystemic restructurings. Landscape-ecological forecasting is experimental in nature. It is presented as a system of operations with ecological (hydrothermal) niches of the objects under study. In calculation models, the course of predicted processes is reproduced using their empirical imitation by spatially distributed parameters of basic ecological niches. The description of future states of biogeocoenotic systems is carried out according to their current spatial organization in accordance with the fundamental properties of ergodicity of the natural environment. The ambiguous nature of the transformation of forest topogeosystems is revealed at a fixed value of the regional geophysical trend, when their new state can have features of not one, but several basic states. A working algorithm for predictive landscape-ecological calculations is presented. Based on geoecological forecasts, the problem of regulating the quality of the natural environment under global climate change through carbon balances and the functional stability of forest ecosystems is covered.

Keywords: climate change, forest ecosystems, geoecological monitoring, empirical-statistical modeling, ordination analysis, empirical simulation of regional climatic trends, polyzonality of biogeocoenological systems, landscape-ecological forecasting.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-2-79-103

EDN: TXDHTT

POPULATION INDICES AND FAUNA COMPOSITION OF SMALL MAMMALS IN THE ZEYA NATURE RESERVE AND ITS ADJACENT TERRITORIES UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF NATURE AND HYDRAULIC CONSTRUCTION

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Podolsky S.A., Levik L.Yu., Pavlova K.P., Chemirskaya D.S., Chervova  L.V. Population Indices and Fauna Composition of Small Mammals in the Zeya Nature Reserve and Its Adjacent Territories under the Influence of Nature and Hydraulic Construction // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 2. 2025. P. 105-130. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

The construction of large water reservoirs in the Amur Region causes numerous negative environmental consequences, changing the boundaries of species’ ranges, as well as reducing the species diversity in zoocomplexes and the number of many animal species. In addition, populations and communities under the influence of reservoirs continue to experience fluctuations due to natural processes. A reliable group of indicators for studying the impact of hydroelectric construction on terrestrial animals are small mammals, such as Rodentia and Eulipotyphla, most of which undergo frequent generational changes and, therefore, have a quick response to changes in their habitats.

In this article, we consider the main natural factors influencing the dynamics of the number of Rodentia and Eulipotyphla in the Zeya Nature Reserve, as well as changes in the abundance and fauna composition of small mammal communities on the shores of the Zeya Water Reservoir and in the influence zone of the Lower Zeya Hydroelectric Complex which is currently under construction. In the reserve and on the reservoir shores, we discovered 16 Rodentia species and 6 Eulipotyphla species. The dynamics of Rodentia number was studied on the basis of data obtained in 1982-2024, namely, from the censuses conducted on 27 trap-lines, with a total volume of about 48.5 thousand spring-loaded bar trap-days. The dynamics of Eulipotyphla was studied on the basis of data from 2003-2024, i.e., the censuses conducted on 8 trap-lines, with a total volume of about 22.9 thousand pitfall trap-days. In the reserve, we picked a zone on the mountainous shores for experimental observations, and another one that included low mountains outside the shores for background observations,

The main impact factors of the hydroelectric construction on the marginal and rare species of small mammals in the upper pool of the Zeya Reservoir are the flooding of valley habitats and the isolation of small groups of animals in the remaining habitats in the estuary areas of the valleys of the reservoir’s tributaries. Due to that the fauna of Rodentia and Eulipotyphla is already significantly depleted on the shores. The following species have disappeared from the area almost entirely: long-tailed ground squirrel (Urocitellus undulatus Pallas, 1779), reed vole (Alexandromys fortis Buchner, 1889), Amur lemming (Lemmus lemmus amurensis Vinogradov, 1924), slender shrew (Sorex gracillimus Thomas, 1907), Eurasian least shrew (Sorex minutissimus Zimmermann, 1780). Meanwhile, such species as the Maximowicz’s vole (Alexandromys maximowiczii Schrenk, 1859), tundra vole (Alexandromys oeconomus Pallas, 1776), striped field mouse (Apodemus agrarius Pallas, 1771), harvest mouse (Micromys minutus Pallas, 1771), flat-skulled shrew (Sorex roboratus Hollister, 1913), and Siberian large-toothed shrew (Sorex daphaenodon Thomas, 1907) changed their “common” or “numerous” status to “very rare”. Similar changes should be expected to occur on the shores of the Nizhne-Zeyskoye Reservoir, which is currently under construction.

