Ecological Zoning of Forests in Areas Exposed to Industrial Air Pollution

Morphometric characteristics of the growth of forest stands located at different distances from a large copper-smelting plant were estimated. The set of diagnostic parameters obtained was used for calculating summary parameters of the state (SPSs) of the forest stands and to grade their values for zoning the forests. The results of using semivariance analysis demonstrated the appropriateness of kriging, a method of spatial interpolation, for mapping the surfaces of the state of forests. The map-scheme of the zones differing in the state of forest stands (made on the basis of summary parameters) was compared with the topographic map of the area, which made it possible to estimate the effect of large forms of relief on the location and configuration of the zones.     

Specific Features of Root System Structure in Pinus sylvestrisL. and Larix sukaczewiiDyl. under Conditions of the Ufa Industrial Center

Russian Journal of Ecology -     

Phenes of Woody Plants: Identification,Scaling, and Use in Population Studies (An Example of Pinus sylvestrisL.)

The methods of identification and scaling of phenes of forest plants are described. The phene identification consists of five stages. Specific features of studies at each stage are shown using identification of the phenes of seed color, cone color, and seed scale structure in Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestrisL.) as examples. The method of phene scaling is based on the comparison of phene frequencies in a bog and in adjacent upland populations of pine. At the boundary between the bog and dry land, the frequencies of population-level phenes change, whereas those of superpopulation-level phenes remain unchanged.     

Specific Cytogenetic Characteristics of Pinus cretaceae and Pinus sylvestris

A comparative cytogenetic study has been performed in four populations of two pine species, Pinus cretaceae Kalen. and P. sylvestris L., growing on sandy and chalky substrates in Voronezh and Belgorod oblasts. Significant differences in the parameters of mitotic and nucleolar activities, as well as the rate and spectrum of mitotic pathology, between populations of P. cretaceae and P. sylvestris and between populations of P. cretaceae growing under different conditions have been found. Populations of P. sylvestris growing on sandy and chalky substrates differ from each other in nucleolar activity. These differences may be adaptive and reflect the characteristic metabolic patterns and biological plasticity of pines growing under specific conditions.     

The Root System of Larix sukaczewii Dyl. in the Polluted Environment of the Ufa Industrial Center

Russian Journal of Ecology -     

中国工业系统各行业综合污染度评价方法与实例

中国的环境问题很大程度上与高强度和低效益的工业经济活动有关.降低工业系统污染程度无疑对我国建设资源节约型和环境友好型社会具有重要意义.对工韭系统各行业污染度进行定量化的综合评价,得到单一化的污染度指数,可方便不同行业间清洁水平的比较,可为各地区工业布局和工业结构的调整提供理论依据.本文初步建立了中国工业系统污染度综合评价的方法,并对栽十五期间(2001-2005)我国重点调查的41个工业行业的综合污染度进行了评价,得到了各行业的综合污染度评价指数、排名及其变化情况.结果表明,十五期间,我国工业系统污染度总体上有较大幅度的降低,各行业污染度差别较大,有的行业污染度有大幅下降,有的行业还有所增加.本文的研究成果可为建设资源节约型和环境友好型社会提供重要理论支持.     

Change in the Life Cycle Strategy of Fish under the Effect of Chronic Water Pollution

Fish of a polymorphic and evolutionarily young species Coregonus lavaretusfrom a subarctic lake that has been polluted for more than 60 years are used as an example for analyzing principal trends in the dynamics of structural and functional organization of fish populations. It is shown that fish exposed to sublethal doses of toxic substances for a long time have a smaller body size, the period of their sexual maturation becomes more variable, and the frequency of spawning and life span decrease. The biochemical and bioenergetic mechanisms of variation in populations are analyzed. The ecological expediency of change in the life cycle strategy corresponding to r-selection (conversion to a short reproductive cycle) is substantiated.     

Effect of Climatic Changes on the Formation of Siberian Spruce Generations in Subglotsy Tree Stands of the Southern Urals

The correlation between climatic changes and the numbers of trees in the generations of Siberian spruce (Picea obovata Ledeb.) in subgoltsy tree stands of the Southern Urals was analyzed over the past 200 years. The results showed that the most abundant generations appeared in 1809–1816, 1821–1827, 1839–1845, 1850–1867, 1875–1887, 1891–1896, 1900–1904, 1911–1918, 1923–1932, 1944–1952, 1958–1966, and 1975–1995. Their formation proved to be related to the improvement of thermal conditions of the warm season during the five to seven years before and after the emergence of trees and conditions of the cold season in the year of their emergence, as well as to the periods of increased snow depth in late April in the years 27–32 of tree growth.     

Ecophysiological Responses of Larix sibiricaLedeb. and Pinus sibiricaDu Tour Undergrowth to Climate Change

The effects of probable climate change—an increase in atmospheric CO₂(by two times), air temperature, precipitation—on CO₂exchange and temperature dependence of net photosynthesis in the larch and Siberian stone pine undergrowth formed in the light larch forests of West Siberia were studied in chambers with an artificial climate. The change of the aforementioned ecological factors caused an increase in the temperature optima of photosynthesis and the range of optimum temperatures (in the case of Siberian stone pine, to a slightly greater degree). Therefore, the ranges of both species may broaden, and the Siberian stone pine can expand to the north, displacing larch tree stands.     

