Abstract
The taxonomic structure, typology, species richness, and total abundance of bentic and littoral macroinvertebrate communities from small lakes of the Arctic and Subarctic zones are considered on the basis of original data from three northern Palearctic regions (the foot of the Putorana Plateau, Kolguev Island, and Western Svalbard Island). A comparative analysis of the communities of these regions has been carried out. The features of High Arctic insular, Low Arctic, subarctic, and boreal lake communities are discussed using a large volume of literature data. The complex pattern of changes in the total benthos biomass of small lakes has been revealed: it decreases in the subarctic taiga, increases in the hypoarctic tundra, and decreases again in the High Arctic.
Highlights
There are general concepts of communities of small lakes in the biology of fresh waters (Zhadin and Gerd, 1961; Dodds and Whiles, 2010)
Small lakes are characterized by high trophicity and saprobity; the summer peak of the macrofauna abundance and development of higher aquatic plants is coupled with a more or less catastrophic winter death
Higher aquatic plants, which are common in the temperate zone, are replaced by mosses, which leads to the restructuring of the phytal biotope and a sharp decrease in the nutritional value of detritus and, in general, the trophicity of a water body
Summary
There are general concepts of communities of small lakes in the biology of fresh waters (Zhadin and Gerd, 1961; Dodds and Whiles, 2010) They mean eutrophic communities with a high benthos density and muddy bottom (dominated by the larvae of mosquitoes of the family Chironomidae, bivalves, and oligochaetes of the family Tubificidae) and well-developed littoral communities of submerged macrophytes (dominated by pulmonary gastropods, beetles, bugs, and dragonflies). Humification of this type of water body is often typical Such concepts were mainly formed using the example of lakes and ponds in the temperate zone (forest and partly steppe zones) of Eurasia, which has relatively hot summers and long hard winters. Such a picture can significantly and ambiguously change the arctic climate and taiga–tundra landscapes.
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