The most significant influence factor of a large reservoir on the background species, such as the northern red-backed vole (Myodes rutilus Pallas, 1779), grey red-backed vole (Craseomys rufocanus Sundevall, 1846), and Laxmann’s shrew (Sorex caecutiens Laxmann, 1788), is its climate impact on the biotopes of the shores. It occurs at the same time with the natural number fluctuations of small mammals associated with the main abiotic natural factors, e.g., solar activity, precipitation and temperatures during the period of most active reproduction and the beginning of vegetation (May-June), as well as with the depth of snow cover. Both Rodentia and Eulipotyphla have an inverse correlation between the population dynamic and the amount of precipitation in May-June, as well as a direct correlation between the population dynamic and average temperatures in May-June. At the same time, for the influence zone of the Zeya Reservoir, a close and direct connection has been established between long-term changes in solar activity and precipitation in May-June.

Aside from short 3-4-year fluctuations, Rodentia species go through a long, almost 30-year-long cycle, occurring in an antiphase with similar fluctuations of the Wolf number curve; the population dynamic of Eulipotyphla is in an antiphase with 10-11-year-long cycles of solar activity.

The coasts of the Zeya Reservoir, we have discovered the deepest depressions and maximum amplitudes of population fluctuations both for Rodentia and Eulipotyphla. Moreover, shores such as these tend to become a zone of low abundance of small mammals. In Zeya, average annual losses compared to the background indicators are 8.7-16.2% for Rodentia, and 22.1% for Eulipotyphla. This causes deterioration in the food supply of many birds of prey and Mustelidae that feed on small mammals.

We have established that hydroelectric construction in the north of the Amur Region significantly reduces the species abundance and productivity of small mammal communities, which entails further losses in biodiversity. Due to both natural and anthropogenic factors, the coasts of large manmade water reservoirs turn into zones of reduced abundance of Rodentia and Eulipotyphla.

Acknowledgements. We are grateful to the management of the Zeya Nature Reserve for their help with organization and research.

Funding. This work was carried out for the Water Problems Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, theme No. FMWZ-2025-0002 “Researching the Formation Processes of the Surface and Ground Waters Quality, Natural and Anthropogenic Mechanisms of Ecological Changes in the Water Bodies, Development of Methods and Technologies for Managing Water Resources and Water Quality”, theme No. 1-22-37-1 of the Zeya Nature Reserve “Dynamics of Phenomena and Processes in the Ecosystems of the Zeya Nature Reserve and the Tokinsko-Stanovoy National Park”, state task No. 121051100137-4 of the Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) “Spatio-temporal Organization of Ecosystems under Environmental Change”; additionally, it was supported by the Development Program of the Interdisciplinary Scientific and Educational School of MSU “Future of the Planet and Global Environmental Change” and the Development Program of MSU (P. 1220).

Keywords: Rodentia, Eulipotyphla, fauna composition, population dynamic, influence zone of water reservoir, solar activity, precipitation, air temperature.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-2-104-129

EDN: YUUIHG

A REVIEW OF SOME PROBLEMS REGARDING THE RESEARCH OF EUTROPHICATION OF FRESHWATER RESERVOIRS

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Datsenko Y.S. A Review of Some Problems Regarding the Research of Eutrophication of Freshwater Reservoirs // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 2. 2025. P. 131-144. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

 

In this article we analyze the modern view on the effect that abiotic factors (hydrological, hydrophysical, hydrochemical) have on the primary productivity of water reservoirs, and the differences in the development of the eutrophication process in lakes and reservoirs, as well as the problems associated with assessing the trophic status of reservoirs. Using the results of model calculations performed for the Mozhaisk Reservoir, we show the features of the trend of changes in the state of the reservoir ecosystem.

