Anatomical Features of the Leaves of Honckenya peploides and Cochlearia officinalis in the Supralittoral and Littoral Zones of the Barents Sea

The specific and spatial structure of benthic algal community on the littoral zone in the east area of Murman coast of the Barents Sea (69°11'78''N, 36°04'38''E) has been studied in the conditions of anthropogenic influence absence. As a material for studying indicators of fucoid community and populations of dominating species in connection with habitats own long-term seasonal observations and data of scientific expeditions of 1994-2017 have served. The species composition of littoral phytocenosis consists of 39 species including 18 brown, 9 red and 12 green seaweeds, with prevalence on number of annual and seasonal species, on a biomass - perennials. Ecological factors influence essentially on seaweed distribution in different sites of the littoral zone. The major abiotic factors are presence of firm substratum, surf and storms, ice motion. Seaweed littoral community had multi-level structure, in which the basic layer was occupied by brown seaweeds with numerous litophytes and epiphytes under beds and on thallus of dominant species. The community algal biomass in the littoral zone was from 2.8 ± 0.6 up to 17.7 ± 2.9 kg/m² and depended on the species structure, substratum for benthic seaweeds, surf and tides. The biomass and density of fucoid seaweeds varied over a wide range in different biotopes under a natural rigid press of seasonal changes of environmental factors (temperature, surfs, storms) during tides and under natural damages of littoral community in the arctic region. As a whole littoral fucoid phytocenosis of the bay could be considered as an example of adaptation of seaweeds populations to the conditions of the northern seas. The received results could be useful for estimating ecological status of coastal ecosystem, at stock assessment of commercial seaweeds and for algal aquaculture development in the Barents Sea.

Climate models indicate the Arctic will undergo dramatic environmental change with forecasted increases in temperature and river runoff. Saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) is abundant in nearshore waters and appears in the diet of many Arctic sea birds and marine mammals; however, little is known about its early ecology and consequently how they might be affected by environmental changes. We aimed to characterize the mechanisms of spatial and ontogenetic variation in trophic biomarkers (lipid classes, fatty acids and bulk C and N stable isotopes) of saffron cod from the Western Arctic, Chukchi and Bering Seas. Size-standardized analyses showed a significant difference in lipid condition metrics and trophic biomarkers as a function of survey location. Both ontogeny and sampling location played an important role in determining lipid stores with elevated levels in both small offshore juveniles ( 75 mm). Higher lipid storage in Arctic juveniles was associated with elevated levels of diatom fatty acid markers, but not with nearshore carbon input. Increased lipids were found in age-1 juveniles from Prudhoe Bay in the Western Beaufort that were feeding at a lower trophic level than similarly sized age-0 juveniles from surface trawls in the Bering Sea. The use of otolith annuli revealed two discrete patterns of growth that help explain the trade-offs between energy storage and rapid growth that diverge between the Arctic and Bering Sea. Laboratory temperature-growth experiments confirmed that saffron cod have a eurythermal growth response and are able to store excess lipids at temperatures as high as 20 °C.

The paradox of pelagic food webs in the northern Bering Sea—II. Zooplankton communities

Three unknown Littorina species were revealed by allozyme study of snails from the northwestern Pacific. One of them was found in Kasatka Bay (Pacific coast of Iturup Island, south Kurile Islands) together with L. sitkana, which it resembled in anatomical features, but the genetic distance between these species was D=0.622. The second one was found in Tauiskaya Inlet (northern part of Okhotsk Sea) and was again similar to L. sitkana in morphological and anatomical features, but D=1.160. The third species was found in Egvekinot Inlet (Anadyrskiy Gulf, Bering Sea) in sympatry with L. natica, to which was close genetically (D=0.256) although it differed in shell shape.

The morphological and anatomical parameters of the vegetative and generative organs of plants Plantago maritima L. were studied in different biotopes of the littoral zone on the coast of the White Sea in the vicinity of the village Rastnavolok (Belomorsky district, Republic of Karelia). It has been established that plants have developed certain adaptations to conditions of the littoral zone: two biomorphs are formed (rosette and upper rosette with elongated upper internodes) as an adaptation to covering with soil during tides and storms. Within the littoral zone under different flooding conditions, plants differ in some anatomical features. The thickness of the water-strage parenchyma correlates directly with the thickness of the leaf, it varies within the littoral zone depending on the time the plants are flooded with salt water. Well-developed integumentary and mechanical tissues of the root and rosette shoots are an adaptive response to the mobility of the soil substrate and water mass during tidal surges. The development of aerenchyma in underground vegetative organs ensures gas exchange under flooding conditions. Significant differences of the studied anatomical and morphological parameters in biotopes of the littoral showed the wide adaptive capabilities of P. maritima, which ensure its dominance in the plant communities of the White Sea coast.

