Left Bank Research Articles

Multi-scale palaeolandscape reconstruction at the Upper Paleolithic Byki sites, central East European Plain

The Byki complex on the left bank of the Seim River (Desna basin) comprises eight sites, including multilayer ones, differing chronologically and culturally. The dates of key cultural layers are from 21 to 18 thousand BP. Questioning the use of local landscapes by prehistoric people and the reasons for repeated occupation of the area required a paleolandscape reconstruction. For this purpose, a set of methods were applied on a research scale from local (archaeological excavation) to regional (within a radius of several kilometres). The site's position in the regional topography has been studied using GIS methods, for the nearest encirclement of Byki a detailed digital terrain model was constructed. The near-surface stratigraphy was studied by ground penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetic survey, coring and archaeological excavations. This resulted in the creation of a map of natural depressions layout and their three-dimensional visualisation. It was found that by the time people first arrived, the natural relief was a combination of sand dunes and rounded thermokarst sinkholes. The sediments filling the sinkholes indicate the over-watered conditions made them unsuitable for human habitation (the cultural layers do not extend into the sinkholes), but they could provide a source of water. Most of the sites are found on top of an aeolian barkhan. The distance maps showed that the sites’ location provided the best visibility in all directions. Thus, this atypical location of Byki sites at significant distances from the nearest rivers can be explained by a combination of several advantages: location on the edge of a valley in terms of distance vision, local topographic diversity that provided comfortable living conditions and possibly a water supply.

Ecological and agricultural assessment of the state of forage lands of boreal river floodplains in the oil-producing region (case study in the floodplain of the Kolva River, Usinsky district, Komi Republic)

Floodplain forage lands of the Pechora basin (Usinsky district of the Komi Republic) are experiencing a complex anthropogenic impact associated with both agricultural activity and pollution with petroleum products coming with flood waters. An ecological and agricultural assessment of the soil-vegetation cover of the Kolva floodplain used as hayfield (right-bank part) and pasture (left-bank part) was carried out. Soil combinations of the main part of the surveyed floodplain include alluvial sod, sod-meadow and meadow soils. Morphological signs of gley formation in meadow soils are observed in the lower part of the soil profile and are expressed moderately. Soils are characterized generally by favorable agrochemical and morphological properties, with the exception of areas subjected to pasture digression. The vegetation cover of the central and near-river part of the floodplain massif of the right bank is mainly represented by legume-cereal-grass communities formed both in inter-ridge depressions and on flat ridges. On the high floodplain of the left bank, legume-cereal-grass meadows, grass-clover and tufted hairgrass meadows are common, horsetail–butterbur, clover-cereal and cereal communities are common in the near-river part of the left bank. Despite the relatively high productivity and the presence of valuable forage species of cereals and legumes, the qualitative characteristics of hay deviate from optimal ones due to the participation of low-nutritious, unattractive, weedy and poisonous species in the herbage. On the pasture, as a result of pasture digression, there is a decrease in species diversity with the dominance of tufted hairgrass and low-value species of various grasses. In the most disturbed areas, the total projective vegetation coverage is reduced to 50%. The soil cover of the studied territory of the Kolva floodplain is currently not contaminated with hydrocarbons, with the exception of a few spots of petroleum products with a total area of 6 m2. The effect of oil pollution on the vegetation cover of the Kolva floodplain is not manifested. Background values of the content of petroleum products in soils are slightly higher in the left-bank part compared to the right-bank part.

