Chemical and algological composition of the snow cover at the mouth of the Onega river (White Sea basin)

In the study, the content and speciation of Mn, Pb, Cd, Zn, Cr, Ni, Co, Cu, and Fe in the snow cover at the mouth of the Onega river (White Sea basin) at the end of the winter periods in 2018, 2019 and 2020 were determined. Winter 2019 year was the snowiest, as the maximum values of the snow cover depth and water equivalent were almost two times higher than in all other years. The total content of suspended matter in the snow cover was 0.2–5.5 μg/L. Increased concentrations of suspended solids were identified near highways. Mn, Cr and Ni were present in the snow cover mainly in their dissolved form, while Fe, Pb and Co were mostly contained as solids. The algological composition of the snow cover was also studied.

EARLY SUMMER ZOOPLANKTON OF LAKE VOZHE AND LACHA (VOLOGDA REGION)

In June 2015, zooplankton (Cladocera, Copepoda, Rotifera) of lakes Vozhe and Lacha, Svid’ River and the headwaters of the Onega River (catchment of the Onega River, White Sea basin) was examined. It was found that crustaceans (mainly the copepods Mesocyclops leuckarti and Eudiaptomus gracilis) dominated the community. The biomass of zooplankton (<1 g / m3) indicated a low food supply for fish (poorly fed water bodies), compared with the beginning of the 1970s, it decreased by 4–10 times. The composition and structure of the community characterized the ecosystem status of the Lake Vozhe as eutrophic, and Lake Lacha as mesotrophic. Changes in the structure of zooplankton over 40 years testified to the eutrophication of the ecosystem of Lake Vozhe and stabilization at the level of mesotrophy of Lake Lacha. In the lakes, the dispersal and relatively high abundance of some thermophilic species (Polyarthra luminosa, Thermocyclops crassus), indicators of eutrophic conditions that were previously absent in the community, were revealed. The productivity (14–34 cal / m2 × day) and the respiration rate of zooplankton (61–122 cal / m2 × day) of the lakes corresponded to the level of northern oligotrophic water bodies. It was shown that at the beginning of summer a significant part of the zooplankton production was consumed by planktonic predators (mainly copepods). Fishes had access to about 15% of the daily production of zooplankton in Lake Vozhe and up to 43% in Lake Lacha. A small proportion of filter feeders (30–60% of the total biomass) was recorded in the modern zooplankton of lakes. By 2015, the filtration capacity of plankton from lakes Vozhe and Lacha decreased by an order of magnitude compared to that in the 1980s. The low self-cleaning ability of lake waters is discussed as the main reason for the growing organic pollution and increased silt accumulation in their ecosystems.

Response of communities of water organisms to anthropogenic changes in mineralization small steam (White Sea basin, Republic of Karelia, Russia)

An increase in water mineralization in the Kenti River has occurred as a result of mining at the Kostomuksha iron ore deposit (Republic of Karelia, north-west of the European part of Russia); it has become a relatively new type of anthropogenic impact. Meantime, the total mineralization of water in the upper reaches of the Kenti River reached 800 mg/L. The species composition, abundance and biomass of phytoplankton, phytoperiphyton, zooplankton, and zoobenthos were analyzed. The influence of natural and anthropogenic factors on the chemical composition and formation of the structure of aquatic biocoenoses was assessed. The trophic status of the river, its saprobity, and the significance of particular communities and biotic indices for bioindication of the ecological state was studied. Dominant complex of the Kenti River was represented by a small number of species that were resistant to the dynamic load of water. The abundance and biomass of phytoplankton, phytoperiphyton, zooplankton, and zoobenthos made it possible to conclude on rather high degree of their development in river, as well as on their vital activity and flexibility. It was then reported on the ability of the river ecosystem to restore.

Phytoperiphyton of watercourses from the White Sea Basin (Murmansk District, Republic of Karelia, Russia)

The results of phytoperiphyton studies in 92 watercourses of the White Sea basin are summarized and analyzed. Totally 540 taxa with a rank below the genus were identified. They belong to six divisions: Cyanophyta – 76, Ochrophyta – 374, Euglenophyta – 3, Dinophyta – 4, Rhodophyta – 8 and Chlorophyta – 75. Diatoms, cyanobacteria and chlorophytes form the basis of the species diversity (> 90%) in all studied rivers. The predominance of these groups reflects the specificity of the phytoperiphyton in the river systems of the boreal and subarctic zones. Leading families are Naviculaceae (174 species), Achnanthaceae (45), Desmidiaceae (43) and Fragilaceaceae (36). Together they cover 337 species or 65% of the total number of species found. The group of leading genera (187 species, 35%) includes Eunotia – 36 species, Achnanthes – 33, Navicula – 48, Pinnularia – 39, and Cymbella – 31 species. The heterogeneity of the climatic regime in the study area determines the simultaneous presence in the algae flora of widespread eurythermic species characteristic of the taiga zone, stenothermic rheophiles of alpine origin and the boreal complex typical of wetlands. The dominant complex is represented by a small number of species resistant to dynamic water loading. It is noted that the ecological-geographical spectra of algae are dominated by widespread oligogalobic species, acidophilic or indifferent to the pH of the medium. The relative importance of indicator species in the formation of groupings allows to refer the waters of the studied watercourses and reservoirs to the second class of purity.

Velocity structure and density inhomogeneities of the White Sea crust

The study area is the White Sea basin and adjacent territories. The relevance of the work carried out here is determined by active geodynamics, kimberlite magmatism, and prospects for the hydrocarbon search. The authors set the goal to model the velocity structure of the region’s crust using data from instrumental observations and the Integro software package. A comprehensive interpretation of gravimetric, magnetometric, seismic, petrophysical and geological data has been carried out. With the help of 2D models based on the DSZ profiles and digital maps of geophysical fields, refined density structures of local sections of the earth’s crust have been specified. The developed 3D density model gives a general picture of the deep structure of the region’s crust. Within its framework, the spatial positions of the layers of the velocity reference model are determined and their connections with density inhomogeneities and geophysical anomalies are established.

Genomic evidence supports the introgression between two sympatric stickleback species inhabiting the White Sea basin

Interspecies hybridization is driven by a complex interplay of factors where introgression plays an important role. In the present study, the transfer of genetic material, between two quite distant fish species from different genera, through spontaneous hybridization was documented with dedicated molecular and bioinformatics tools. We investigate the genomic landscape of putative stickleback-relative introgression by carefully analyzing the tractable transposable elements (TE) on the admixed genome of some individuals of two sympatric stickleback species inhabiting northwestern Russia, namely the three-spined (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and the nine-spined (Pungitius pungitius) sticklebacks. Our data revealed that unique TE amplification types exist, supporting our proposed hypothesis that infers on the interspecific introgression. By running a restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (RAD-Seq) with eight samples of G. aculeatus and P. pungitius and subjecting further the results to a contrasting analysis by variated bioinformatic tools, we identified the related introgression-linked markers. The admixture nature observed in a single sample of the nine-spined stickleback demonstrated the possible traces of remote introgression between these two species. Our work reveals the potential that introgression has on providing particular variants at a high-frequency speed while linking blocks of sequence with multiple functional mutations. However, even though our results are of significant interest, an increased number of samples displaying the introgression are required to further ascertain our conclusions.