The main aim of our work was to investigate the biodiversity of coastal lichens, conditions of lichen cover formation, and study the structural and functional adaptations of Lecanora intricata (Ach.) Ach. and L. polytropa (Ehrh. ex Hoffm.) Rabenh. The investigation was carried out during 2008-2012 on cliffs both along the Murmansk (the Barents Sea) coast and the southern and western shores of the White Sea. For the evaluation of species composition, and ecotopic coenotical features of epilithic lichen growing on cliffs, the geobotanical methods have been used. In addition, the anatomical, morphological and biochemical studies of Lecanora intricata and L. polytropa have been made. 91 species have been included in the total list of lichens on the White Sea coast. On the Murmask coast of the Barents Sea, 36 lichen species had revealed. On the coastal territory, the epilithic lichens inhabit the upper littoral and supralittoral zone. The lichen cover is formed by two interacting factors: the water factor (sea) and the terrestrial vegetation. Four lichen zones were distinguished in the all studying territories. They differed by the lichen species composition and effect of the sea. The first lichen’s zone is the intrazonal structure in the complex coastal lichen cover. In Lecanora polytropa and L. intricata, structural and functional features of lichens for adaptation to unstable coastal conditions were identified. The crustose biomorphs were better adapted to temperature and degree of hydration of thalli. Formation of the smallest ascospores is reproductive strategy of epilithic lichens in extreme habitats. High content of usnic acid in the studied lichen thalli allows them to exist in the open areas exposed to solar radiation and provides the biotic regulation that affects the structure of lichen cover. Optimal ratio of algal to fungal components in the thalli of these species is necessary to maintain their life in extreme environments.

page 371 Abstract Relatively little is known about fish species interactions in offshore areas of the world's oceans because adequate experimental controls are typically unavailable in such vast areas. However, pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) are numerous and have an alternating-year pattern of abundance that provides a natural experimental control to test for interspecific competition in the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea. Since a number of studies have recently examined pink salmon interactions with other salmon, we reviewed them in an effort to describe patterns of interaction over broad regions of the ocean. Research consistently indicated that pink salmon significantly altered prey abundance of other salmon species (e.g., zooplankton, squid), leading to altered diet, reduced total prey consumption and growth, delayed maturation, and reduced survival, depending on species and locale. Reduced survival was observed in chum salmon (O. keta) and Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) originating from Puget Sound and in Bristol Bay sockeye salmon (O. nerka). Growth of pink salmon was not measurably affected by other salmon species, but their growth was sometimes inversely related to their own abundance. In all marine studies, pink salmon affected other species through exploitation of prey resources rather than interference. Interspecific competition was observed in nearshore and offshore waters of the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, and one study

The number and diversity of cultivated microscopic fungi isolated from seawater, littoral and supralittoral soil on the coast of the Barents Sea were studied. Communities of microfungi are mainly represented by facultative marine fungi of terrigenous origin. The isolates mainly belonged to anamorphic fungi of the department Ascomycota and are represented by the genera Penicillium, Aspergillus, Talaromyces, Trichoderma, Acremonium etc., characteristic of the cold northern seas. The frequently found species in the study area were Aspergillus brasiliensis, Penicillium hirsutum, P. glabrum, P. spinulosum, P. janczewskii, Trichoderma koningii, T. viride, Talaromyces purpureogenus. The number of fungi in the supralittoral soil is two to three orders of magnitude higher than in the soils of the littoral zone and averaged from 4 to 13 thousand CFU/g. In sea water, the number of fungi was only a few units per ml. The maximum number of saccharolytic fungi was noted in the soils of the supralittoral zone. In the soils of the littoral and sea water, the number of hydrocarbon-oxidizing fungi varied from 52.5 to 143.3 CFU/g and from 0 to 4 CFU/ml, respectively. The number of saccharolytics varied from 0 to 113 CFU/g in the littoral soil and from 0 to 3 CFU/mL in sea water in all the studied areas, except for the most polluted ones, where it reached values of 200 CFU/g. An increase in the proportion of saccharolytic fungi in sea water and littoral may indicate anthropogenic pollution of the area, including hydrocarbons and other organic compounds. The urbanized areas of the Kola Bay with a high anthropogenic load were characterized by a richer species diversity and an increase in the proportion of pathogenic and opportunistic forms of microscopic fungi. A high level of hydrocarbon pollution negatively affected the number of saccharolytic fungi, while lower values of hydrocarbon content did not affect the number of saccharolytics. The number of fungi grown on Czapek’s mineral medium decreased as the amount of hydrocarbons both in sea water and in the littoral zone increased, which may indicate a high vulnerability of marine microfungi to pollution.

