Taxonomic composition and trophic structure of benthic fauna in rocky rapids and riffles in rivers of the Republic of Karelia and Murmansk Oblast

Abstract

The composition of bottom invertebrates in rocky rapids and riffles in rivers of the White, Barents, and Baltic seas in the territory of Eastern Fennoscandia is presented and analyzed. A total of 114 species (137 taxa of different ranks) have been identified. Most of them have Euro-Siberian (44%) and Palaearctic (36%) distribution. Regarding the feeding mode, collector–gatherers (32%) and collector–filterers (25%) dominate among trophic groups. Differences in the composition of zoobenthos between the southern and northern parts of the region can be explained not by the fauna genesis, but by latitudinal zoning.