Funding. This work was carried out as part of the state task for the Department of Land Hydrology of Moscow State University “Analysis, Modeling and Forecasting of Changes in Hydrological Systems, Water Resources and Quality of Surface Water” (I.10, TsITIS No. 121051400038-1)

Keywords: eutrophication, primary productivity, abiotic factors, reservoirs.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-2-130-143

EDN: ZZQFIN

NATURE COMPLEXES OF THE ARSHAN-ZELMEN WATER RESERVOIR COAST

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Ulanova S.S., Fedorova N.L., Bembeeyeva О.G., Dzhambinov V.Е., Chetyrev L.P. Nature Complexes of the Arshan-Zelmen Water Reservoir Coast // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 1. 2025. P. 5-34. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

 

In the Republic of Kalmykia, water reservoirs were created in the 1930s-1950s. However, their hydrological regimes, water quality, methods of use and surrounding landscapes have undergone massive changes since then. Unfortunately, no studies have been carried out to show specific changes in the quality of water and territories adjacent to the reservoirs that take place due to their creation and use. There is also an absence of studies on the current state of natural complexes along the coasts of reservoirs, as well as transformation of various components of their ecosystems (e.g. vegetation, soils, relief and biota). Therefore, the goal of our work was to characterize the current state of natural complexes on the coast of the Arshan-Zelmen water reservoir. In this study, we decided to identify and characterize the current state and changes in various indicators of the reservoir, such as the area of its water surface, mineralization of its water, features of its structural organization and functioning of ecotone systems on its coast based on the monitoring studies of 2001-2023. We used modern methods of landscape and ecological research, geobotanical indication, topological profiling, statistical processing, geoinformation technologies with the use of relevant materials of space imagery, and methods of the ecotone concept created by V.S. Zaletaev (1997). Analysis of the average long-term values of the water surface area for 1990-2023, carried out on the basis of remote sensing imagery, showed a threefold decrease in the size of the reservoir. The minimum and maximum levels of the reservoir were 25.0 m in 2021, and 29.6 m in 1990, while the maximum level change during the study period was 4.6 m. Since the creation of the reservoir, the mineralization of its surface waters had gradually increased from 2.4 g/dm3 in the 1980s to 9.4-21.72 g/dm3 in the spring of 2022, and then to 14.9-68.62 g/dm3 in the autumn of 2022. With its mineralization increasing in 2001-2017, the reservoir lost its irrigation purpose, and was used for large and small cattle until 2019. With a further salinity increase (to the level of brine) in 2020-2022, the use of this reservoir ceased completely. We revealed some features of the structural and functional organization of ecotone systems on the coast of the reservoir based on the monitoring of 2001-2023 that showed that there were targeted changes in the blocks of ecotone systems: the fluctuation block expanded up to 150 m due to shallowing; in the fluctuation and dynamic blocks, the mineralization of surface water and groundwater increased by 2.5-4 times, the abundance of halophytes and weeds increased as well. Groundwater in the ecotone zone is fed by the reservoir, as evidenced by groundwater running the deeper the further it flows from the reservoir’s rim, and by its increasing mineralization. Our study has shown that profound changes occurred in the Arshan-Zelmen reservoir and the surrounding landscapes when its water level dropped by 4.6 m.

Keywords: artificial water reservoirs, arid zone, Republic of Kalmykia, Arshan-Zelmen water reservoir, area, water mineralization, water–land ecotone systems.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-1-5-34

EDN: EIJLLO

ASSESSMENT OF GROUNDWATER PROTECTION AND VULNERABILITY IN THE LENA RIVER BASIN, THE REPUBLIC OF SAKHA (YAKUTIA)

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Belousova A.P., Oboturov A.S., Rudenko E.E. Assessment of Groundwater Protection and Vulnerability in the Lena River Basin, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 1. 2025. P. 59-81. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

For the first time, the methodology of small-scale (1:5 000 000) assessment of the protection and vulnerability of groundwater was applied in the Lena River Basin in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The already developed approach has been improved in order to apply it to an understudied and both geologically and landscape difficult area that mostly consisted of a cryolithozone.

To create a map of protection level, the following temporary maps were compiled: map of aeration zone, map of soil sorption capacity, map of protection zone, and map of active soil layer capacity. To create a map of the resulting vulnerability for the most industrially developed part of the Neryungrinsky District, we assessed a potential hazard to environment posed by the polluted groundwater of 4 wells that were part of the state monitoring network. Using mercury as an example, we showed that this indicator could change significantly and reach its highest values due to a large weight coefficient and inaccurate determination of water elements that characterize the 1st class of hazard. Despite our studies being observational and lacking quantitative assessments, its results indicate that the groundwater of the Lena River basin requires protection due to the increasing anthropogenic pressure associated with mining.