The Bering Sea provides over one‐half of U.S. fishery production, yet knowledge of the use of its shallow (<5 m), nearshore (<20 m from shore) waters by fish is limited. In June 2005, we sampled shallow, nearshore waters of the Bering Sea at three Aleutian islands with a beach seine to estimate the relative abundance and species distribution of fish. Three habitat types were sampled: Nonvegetated sand substrate, vegetated cobble substrate, and vegetated bedrock substrate. A total of 70 sites were seined on Akutan, Akun, and Unalaska islands. The total estimated catch was 83,910 fish representing 33 taxa. Five species comprised 98% of the total catch. Pacific sand lance Ammodytes hexapterus was the most abundant species; approximately 35,000 of these fish were captured, and they occurred in 60% of all seine hauls. The next most abundant fish were young‐of‐the‐year (age‐0) gadids (primarily walleye pollock Theragra chalcogramma), age‐0 pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha, age‐0 Pacific sandfish Trichodon trichodon, and snake prickleback Lumpenus sagitta. Fish were unequally distributed among habitats. The estimated mean catch per seine haul was 1,171 fish in sand sites, 1,647 fish in cobble sites, and 79 fish in bedrock sites. Most Pacific sand lances (98%) were captured in sand sites, whereas most gadids (97%), pink salmon (80%), Pacific sandfish (96%), and snake pricklebacks (99%) were caught in cobble sites. Sand and cobble nearshore habitats in the Bering Sea provide important habitat for many fish species in summer, especially forage fish.

Mandt's black guillemot (Cepphus grylle mandtii) is one of the few seabirds associated in all seasons with Arctic sea ice, a habitat that is changing rapidly. Recent decreases in summer ice have reduced breeding success and colony size of this species in Arctic Alaska. Little is known about the species' movements and distribution during the nine month non-breeding period (September-May), when changes in sea ice extent and composition are also occurring and predicted to continue. To examine bird movements and the seasonal role of sea ice to non-breeding Mandt's black guillemots, we deployed and recovered (n = 45) geolocators on individuals at a breeding colony in Arctic Alaska during 2011-2015. Black guillemots moved north to the marginal ice zone (MIZ) in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas immediately after breeding, moved south to the Bering Sea during freeze-up in December, and wintered in the Bering Sea January-April. Most birds occupied the MIZ in regions averaging 30-60% sea ice concentration, with little seasonal variation. Birds regularly roosted on ice in all seasons averaging 5 h d(-1), primarily at night. By using the MIZ, with its roosting opportunities and associated prey, black guillemots can remain in the Arctic during winter when littoral waters are completely covered by ice.

In the article was considered species composition of fish in the littoral and sublittoral zones of Yarnyshnaya and Zelenetskaya bays (Barents Sea) during summer 2020. For the first time, the kelp snailfish Liparis tunicatus was recorded in the studied water area. At whole was discovered 15 species of fish and most abundent between them is staghorn sculpin Gymnocanthus tricuspis and shorthorn sculpin Myoxocephalus scorpius. Also quantitative characteristics of the distribution for each fish species are represented. The dynamics of abundance and diversity of coastal fish communities were analyzed. Comparing of perennial data with 2020 indicates that at the present observed relatively rich species composition, low fish distribution density, low abundance of young Gadidae, but high indicators of biodiversity in coastal communities.

An autochtonous community of benthic diatoms has been discovered in upper bottom sediments in the central Barents Sea at depths down to 300 m. Their abundance and biomass analyzed suggest that the microalgae found represent a depleted fragment of the arctic littoral microphytobenthos. Compared to the coastal algal flora, the deep-water assemblage is characterized by low species diversity and demonstrates abundance of about 102– 103 cells per cm2 in the benthic. Until recently, the presence of benthic microalgae in marine ecosystems has been associated exclusively with the littoral and sublittoral coastal zones.

In the article was considered species composition of fish in the littoral and sublittoral zones of Yarnyshnaya and Zelenetskaya bays (Barents Sea) during summer 2021. Also quantitative characteristics of the distribution for each fish species are represented. The dynamics of abundance and diversity of coastal fish communities were analyzed. At whole was discovered 12 species of fish and most abundent between them is young saithe Pollachius virens. Comparing of perennial data with 2021 indicates that at the present observed average species composition, fish distribution density, abundance of young Gadidae and indicators of biodiversity in coastal communities.

In the article was considered species composition of fish in the littoral and sublittoral zones of Yarnyshnaya and Zelenetskaya bays (Barents Sea) during summer 2022. Also quantitative characteristics of the distribution for each fish species are represented. The dynamics of abundance and diversity of coastal fish communities were analyzed. At whole was discovered 12 species of fish and most abundent between them is young saithe Pollachius virens. Comparing of perennial data with 2022 indicates that at the present observed average species composition, fish distribution density, abundance of young Gadidae and indicators of biodiversity in coastal communities.

In the article was considered species composition of fish in the littoral and sublittoral zones of Yarnyshnaya and Zelenetskaya bays (Barents Sea) during summer and autumn 2019. At whole was discovered 15 species of fish and most abundent between them is young shorthorn sculpin Myoxocephalus scorpius. Also quantitative characteristics of the distribution for each fish species are represented. The dynamics of abundance and diversity of coastal fish communities were analyzed. Comparing of perennial data with 2019 indicates that at the present observed low abundance of young Gadidae, the presence of subdominant species, but high indicators of biodiversity in coastal communities.