Agriculture in the Baksan Gorge of the Central Caucasus, Kabardino-Balkaria, Russia

No agriculture is possible without soil. This article reviews available data on the soils of the Baksan Gorge located in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Russia. The research objective was to collect and analyze information on the soil composition and crop yields in this region of the Central Caucasus. The review covered the last five years of scientific publications cited in Scopus, Web of Science, and Elibrary. It also featured contemporary and archival documents on the soil composition and periglacial agriculture in the Baksan Gorge. The agriculture and cattle breeding started in the Central Caucasus in the first millennium BC when the local peoples began to develop these lands as highland pastures and, subsequently, for agricultural farming. During the second millennium BC, crop production became one of the most important economic sectors in the Central Caucasus. Corn, barley, wheat, and millet were the main agricultural crops in the Baksan Gorge. Millet has always been a traditional Kabardian crop, and millet farming occupied the largest flatland areas. Barley was the staple crop in the highlands. Currently, the list of local staple crops includes corn, wheat, and sunflower. Barley, oats, peas, potatoes, vegetables, berries, nuts, grapes, and annual herbs are also popular. The past fifteen years have seen an extensive development of intensive horticulture in the Baksan Gorge. Agricultural ecology and production problems depend on the localization of agriculture in the Central Caucasus. This research reviewed data on the effect of soil composition on the yield and value of agricultural crops in the Baksan Gorge of the Central Caucasus

Black carbon as a factor in deglaciation in polar and mountain ecosystems: A review

Black carbon is considered a product of the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and materials that originated from volcanic eruptions or were emitted during wildfires. It is a strong light-absorbing component that has many atmospheric and surface effects in terrestrial and glacial ecosystems. Normally, black carbon is presented as a solid particle, consisting mainly of pure carbon, which absorbs solar radiation at all wavelengths. Some black carbon particles are amended by a mineral compound, though black carbon substances are normally dark or greyish dark. Black carbon is the most active part of suspended particles in the atmosphere and on glacial surfaces, absorbing solar radiation, the main component of ash, which consists of carbon particles with impurities in the form of mineral particles and also contains carbon of biogenic origin. In this paper, we have analyzed the literature on black carbon and its effect on deglaciation processes in the Earth’s polar and mountainous regions. The physical, chemical, and microbiological composition of black carbon accumulations were studied using the examples of the Arctic, the Antarctic, and the Central Caucasus. Potential sources and conditions of the transportation of black carbon into the polar zone and their effect on ice and snow have also been discussed

Meadow biogeocenoses in the subalpine belt of the Kabardino-Balkaria State High-Mountain Reserve (Central Caucasus)

The study describes the current ecological-biological state of the high-mountain meadow biogeocoenoses' components (soils, vegetation, earthworms), which were formed in the subalpine belt of the Cherek-Bezengi canyon in the Kabardino-Balkaria State High-Mountain Reserve. The vegetation has been represented mainly by subalpine meadows. In medium-grass meadow phytocoenoses, the proportion of mesophytes was 70%, xeromesophytes – 20%, mesoxerophytes – 10%. Synecological indices (Shannon Index, Simpson Index, Pielou Index, Hartley Index and integral index) indicated a high floristic and phytocenosis diversity of hay meadows and a lower diversity of phytocoenoses of disturbed areas. Lumbricidae were the best represented in the mesofauna. Six species (with dominance of Dendrobaena schmidti) have been found in a small site of the Cherek-Bezengi canyon. These species are adapted to the cold and humid climate of the high-mountain region of the Central Caucasus. Distribution of forest earthworm species in the subalpine belt and changes of their habitats indicated more comfortable temperature conditions of meadow ecosystems in comparison with forest ecosystems. It also demonstrates the role of thermal balance as the basic limiting factor forming biotic coenoses. Based on enzymatic activity parameters and humus content, we determined the levels and spatial variation of biological activity of mountain-meadow subalpine soils which have been formed under meadow phytocoenoses. We have shown the essential dominance of hydrolase activity (high and middle levels) in comparison with oxidoreductase activity (low and very low levels). This characterises the intensity and direction of biochemical processes in high-mountain soil. Under conditions of disturbed phytocoenoses, we have determined a decrease of both the total soil biological activity (at 65%) and the integral biodiversity index (at 20%). A close joint connection between the investigated biological parameters (r = 0.74–0.86) reflected the important role of biotic communities' diversity in forming biological activity of mountain-meadow subalpine soils. The obtained data serve as a basis for monitoring of the soil-vegetation cover. Their protection is a requirement to maintain the biodiversity status in the Kabardino-Balkaria State High-Mountain Reserve