Species of Orthosia Ochsenheimer, 1816 and Anorthoa Berio, 1980 genera (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) in Western Transbaikalia

We report for the first-time occurrence of three species from the genus Orthosia – O. ariuna Hrebl., O. askoldensis Stgr.; O. ella Butl., and a species Anorthoa munda Den. et Schiff on the territory of Western Transbaikalia. The faunas of these spring species are similar between Western and Eastern Transbaikalia (70%) and close to the fauna of the Far East (50%).

Dynamics of changes in thawing and freezing depth in soils of Western Transbaikalia in different types of permafrost distribution

This study reveals temperature regimes of the three contrasting ecosystems in the permafrost area of Western Transbaikalia: meadow-forest ecosystem, forest-steppe and dry-steppe. Annual profile temperature data show the functioning of the studied soils in cryogenic and long-term-seasonally-freezing temperature regime. The most explanatory temperature variables are temperature penetration above 5°C at 100 cm depth and the amount of days with temperature above 0.5°C and 10°C at 20 cm, 50 cm, and 100 cm depths. Also, this work presents a comparative analysis of indicators of soil climate change and shows the spatial-temporal distribution of the reaction of the thawing and freezing depth in soils.

The history of small mammal fauna of Western Transbaikalia: a brief review

The history of the Western Transbaikalia terrestrial fauna of small mammals from the Neogene to the Holocene was traced based on fossil-bearing localities. The main factors influencing the development of the Transbaikalia biota and the environment were the gradually increasing climate cooling and aridization for the last four million years in the region.

Fatty acid composition and lipid quality indices of bream Abramis brama (Linnaeus, 1758) of Lake Kotokel (Western Transbaikalia)

This paper describes the study of fatty acid (FA) composition and lipid quality indices of bream Abramis brama (Linnaeus, 1758) from Lake Kotokel (Western Transbaikalia). In the muscle tissues of bream sampled in 2009 and 2019, high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), including essential docosahexaenoic (DHA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA), and arachidonic acids were measured. Indicators of nutritional quality based on the fatty acid composition showed that the values of the hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic (HH) ratio indices were sufficiently high. The atherogenicity (AI) and thrombogenicity (TI) indices, which are indicators for the nutritional value, were less than 1 in the studied fish. In terms of flesh-lipid quality (FLQ), bream had the highest proportion of total EPA + DHA. According to the obtained data for the composition of fatty acids in the muscle tissue of the studied fish from Lake Kotokel, the anthropogenic load on Lake Kotokel has not yet had a statistically significant effect on the fish muscle quality.

The Comparison of Fatty Acid Composition and Lipid Quality Indices of Roach, Perch, and Pike of Lake Gusinoe (Western Transbaikalia)

This paper describes the study of the fatty acid (FA) composition of three fish species (roach, perch, and pike) from Lake Gusinoe (western Transbaikalia). Using principal component analysis, the fatty acid composition of the studied fish species was shown to be species specific. The muscle tissue of roach, perch, and pike was found to contain high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), including essential docosahexaenoic (DHA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA), and arachidonic acids. Indicators of nutritional quality based on the fatty acid composition showed that the values of the hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic (HH) ratio indices were sufficiently high. The atherogenicity (AI) and thrombogenicity (TI) indices, which are indicators for the nutritional value, were less than 1 in the studied fish. In terms of flesh lipid quality (FLQ), pike and perch had the highest proportion of total EPA + DHA. According to the obtained data for the composition of fatty acids in the muscle tissue of the studied fish from Lake Gusinoe, the anthropogenic load exerted on Lake Gusinoe has not yet statistically significantly affected the fish muscle quality.

Enzymative Activity of Soils in the Activity Territory of the Dzhida Tungsten-Molybdenum Combine (Western Zabaikalie)

The enzymatic activity (catalase, cellulase) of soils and technogenic sand on the territory of the former Dzhida tungsten-molybdenum combine (Western Transbaikalia) was studied. The objects of the study were the surface 0-10 cm layers of alluvial dark humus soil (Fluvisols) as a background, man-made sand (waste after mining and processing of tungsten and molybdenum ores) and soils of recultivated contours № 1, 3, 4. At the same depth, linen cloths were laid to assess the activity of cellulase. Differences in the activity of soil enzymes of the background soil and soils on the studied contours were established, depending on the level of heavy metals content in them and the technologies used for reclamation.

Formation of Banking in Western Transbaikalia in 19th Century: Merchant Initiatives

An analysis of the contribution of regional merchants to the process of forming a system of credit and financial institutions in the territory of Western Transbaikalia is presented in the article. The history of both successful and unsuccessful attempts to create bank ing institutions in the region has been reconstructed on the basis of reporting and officework documentation stored in the funds of the State Archives of the Republic of Buryatia and the Irkutsk Region, the Russian State Historical Archive. It was found that the creation of the regional banking system was based not on the state, but on the private initiative; the key role in the process was played by the merchants. According to the authors, in the process of organizing banks and loan offices, representatives of the merchants were guided not only by making a profit, but envisaged the use of part of the proceeds for charitable purposes. It was revealed that merchant initiatives were caused not only by the desire to expand the opportunities for entrepreneurial activity, but also by the desire to contribute to the development of the native land. It is concluded that the Transbaikal merchants played an important role in the socio-economic development of Western Transbaikalia and became the main driving force in integrating the region’s economy into the all-Russian financial system.

NATURAL ENVIRONMENT OF WESTERN TRANSBAIKALIA IN THE LATE GLACIAL AND LATE HOLOCENE

Представлен новый материал по исследованию отложений Еравнинской котловины. На основе палинологических и радиоуглеродных данных проведена реконструкция природной среды позднеледниковья и позднего голоцена. Выделены холодные и теплые периоды позднеледниковья, а также становление растительности в позднем голоцене. A new material on the study of sediments of the Eravna basin is presented. The results of pollen analysis clearly indicate the climate changes in the last Glacial and late Holocene. The regional climate became milder and more humid around 14.5–12.5 cal. BP, which corresponds to the Allerød interstadial of the European scale.