A photographic method to identify reservoir geohazards induced by rock mass deterioration of hydro-fluctuation belt

Potential geohazards triggered by the rock mass deterioration (RMD) of the hydro-fluctuation belt (HFB) in the Three Gorges Reservoir area (TGRA) severely threaten the lives and property of people, it is necessary and urgent to timely identify this kind of potential geohazard. Aiming at this issue, several typical evolution modes of potential RMD-induced geohazards were generalized, and an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photographic method integrating the orthophotography, three-dimensional multi-angle oblique photography and high-precision digital elevation model (DEM) was proposed to early recognize the newly formed potential RMD-induced geohazards. By resolving the problem of poor precision in the orthophotographic images of high steep bank slopes, the proposed method improved the recognition reliability of potential reservoir geohazards in the HFBs. Taking the bank slopes from Zigui County to Badong County as the study area, 116 new potential RMD-induced geohazard sites were identified by the presented approach, including 64 and 52 sites on the left and right bank, respectively. Through field verifications, 17 and 19 sites on the left and right bank were found to be consistent with existing hazards, indicating the effectiveness of the proposed approach in avoiding the false and missing recognitions of potential RMD-induced reservoir geohazards at current levels of knowledge and technology. The study can provide a valuable reference for the early identification of RMD-induced geohazards in reservoir areas.

Speleo objects of the Idrisovo village surroundings (Southern Urals)

The village of Idrisovo is located in the Salavat region in the north-east of the Republic of Bashkortostan, now it is part of the UNESCO Yangan-Tau Geopark. The territory is composed of meridionally extending Devonian and Carboniferous carbonate rocks that come to the surface in the cliffs of the Yuryuzan River and its tributaries. Caves, grottoes, arches have formed in carbonate rocks, which have long attracted the attention of people. In connection with the increase in the tourist flow in the territory (rafting on the Yuryuzan River and visiting the archaeological site of the Idrisovo Cave and other natural objects), there was a need for a speleological survey of the territory in order to inform the population about the presence and significance of speleological objects. The article describes all the speleological objects identified as a result of the study of stock materials and field surveys in the vicinity of the village of Idrisovo, within the Salavat region of the Republic of Bashkortostan, from the Bolshoy Limonovsky Ridge to the Stupenchatyy Ridge along the left bank of the Yuryuzan River. The recreational capacities of speleological objects are determined by their morphology. The use of their entrance parts is possible as display objects as part of comprehensive routes, without visiting the internal parts of the speleological objects.

Case study on long-term deformation monitoring and numerical simulation of layered rock slopes on both sides of Wudongde dam reservoir area

Layered rock slope exists widely. Because of its special slope structure, it is prone to bending deformation and toppling failure, which is a serious threat to engineering construction and safety operation. At present, the research of layered rock slope still has great innovation potential. During the construction of Wudongde Hydropower Station on Jinsha River, safety and stability problems such as slope geological structure development, face rock unloading and relaxation, and even slip and large deformation were encountered. Through field exploration, it is found that the rock and soil stratification of the slope on both sides of Wudongde Hydropower Station is highly obvious. At present, there is a lack of research on-site long-term displacement monitoring of layered rock high-steep slope, especially for layered slope in complex hydrogeology and construction environment. In order to strengthen the research on the deformation and stability of layered rock slope, this paper analyzes the measured displacement data of Wudongde hydropower station slope, and establishes three-dimensional geological finite element model with the help of numerical simulation software. The stability of the slope is calculated by combining the finite difference method and the strength reduction method. Finally, the evolution mechanism of the deformation of the layered rock slope is explained according to the geological structure characteristics. The main conclusions of this paper are as follows: the layered slope in the dam reservoir area is prone to deformation under the combined action of long-term construction disturbance and fissure water seepage, and the construction disturbance has a strong influence on the artificial excavation area below 1070 m, and the maximum rock mass deformation and surface displacement in the artificial excavation area of the slope reach 92.2 mm and 312.5 mm, respectively. However, the influence of construction disturbance on the natural mountain above 1070 m is limited, the valley deformation of the natural mountain on the left bank of the reservoir area is higher than that on the right bank, and the cumulative deformation is still less than 20 mm. The influence of seepage on the displacement of the area with higher elevation at the top of the slope is more obvious, and the influence of excavation and other disturbances on the displacement of the artificial excavation area with lower elevation is more obvious. The deformation of the river valley in the water cushion pond behind the dam increases slowly, and the change trend of the field deformation data is mostly consistent with that of the numerical calculation. The horizontal shrinkage of the mountains on both sides shows a contraction trend on the whole, and the maximum horizontal shrinkage calculated by numerical simulation is close to 20 mm, which is located at the elevation of 990 m.

