Zooplankton and macrozoo-benthos in small reservoirs in different types of landscapes in Southern Karelia

Baryshev I.A.

The presence of the invasive amphipod Gmelinoides fasciatus (Stebbing, 1899) has been established for the first time in the watercourse of the basin of Lake Vodlozero (Novguda River, a tributary of the Ileksa River), which is located on the territory of the Vodlozersky National Park (northwestern Russia). The new habitat is at a considerable distance from the previously known ones. The shortest route through water bodies (Ileksa River–Vodlozero Lake–Sukhaya Vodla River–Vodla River–Onega Lake) is about 180 km. This raises questions about the path and mode of spread of the invasive species. Along with migration through water bodies, it is proposed to consider the version of introduction of amphipods by tourists, in particular fishermen, with equipment or bait. A detailed survey of the littoral zone of Lake Vodlozero is recommended to determine the extent of the invasive settlement.

Baryshev I.A.

For the first time, the presence of the invasive amphipod Gmelinoides fasciatus (Stebbing, 1899) was established in the watercourse of the basin of Lake Vodlozero (Novguda River, a tributary of the Ileksa River), which is located on the territory of the National Park “Vodlozersky” (North-West Russia). The new habitat is at a considerable distance from the previously known ones. The shortest route through water bodies (Ileksa River–Vodlozero Lake–Sukhaya Vodla River–Vodla River–Onega Lake) is about 180 km. This raises questions about the path and mode of spread of the invasive species. Along with migration through water bodies, it is proposed to consider the version of introduction of amphipods by tourists, in particular fishermen, with equipment or bait. A detailed survey of the littoral zone of Lake Vodlozero is recommended to determine the extent of the invasive settlement.

Loskutova O.A., Baturina M.A.

The benthic communities in some large tundra lake ecosystems of European Russia are well-studied, but information on zoobenthos in small shallow tundra lakes is still insufficient. This article presents original information on the taxonomic structure, species composition, and quantitative development of macrozoobenthos communities in 26 small lakes of the Malozemelskaya Tundra and Bolshezemelskaya Tundra areas (July 2000–2014). In regards to the quantitative indicators of abundance, these water bodies are similar to other small water bodies at these latitudes. The biomass variation in wide ranges among lakes is caused by different dominant taxa. The species composition of macrozoobenthos is diverse. Oligochaetes, mollusks, and chironomids are highly rich in species composition, which generally corresponds to the trend identified for other water bodies of the Arctic tundra area.

Baryshev I.A.

The invasive amphipod Gmelinoides fasciatus (Stebbing, 1899) was not previously recorded in the rivers of the Lake Onega basin, although it has spread widely in its littoral in recent years. In 2019 and 2020, this species was found to inhabit the estuarine zones of watercourses (the Rybreka River and the Drugaya River) at a considerable distance from the lacustrine littoral zone (0.5 and 1.7 km, respectively). It was revealed that G. fasciatus is included in the communities of both pools and riffles and in some areas reaches dominant positions in the macrozoobenthos, which indicates the possibility of further expansion of its range owing to the river ecosystems of the region.

Berezina N.A., Litvinchuk L.F., Maximov A.A.

The seasonal variations in the biomass of planktonic and bottom invertebrates and their contributions to the diet of perch Perca fluviatilis and vendace Coregonus albula (>10 cm in body length) in an oligotrophic subarctic lake (Lake Krivoe) are studied. The distinct relationship between the food spectrum of fish with the composition of zooplankton and zoobenthos is revealed. It is shown that fish prefer to feed on mass objects (mainly zoobenthos), but both the seasonal variability of their contribution to the diet and their relative importance in fish of different lengths are significant. Amphipods (Gammarus lacustris and Monoporeia affinis) accounted for >90% in summer and >40% in autumn in the total weight of perch stomach content. Vendace consumed amphipods in the summer (>50%) and mollusks (up to 50%) in the autumn. Cladocerans are important food items in the autumn diet of fish (18–25%). In the diet of larger (18–25 cm) perch, the contributions of sticklebacks and vendace increased, but amphipods still prevailed (>40%).

Chertoprud M.V., Krylenko S.V., Lukinych A.I., Glazov P.M., Dubovskaya O.P., Chertoprud E.S.

The taxonomic structure, typology, species richness, and total abundance of bentic and littoral macroinvertebrate communities from small lakes of the Arctic and Subarctic zones are considered on the basis of original data from three northern Palearctic regions (the foot of the Putorana Plateau, Kolguev Island, and Western Svalbard Island). A comparative analysis of the communities of these regions has been carried out. The features of High Arctic insular, Low Arctic, subarctic, and boreal lake communities are discussed using a large volume of literature data. The complex pattern of changes in the total benthos biomass of small lakes has been revealed: it decreases in the subarctic taiga, increases in the hypoarctic tundra, and decreases again in the High Arctic.

Dvoretsky V.G., Dvoretsky A.G.

Zooplankton assemblages are of great importance in aquatic food webs because they link lower (microplankton) and higher trophic levels (top predators). Small water bodies in the Arctic regions of Russia are less studied in winter because of severe ice conditions. For this reason, we analyzed the winter zooplankton community in Lake Kulonga (western coast of Kola Bay, Barents Sea). A total of 9 taxa were found in the samples. The total abundance varied from 200 to 1320 ind. m−3, averaging 705 ind. m−3. The total zooplankton biomass was 1.8–72.8 mg of wet mass m−3 with an average of 30 mg m−3. These parameters were lower than in other Russian Arctic and sub-arctic lakes in summer. Old copepodites of Cyclops spp. dominated the zooplankton community at deep-water stations in terms of the total abundance consisting of 24–33%. The copepod Macrocyclops albidus prevailed in terms of the total zooplankton biomass comprising 30–33% at deep-water stations while Cyclops scutifer and copepodites Cyclops spp. had the highest biomass at shallow water stations. Vertical distribution demonstrated different patterns at neighboring stations, probably as a result of differences in the density of fish predators.