Abnormal Cranial Variation in the Sable (Martes zibellinaL.) and the State of Environment

An abnormal cranial variation in the sable (Martes zibellinaL.) from the extreme Russian Northeast was studied. In the populations formed as a result of reacclimation, the proportion of animals with morphological cranial anomalies proved to be significantly higher than in the parental populations (from which the animals for reintroduction were taken). Probable factors responsible for this effect are discussed.     

Structure and formation of conifer stands in the upper timberline ecotone on the North Chuya Ridge,Central Altai

The structure of Siberian stone pine (Pinus sibirica Du Tour.) and Siberian larch (Larix sibirica Ledeb.) stands and specific features of their formation have been studies in the forest-tundra ecotone on the North Chuya Ridge (2235–2475 m a.s.l.). Changes in the structure of these stands along the transition from the upper boundary of closed forests to the high-mountain tundra have proved to have an ambiguous pattern. Both tree species form mixed clusters of similar-aged trees in the lower part of the ecotone but grow singly, in scatters, in its upper part. The formation of conifer stands (tree clusters) in the lower part of the ecotone, on the slopes of the Aktru River valley, began during climate warming in the second half of the 19th century. The expansion of confers to its upper part took place markedly later, in the early 20th century (Siberian larch) or even in the 1930s (Siberian stone pine).     

Effect of Ecological Factors on the Accumulation of Fluorine by Larches, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Larix gmelinii</Emphasis> (Rupr.) Rupr. and <Emphasis Type="Italic">L. sibirica</Emphasis> Ledeb., in Eastern Siberia

The accumulation of fluorine in the trunk wood and branches of Larix gmelinii growing on soils with a naturally increased fluoride content and of L. sibirica growing in a zone affected by atmospheric emissions from an aluminum plant has been studied. Based on results of in vivo and in vitro experiments, it is concluded that larch trees manifest individual differences in their response to fluorine.     

Sea Otters (Enhydra lutris L.) of Bering Island, the Commander Islands: Age and Sex Composition of Dead Animals and Spatial Distribution

Animal censuses and assessment of mortality in the sea otter subpopulation of Bering Island (the Commander Islands) have shown that indices of seasonal mortality may be used as a criterion for estimating well-being of this animal group. In 1999, the subpopulation of Bering Island entered a phase of stabilization of its spatial, age, and sex structure, with the stabilization process proper taking approximately three years after a peak of mortality. Mortality in the course of this process proved to be relatively high in age groups older than eight years but insignificant among middle-aged reproductive animals. As the age and sex structure of the insular group varies during the year and in different coastal areas, the data obtained by collecting dead animals cannot be used for estimating the structure of the whole population.     

Altitudinal and horizontal shifts of the upper boundaries of open and closed forests in the Polar Urals in the 20th century

In the Polar Urals (the Rai-Iz massif and Mounts Tchernaya and Malaya Tchernaya), altitudinal and horizontal shifts of the upper boundary of open and closed larch forests in the 20th century have been studied. Spatiotemporal parameters of these shifts have been assessed with the aid of the ARC/INFO geographic information system (ESRI Inc., United States), using our original large-scale geobotanical maps showing the distribution of different types of forest-tundra communities in the early 1910s and 2000s. The results show that tree vegetation has been actively expanding to higher elevations over the past 90 years. On average, the upper boundaries of open and closed forests have ascended 26 and 35 m and shifted horizontally 290 and 520 m, respectively. These shifts have been conditioned by climate warming and increasing humidity observed since the 1920s.     

Effect of Extractive Compounds from Lichens and Mosses on the Development of Basidiospores and Mycelium of Tinder Fungus

It has been shown that extracts from the thalli of lichens and mosses have an adverse effect on the viability and germination of spores and suppress the asexual reproduction of the haploid mycelium. The dikaryotic mycelium and its conidial spores are more resistant to the action of extractive compounds from lichens and mosses.     

Morphophysiological and Population Adaptations ofAjuga reptansL. at the Northern Boundary of Its Range

The results of comprehensive morphophysiological and population studies on Ajuga reptansL., a species of the nemoral floristic complex, at the northern boundary of its range (in the middle taiga subzone of the Komi Republic) are reviewed. Adaptations at the cell, organism, and biocenotic levels are revealed. The maintenance and survival of the species at the boundary of its range are provided for by its physiological plasticity, resistance to low temperatures, and multiple variants of ontogeny. Prognosis of Ajuga reptansfuture status under conditions of global climate change and expansion of anthropogenically disturbed areas is favorable.     

Effect of Climatic Changes on Radial Increment and Age Structure Formation in High-Mountain Larch Forests of the Kuznetsk Ala Tau

The relationship between growth indices and renewal rates of the Siberian larch (Larix sibiricaLedeb.) stands that have grown at the timberline in the Kuznetsk Ala Tau mountains during the past 350 years was analyzed. The age generations of larch were formed in the 1640s, 1660s, 1680s, 1700s, 1720s, 1740s, 1760s–1770s, 1800s–1810s, 1850s, 1870s–1880s, 1900s, 1920s, and 1930s–1940s. It was shown that the formation of these age generations coincided with 10- to 30-year periods of increased growth of larch and improved temperature conditions in summer.