BIOTIC DIVERSITY OF KARELIA: CONDITIONS OF FORMATION, COMMUNITIES AND SPECIES

The monograph generalises vast data characterising the diversity of the biota in Russian Karelia. The data pool includes both materials of long-term studies, and new data collected in 1997–2000 within the Russian-Finnish project “Inventory and studies of biological diversity in Republic of Karelia”. The volume is composed of four interrelated chapters. Chapter one provides a detailed account of the climatic, geological, geomorphological, hydrological and soil conditions in which the regional biota has been forming. Chapter two describes and evaluates the diversity of forest, mire and meadow communities, and the third chapter details the terrestrial biota at the species level (vascular plants, mosses, aphyllophoroid fungi, lichens, mammals, birds, insects). A special section is devoted to the flora and fauna of aquatic ecosystems (algae, zooplankton, periphyton, macrozoobenthos, fishes). Wide use is made of various zoning approaches based on biodiversity-related criteria. Current status of the regional biota, including its diversity in protected areas, is analysed with elements of the human impact assessment. A concise glossary of the terms used is annexed. This is an unprecedentally multi-faceted review, at least for the taiga zone of European Russia. The volume offers extensive reference materials for researchers in a widest range of ecological and biological fields, including graduate and post-graduate students. The monograph is also available in Russian

BIOTIC DIVERSITY OF KARELIA: CONDITIONS OF FORMATION, COMMUNITIES AND SPECIES

The monograph generalises vast data characterising the diversity of the biota in Russian Karelia. The data pool includes both materials of long-term studies, and new data collected in 1997–2000 within the Russian-Finnish project “Inventory and studies of biological diversity in Republic of Karelia”. The volume is composed of four interrelated chapters. Chapter one provides a detailed account of the climatic, geological, geomorphological, hydrological and soil conditions in which the regional biota has been forming. Chapter two describes and evaluates the diversity of forest, mire and meadow communities, and the third chapter details the terrestrial biota at the species level (vascular plants, mosses, aphyllophoroid fungi, lichens, mammals, birds, insects). A special section is devoted to the flora and fauna of aquatic ecosystems (algae, zooplankton, periphyton, macrozoobenthos, fishes). Wide use is made of various zoning approaches based on biodiversity-related criteria. Current status of the regional biota, including its diversity in protected areas, is analysed with elements of the human impact assessment. A concise glossary of the terms used is annexed. This is an unprecedentally multi-faceted review, at least for the taiga zone of European Russia. The volume offers extensive reference materials for researchers in a widest range of ecological and biological fields, including graduate and post-graduate students. The monograph is also available in Russian

Long-term forest composition and its drivers in taiga forests in NW Russia

Understanding the processes behind long-term boreal forest dynamics can provide information that assists in predicting future boreal vegetation under changing environmental conditions. Here, we examine Holocene stand-scale vegetation dynamics and its drivers at the western boundary of the Russian taiga forest in NW Russia. Fossil pollen and conifer stomata records from four small hollow sites and two lake sites are used to reconstruct local vegetation dynamics during the Holocene. Variation partitioning is used to assess the relative importance of the potential drivers (temperature, forest fires and growing site wetness) to the long-term stand-scale dynamics in taiga forest. All the main tree taxa, including the boreal keystone species Picea abies (Norway spruce) and Larix sibirica (Siberian larch), have been locally present since 10,000 cal yr BP. The constant Holocene presence of L. sibirica at three small hollow sites suggests a fast postglacial immigration of the species in northern Europe. Picea was present but not dominant at all study sites until its expansion between 8,000 and 7,000 cal yr BP markedly changed the forest structure through the suppression of Betula (birch), Pinus (pine) and Larix. Our results demonstrate that in general, the Holocene forest dynamics in our study region have been driven by temperature, but during short intervals the role of local factors, especially forest fires, has been prominent. The comparison between sites reveals the importance of local factors in stand-scale dynamics in taiga forests. Therefore, the future responses of taiga forest to climate change will be predominantly modulated by the local characteristics at the site