Vol 9, No 4 (2018)

The history of introduction and invasive processes for nine mammal species, namely, muskrat, American mink, steppe polecat, sable, river beaver, muskox, wood bison, Siberian roe deer, and red deer, in Yakutia is considered. Introduction of the muskrat was carried out in 1930–1932 and this species was well adapted to the new conditions and spread in all natural zones of Yakutia. Mink was introduced into southern Yakutia in 1961–1964; its distribution is limited by environmental barriers, and the total number now constitutes 4000–5000 individuals. Steppe polecat was introduced into Central Yakutia in 1980–1983; the species is poorly adapted and its number constitutes only 150–200 individuals and tends to decrease; the population may disappear in the coming years. The reintroduction of the sable was conducted in 1948–1958 and the species now is widespread throughout the taiga part of Yakutia with the number varying at the level of 250 000–300 000 individuals. European beavers were released in 2001–2003, but animals did not survive at the places of introduction for various reasons. The muskox was introduced into different parts of the arctic zone of Yakutia from 1996 to 2017 with 199 individuals; today the number amounts to 2600 individuals. The naturalization process to subarctic ecosystems is successful. Wood bison was shipped to the republic from 2006 to 2013, and the animals were kept only in captive breeding centers until 2017. The total number doubled and reached 184 individuals. In November 2017, 30 bison were released. The modern range of Siberian roe deer was formed in the 20th century through the introduction from the adjacent territories of the Far East and southern Siberia. The species is mainly distributed in Central Yakutia, and its number constitutes 24 000 individuals. The red deer has inhabited the territory of Yakutia simultaneously with the roe deer from the same regions. Now its range covers southern and Central Yakutia, and the number constitutes 10 000–13 000 individuals.

The analysis of competitive documentation, contract documents, and technical assignments from 477 government contracts on control of the Heracleum sosnowskyi Manden. invasion carried out in 18 Russian regions from 2011 to 2017 is presented. According to the data posted on the official website of the Unified Information System in the field of procurement, 95% of the contracts were signed to destroy H. sosnowskyi plants, and the rest were connected with the determination of invaded areas, the development of methods for their elimination, and the supervision of the works carried out. The stands of H. sosnowskyi were mapped on an area of 169 000 ha and were destroyed on an area of 18 000 ha. The total cost of the contracts amounted to 314 million rubles. The mowing cost of H. sosnowskyi was about 30 000 rubles/ha; the cost for treating thickets with herbicides was 14 500 rubles/ha (median values). The median cost of mapping the H. sosnowskyi stands was about 370 rubles/ha. The high variability of the cost of the work was revealed for the contracts with treatment of areas less than 5 ha. The largest scale works on H. sosnowskyi eradication were conducted in the Leningrad, Moscow, and Vologda oblasts, where the funds for invasion control were reserved in the regional budgets. In the context of limited funding, systemic work on H. sosnowskyi thicket control should be initiated with a pilot project on the territory of one or two settlements, and then this experience should be extended to a larger region. Data on 477 government contracts used in the paper are freely available on the server Zenodo.

Asian carpet beetle Anthrenus coloratus Reitter, 1881 (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) is reported in Russia for the first time. This species, being a harmful pest of museum zoological, artisan, historical, and other collections, is of significant practical importance. As a rule, exhibits and stock objects that have animal origin (dry skins and carcasses, stuffed animals, entomological collections, etc.) or include natural materials of animal origin (wool and fur products) are exposed to damage. A. coloratus is widespread in Eurasia, Africa, and North America. There is information about the presence of the species in South America. The distribution, biological features, harmfulness, and possible invasion of this alien species are discussed in the paper.

Human activities, including biological invasions, cause large-scale changes in the distribution of organisms, one of the consequences of which is biotic homogenization, revealed to various degrees for different biotic groups. Russian researchers use the term “unification of biota” to explain the increase in taxonomic similarity between regions as a result of invasions, but there are no quantitative estimates of this phenomenon. The change in the similarity or difference between regional floras taking into account the alien species naturalized in them is estimated for the regions of the middle part of European Russia by comparing the Jaccard similarity coefficients. Inclusion of the naturalized plant species in the floras increases their distinctions owing to differentiated naturalization depending on natural conditions. However, the presence of different structural groups has different effects on the similarity/differences between the floras. The annual/biennial species have a greater homogenizing effect unlike the herbaceous perennials and tree species, as well as the species biogeographically associated with the analyzed floras, unlike the species alien to European Russia (with their natural distribution ranges beyond the territory of European Russia). The analysis does disagrees with the opinion of Russian authors on unambiguous “unification of biota” as a result of alien species introduction and confirms the view of some researchers that biotic homogenization is not an inevitable fact in biological invasions.

A new finding of the alien leaf beetle Paridea angulicollis (Motschulsky, 1854) in the south of Primorsky krai is described. This insect is a potential pest of cultivated plant species of the family Cucurbitaceae in the south of the Far East.

Data on the way of invasion of representatives of the family Amaranthaceae Juss. into plant communities of saline habitats of Southeastern Europe—participation in formation of cenoses, distribution, and ecological features of habitats—are given. Only two North American species of this family—Amaranthus albus L. and A. retroflexus L.—are revealed in the specified ecotopes. They obviously cannot exert a considerable impact on communities, because they are not abundant and their occurrence there is low.