CONTENT - International Society of Zoological Sciences

S1 ICZ2008 - Abstracts
Characteristics of habitats and reproduction of taiga birds in
Yakutia
Nikolai I. Germogenov
Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone SB RAS, 41 Lenin
avenue, 677980 Yakutsk, Russia
Yakutia is a large high-latitude region in the north-east of the
Palearctic with extreme rigid conditions for bird habitats and their
breeding comparable with adjacent areas by richness and abundance
of avian fauna (308 species of 19 orders). Taiga as a natural zonal
system plays a leading role for 87.0% of the regional avian fauna
including 89.0% of nesting species. It is distinguished with
supercontinental climate, landscape diversity, broad zonality and
vertical belts, mountain dominance, specific heat-and water condition
of perennially frozen grounds, low bioproductivity. Because of high
watering and afforestation of the area its nest complex is rich in wood-
and waterbirds.
Reduced vegetative period is determined with deficit of the nesting
time on the background of unpredictable conditions for breeding
according to years and their seasonal instability, which become more
expressed northwards and especially by mountains. This is leveled
with local ecological-climatic conditions i.e. warming effect of water
bodies, thermoarid effect of depressions, cryoarid influence of plains,
well-developed floodplains, azonal landscapes.
To maintain their proper existence and reproduction many birds
change their stereotypes, which were previously acquired in the area
optimum. The season of nesting is significantly shorter, proceeds in
much earlier phenological conditions and its initial stages are shifted
for a calendar subsequent time. Having abundant monocyclic species
with small clutches, of them over 80% lay similar number of eggs or
sometimes even greater than in the other parts of the area.
Birds are mainly carnivorous, plastic when choosing food depending
on its abundance and availability. Impoverishment of food resource
composition under an increasing mosaic pattern while spreading and
simultaneous abundance of some food items causes narrowing of
nutrition spectra and limitation of the number of main food items for
birds and their nestlings.
Rare and protected birds in South Yakutia
Nikolai I.Germogenov, Victor G. Degtyarev, Arkady P. Isayev, Nikolai
N. Egorov and Vasily V. Okoneshnikov
Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone SB RAS, 41 Lenin
avenue, 677980 Yakutsk, Russia
South Yakutia is the largest quickly developing industrial region of
Siberia and Far East due to its natural resources development (gold,
gas, oil, coal, wood, water power) and their supply through project oilgas
pipelines, network of car and railway lines, transmission lines
purposed at inner and outer markets. Besides, the region is
distinguished with rich biodiversity; here live the Evenks – indigenous
not numerous North people leading traditional nature management
(hunting, reindeer breeding).
A weak ornithological component of biodiversity as the basis of
regional ecological balance is rare and endangered species. 69 rare
bird species including 51 protected are currently recorded in Yakutia,
of them 16 joined the Russia Red Data Book (additionally to casual
Mandarin duck and Asian Marble murrelet), 9 are in IUCN Red List of
Threatened Animals (additionally to Falcated teal, Yellow-breasted
bunting and Black-tailed godwit), even more species are in
Threatened Birds of Asia, CITES Supplements, Bonn Convention on
conservation of migratory animal species, migratory birds and their
habitats signed by Russia and a number of countries. Yakutia has key
ornithological territories of national and international importance. In
some parts of the Aldan basin during migrations over 10% of the
world Siberian crane population, nearly 1% of Baikal teal are recorded;
large breeding groups of Hooded crane and preserved local Siberian
jay population is also reported here.
The coming transformation of South Yakutia ecosystems demands
optimization of species and territorial forms of biodiversity
conservation.
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Eastern population of Siberian crane: structure, habitats, nesting
and migration
Nikolai I. Germogenov, Nickita G. Solomonov, Anatoli E. Pshennikov,
Andrey G. Degtyarev, Sleptsov M. Sleptsov, Nickolai N. Egorov, Inga
P. Bysykatova, Maria V. Vladimirtseva and Basili V. Okoneshnikov
Institute for Biological Problems of Cryolithozone SB RAS, 41 Lenin
avenue, 677980 Yakutsk, Russia.
Siberian crane Grus leucogeranus (Pallas, 1773) is an endangered
species of the world fauna. It is represented by a western population
comprising a few pairs and nesting in West Siberia with their winter
grounds in Iran and an eastern one breeding in northeastern tundras
of Yakutia. Owing to the efforts of scientific nature conservation
agencies of the countries concerned including communities the latter
is in relatively safety condition – up to 4000 birds are reported on their
winter grounds in China. This presentation summarizes research
materials conducted with participation of foreign partners during bird
banding and use of Platform Transmitter Terminals (PTT) within the
range of the population in 1990-2007.
There are three megapopulations of nesting Siberian crane over
Yakutia. The study of the Indigirka reproductive habitat shows that
Siberian cranes inhabit wetlands (near lake and boggy sites) located
as high as 14-19 m a.s.l. neighboring upon large lakes in a mosaic
and irregular pattern. These wetlands comprise 21-26% of the territory,
their state is defined by permafrost condition. Because of abrasia and
soil ice thaw the habitat areas are reducing. In the optimal grounds
nesting density is 5 pairs/100 km 2 . The pairs keep the same sites,
which have nests used many times or once irrespective of the
breeding participation.
Brood occurrence is 4.3-83.0% but availability of very successful
breeding cycles is small (12.5%). The population stock are pairs
(89%), of them 50% are aged 20 years old and over.
In Yakutia fall migration proceeding in a narrow corridor is very busy
and lasts 20-25 days. In the north-east of China in Jilin and Laonin
Provinces transit concentrations of 500-1500 birds are observed for a
month.
On the diversity and phylogeography of freshwater snails of the
genus Pachychilus in Guatemala: How many species are there?
Maria Gomez 1 , Frank Köhler 2 ; Thomas von Rintelen 1 and Matthias
Glaubrecht 1
1
Museum für Naturkunde, Humboldt-Universität, Invalidenstrasse 43,
10115 Berlin, Germany
2
Malacology Section, Division of Invertebrate Zoology, Australian
Museum, 6 College Street, Sydney NSW 2010, Australia
Situated right in the heart of Central America, one of earth’s
biodiversity hotspots, Guatemala is characterized by two rugged
mountain chains that were uplifted during a dynamic geological history.
The dramatic contrasts between the lowlands and highlands promote
a huge diversity of ecosystems that harbour a mega-diverse and due
to their geographical isolation largely endemic biota.
The present study focuses on one of the more conspicuous elements
of the macro-invertebrate fauna of the rivers of Guatemala, snails of
the genus Pachychilus I. & H. Lea, 1850. These molluscs are
considered as an essential element of the riverine food-web. However,
there is little understanding of their systematics, diversity, and ecology.
A phylogeographic study based on samplings from a large number of
localities across the whole country and on two mitochondrial genes
(COI, 16S), provides evidence for the existence of various well
differentiated and likely endemic river clades.
In contrast to this significant genetic differentiation, we found that
morphological variation between most species is often subtle. We
conclude that due to the high degree of superficial similarity, one
might underestimate the true diversity of the group. In fact, we are
convinced that most of the 27 described taxa from Guatemala should
be considered as valid species. These species are usually restricted
to rather small areas, such as single rivers or river systems. We
anticipate that future revisionary work will probably lead to the
identification of further, yet unrecognized species.