Volume 48, Nº 3 (2017)

The linear increment of Sphagnum fuscum and S. magellanicum in ombrotrophic mires of Western Siberia has been measured during two years over a transect about 2500 km long extending from forest–steppe to forest–tundra. Along the latitudinal gradient, the increment of both species has proved to be correlated with annual average air temperature and, in S. magellanicum, also with annual precipitation. The determinants of their growth differ between the southern, central, and northern parts of the study region. At the regional level, the annual and summer precipitation plays a more important role than the average air temperature. The increment of S. fuscum in the southern part is positively correlated with the amount of precipitation and negatively correlated with summer temperature, whereas the situation in the central part is inverse. In S. magellanicum, the linear increment is directly dependent on the annual average temperature and annual and summer precipitation in the south and on the annual and summer precipitation in the north of Western Siberia. The dynamics of linear growth of both species in bog pine forests during the growing season are similar: its rate is the highest in June, when the linear increment of S. fuscum and S. magellanicum amounts to 60 and 85% of the annual total, respectively.

The aim of this study was to determine type of response curves for seventeen woody species (10 tree and 7 shrub species) to soil factors in an intact riparian forest in Safaroud River in northern Iran using HOF function. Data were collected along transects established perpendicular to the water flow on both sides of the river. Results indicated different responses for different woody species. The most common were symmetricunimodal response curves and curves showing an increase in occurrence probability after a certain value in form of a plateau. Bimodal curves were four times more frequent in riverside than forest interior area. It seems that river flow disturbances through frequent floods effect on species tolerance and optimum in riversides.

Consideration is given to the relevance of error assessment in quantitative studies on fish ecology. A classification is given to the sources of error, and it is shown how to estimate the cumulative error of indices used in the study and, on this basis, to plan further research.

Environmental conditions developing at the boundary of windfall- and fire-damaged forest biocenoses at different stages of progressive succession have a positive effect on the total abundance of rodents, but the role of ecotone in forming the structure of their microhabitats is ambiguous. The complex of biotic and abiotic conditions in the ecotone has a positive influence on the size of shrub coverage area and the abundance of saplings, whereas the influence of the edge effect on other microhabitat parameters (namely, herbaceous and moss coverage) is negative or neutral.

Variability of the length of the white area on the outermost quill feathers of the great tit from two cities in the Middle Ural has been investigated. Dynamics of the average length of the white area in the birds from the city of Asbest reproduced the dynamics observed in the city of Yekaterinburg with a one-year lag in the females and a two-year lag in the males. Phenotypic changes in the great tit population did not occur simultaneously in the whole population, but rather moved along the living range with a certain velocity (50–60 km/year for the females and 25–30 km/year for the males). The results obtained are discussed in view of the concepts of population biology.

The patterns of molt in the chiffchaffs of the nominotypical subspecies from central Europe and eastern European subspecies from the Ladoga region are compared with that of the Siberian subspecies from the lower Ob region. The onset dates of postjuvenile molt in the Siberian subspecies are controlled endogenously, while in the nominative and, probably, eastern European subspecies they are under photoperiodic control. The molt of chiffchaffs from central Europe is no less complete than in birds from the Ladoga region and more complete than in Siberian birds. The individual duration of molt is the shortest in Siberian birds and the longest in central European birds, being intermediate in birds from the Ladoga region. Differences in the pattern of postnuptial molt between chiffchaffs from the Ladoga and Ob regions concern its duration and completeness. The completeness of molt proved to be reduced in half of examined birds from the Ladoga region and in some birds from the Ob region. The duration of complete molt in birds from the Ob region is smaller (40 days vs. 60 days in birds from the Ladoga region) at a longer daylight period, which is evidence for a higher rate of feather growth. The completeness and timing of prenuptial molt do not differ between the subspecies.

Modeling the distribution patterns of species is a generally efficient tool to assess their ecological characteristics. In this study, we compared ecological niche factor analysis (ENFA) and maximum entropy (Maxent) techniques to predict the most suitable distribution range of Rana macrocnemis. The Maxent model predicted potential suitable habitats for R. macrocnemis with high success rates (AUC Training data = 0.877 ± 0.039). According to the map constructed, three important variables had high contribution to species presence: temperature (50.4%), land cover (24.6%) and elevation (14.4%) variables. The ENFA results were relatively similar to Maxent jackknife analysis. The results implied that R. macrocnemis prefers grassland and needle leaf deciduous forest with high elevations, and low temperature.