Vol 102, No 6 (2023)

The results of original studies on the helminth fauna of the Black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla L.) (10 ad. and 10 juv.) in the northern part of Kara Sea (Severnaya Zemlya Archipelago and Wiese Island) carried out in 2019–2020 are presented. Eight species of helminthes (1 trematode, 4 cestodes and 3 nematodes) have been registered. For the first time in seabirds in the high latitudes of the Arctic, the trematode, Diplostomum sp. and the nematode, Paracuaria adunca have been recorded. Adult birds have been established to be infected mainly with cestodes of the family Dilepididae while nestlings mainly with cestodes of the family Tetrabothriidae. The presence of 5 common species in the helminth fauna of kittiwakes in the northern part of Kara Sea and in the northern part of Novaya Zemlya (Severnyi Island) has been noted due to the similarity of the feeding range of the birds in these areas. Possible causes for the features revealed in the infection of kittiwakes (food preferences, distribution of the foci of invasion and the influence of abiotic factors) are analyzed.

The following new taxa are described from Panama: Panamacla invaginata gen. et sp. n. from the subtribe Mexiaclina Gorochov 2014; Aclella (Selvacla) totumas sp. n., Neoacla (Superacla) omelkoi sp. n. and N. (S.) mikhaili sp. n. from the subtribe Neoaclina Desutter 1988, as well as Paragryllus specularis sp. n. from the subtribe Paragryllina Desutter 1988. All these subtribes, genera and subgenera are recorded from Panama for the first time. The former genus Selvacla Otte 2006 stat. n. and the subgenus Hattersleya Nischk et Otte 2000 stat. resurr. are resurrected from synonymy as subgenera of the genera Aclella Desutter-Grandcolas 2000 and Neoacla Desutter 1988, respectively. The subgenus Superacla Gorochov 2009 stat. resurr. is restored in the status of a subgenus of the genus Neoacla.

As part of the XXI Kamchatka-Kuril expedition of the Russian Geographical Society, with the assistance of the Russian Federation Ministry of Defense, a survey of the littoral ichthyofauna of Matua Island was carried out in 2017. Fishes were caught by hand under stones in tidal pools and with a net during low tide. Fishing was performed in three areas: Cape Klyuv, Cape Yurlova, and Dvoynaya Bay. The fish caught were fixed in 6% formalin. Laboratory processing was carried out: the total length TL was measured with an accuracy of 1 mm, weighed with an accuracy of 0.1 g. Representatives of the families Cottidae, Hexagrammidae, Liparidae, Pholidae, Stichaeidae, Zoarcidae were found in the littoral areas. The size characteristics of the family representatives discovered, and the areas and depth of their capture were presented. In the littoral zone, we found a number of species previously not recorded from this area in the literature. The species compositions of the littoral ichthyofauna of Paramushir Island, Matua Island, Iturup Island, Shikotan Island and Kunashir Island were compared. Only the Stippled gunnel, Rhodymenichthys dolichogaster and the Frog sculpin, Myoxocephalus stelleri were found shared by all those islands. The ichthyofauna of Matua Island shows the greatest similarity to that of Paramushir Island.

Southeastern Fennoscandia, which encompasses the Republic of Karelia and the adjacent districts of the Leningrad and Arkhangelsk regions, until lately remained an area of Russia’s European North especially poorly prospected as regards the status of the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus). Modern (2001–2022) records of this species obtained through the authors’ original observations and based on reports received from respondents, altogether covering 212 hedgehogs and 182 encounters, are analyzed. Spatio-temporal patterns in the species’ records in the region are demonstrated, viz. an expanding distribution area and a growing frequency of encounters from northwest to southeast. The northernmost records are shown (64.368° N, 30.383° E), including yearlings (63.624°–63.924° N, 30.466°–30.901° E, northern taiga subzone), as well as the first reports of the species east of Lake Onego both in Karelia and the Arkhangelsk Region. The studies have revealed habitat preferences and the rate of use of urban territories in the north of the distribution range: high shares of records come from deciduous (34.0% of the total number of animals reported) and mixed (19.3%) forest sites, as well as farmland (10.8%), second-home communities (16.5%), and rural settlements (9.0%). Hedgehog encounters in cut-over places, pine and spruce stands, wetlands, abandoned hamlets, and solitary buildings in the woods were few (0.5–6.1%). Most of the records were a result of accidental sightings by humans (80.8%), while domestic dogs spotted 19.2% of the hedgehogs. The earliest encounters in spring were recorded on 25.04–11.05, the latest in autumn on 2–17.09. The number of hedgehog encounters during their active life period was the lowest in April (1.1%), growing sharply in May and June (16.7 and 17.8%, respectively), peaking in July and August (30.0 and 24.4%), and falling sharply in September (10.0%). Some of the population parameters were determined: an average brood was 2.8 young of the year, whose share amounted to 24.5% of the total number of records; active single animals prevailed among adults (86.3%), and much smaller shares belonged to active pairs (7.6%) and females with litter (6.1%). The main cause of the deaths was road killing by vehicles (77.4%). Climate warming and forest structure alterations may be reasons to expect further expansions of the area of hedgehog encounters, e.g., to transformed and urbanized boreal areas.