Funding. This work was carried out as part of the scientific program of the Water Problems Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, project No. FMWZ-2025-0002.

Keywords: groundwater, protection, vulnerability, protection zone, aeration zone, active layer.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-1-59-81

EDN: MZBZRS

ECOLOGICAL RESOURCES OF BOREAL FORESTS IN THE ADSORPTION OF GREENHOUSE GASES AND IN ADAPTATION TO GLOBAL WARMING (TO THE PARIS AGREEMENT ON CLIMATE CHANGE)

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Kolomyts E.G. Ecological Resources of Boreal Forests in the Adsorption of Greenhouse Gases and in Adaptation to Global Warming (to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change) // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 1. 2025. P. 82-113. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

One of the most important ways to achieve the goals stipulated by the Paris Agreement (2015) on climate change is to solve a two-fold task: 1) the adsorption of CO2 by the forest communities from the atmosphere during global warming, 2) their adaptation to these climate changes, which should ensure the effectiveness of adsorption itself. Report presents the regional experience of the numerical solution of this task. Calculations of the carbon balance of forests in the Oka–Volga River Basin were carried out for global forecasts of moderate and extreme warming. The proposed index of labile elastic-plastic stability of forest ecosystems, which characterizes their succession-restorative potential, was used as an indicator of adaptation. A numerical experiment was conducted to assess the effect of the elastic-plastic stability of forest formations and the predicted climatic conditions on the carbon balance. In the upcoming 100-year forecast period, the overall stability of forest formations should increase, and to the greatest extent with extreme warming. Accordingly, one should expect a significant increase in the ability of boreal forests to ab-sorb greenhouse gases. It is determined unambiguous picture of a significant increase in the adsorption capacity of boreal forests with a rise in their regenerative potential.

Funding. This research was funded by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, grant No. 18-05-00024-а.

Keywords: forest ecosystems, global warming, adsorption of greenhouse gases, adaptation of the forests to the climate change, predictive empirical-statistical modeling.

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-1-82-113

EDN: SJOGSL

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF РLANKTON AT ALBATROS AND FOROS STATIONS IN CRIMEA IN JANUARY 2024 AND 2025: OIL SPILL IN THE KERCH STRAIT

Ecology and dynamics Опубликовано автором

Shemetova D.V., Savitsky M.A., Rozhdestvenskaya I.A., Bragina A.A., Kuznetsov A.V. Comparative Study of Рlankton at Albatros and Foros Stations in Crimea in January 2024 and 2025: Oil Spill in the Kerch Strait // Ecosystems: ecology and dynamics. No 1. 2025. P. 114-122. | Abstract | PDF | Reference

 

In this paper we present a comparative study of plankton organisms at Albatros and Foros Stations in Crimea in January 2024 and 2025. Our research was conducted before and after an industrial disaster that occurred on December 15, 2024, when the fuel tankers “Volgoneft-212” and “Volgoneft-239” sank in the Kerch Strait, resulting in the discharge of approximately 2,400 tons of oil into the sea. The monitoring of microphytoplankton was carried out as part of the project “Ecology of the Heraklion Peninsula – Sirius.Summer” (Rus. “Экология Гераклейского полуострова – Сириус.Лето”). We sampled plankton using sequential filtration and performed its microscopic analyses. As a result, we observed a decrease in the biodiversity of planktonic organisms, particularly at the Foros Station, which is located closer to the spill epicenter. Distribution diagrams indicated a significant reduction in the number of morphotypes post-incident. The observed changes in community structure are presumably linked to the detrimental effects of anthropogenic pollution. These findings underscore the importance of continued monitoring of marine ecosystems to assess the dynamics of recovery processes and to formulate conservation strategies.

Keywords: Kerch Strait, industrial disaster, plankton, biodiversity, ecosystem, anthropogenic pollution.

Funding: The work was carried out using personal funds for the project task ‘Ecology of the Heraclea Peninsula and its Surroundings’ as part of the All-Russian educational initiative “Sirius.Summer: Start Your Project.”

DOI: 10.24412/2542-2006-2025-1-114-122

EDN: YJLBFE