The coastal ichthyofauna of the Mediterranean coral reef: the case of Mljet National Park (Croatia, southern Adriatic Sea)

The authors studied the structure of the coastal fish assemblage in a temperate coral reef within a marine protected area in order to provide a baseline information on the occurrence and temporal distribution of fish and to highlight the importance of the coral reef to ichthyofauna. The coastal fish assemblage was investigated at two sites in Veliko jezero (Mljet National Park) in the southern Adriatic Sea with a non-destructive SCUBA visual technique in the period from 2013 to 2021. Altogether, 38 fish taxa were recorded on the right bank (coral reef) and 36 species on the left bank. The presence of the coral reef at a depth range between 9 m to 12 m is the main factor differentiating the fish fauna in these two areas, which are otherwise governed by the same environmental factors. At the coral reef a decrease in fish diversity was discovered with a steady regression from 2013 to 2021.

New data on the mammoth fauna in the Amga River basin

Many unique finds of Pleistocene animals have been made on the territory of Yakutia, including whole frozen bodies. However, the majority of the finds come from the northern regions. On the territory of Central Yakutia, in contrast to Northern Yakutia, there are much fewer finds. This is due to the smaller number of preserved relict ice deposits of the Upper Pleistocene ("Yedoma") and the lack of systematic, licensed collection of mammoth ivory and other remains of the mammoth fauna due to their unsatisfactory preservation, which is caused by the stronger thawing of the permafrost in summer in Central Yakutia. There are relatively few published scientific papers on the mammoth fauna of the Amgar River basin. Therefore, new data from this area are of scientific interest. We have studied new material on the mammoth fauna from the "Mount Korolenko" locality, located on the left bank of the Amgar River near the village of the same name. The material was collected during school expeditions organised by the Amga Lyceum and the Russian Geographical Society in 2022-2023. It shows that at this site bone remains are washed out by the river on the right bank of the Amgas. Scattered bones were found on both the left and right banks, but the right bank is richer in palaeontological material. The bone remains are represented by fragments and whole bones of the postcranial skeleton of various animals. The age of most of the finds probably corresponds to the Karga interstadial. The taxonomic identification of the bones showed the presence of the following species: woolly mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, Lena horse, steppe bison, reindeer, red deer. There is a fragment of the humerus of a roe deer, possibly of late Neopleistocene age. A morphometric study of the bone remains was carried out and comparisons made with literature data. The list of large mammals that lived in the Amgas basin in the late Neoproterozoic has been completed.

Seismic collaborative reliability analysis for a slope considering spatial variability base on optimized subset simulation

Seismic reliability analysis of actual slopes considering the spatial variability of soil materials is crucial. However, for the discretization of large-scale random fields, high-precision finite element analysis and analysis of small failure probability events, the random analysis of slopes under seismic loads is inefficient. To address this situation, this study proposes a collaborative reliability analysis framework based on the modified linear estimation method (MLEM) and optimized subset simulation (OSS). First, the random field of the uncertain parameters of the Jinping-I left bank slope model is efficiently discretized by the MLEM, and a sensitivity analysis is carried out. Then, considering the adoption of different degrees of cross-correlation of the sensitive random parameters, the OSS method is used to perform random finite element analysis on the coarse mesh model. Finally, the fine mesh samples are obtained according to the response conditioning method (RCM). The MLEM is used to ensure the consistency of the two sets of random fields, and the seismic failure probability and reliability index of the slope under different cross-correlation coefficients of uncertain parameters are obtained. The results suggest that the degree of cross-correlation of parameters has a great influence on the seismic reliability of the slope. Considering that the shear strength parameters of geotechnical materials are often negatively correlated, the fine analysis based on a fine model is necessary.

The efficiency of growing narrow-leaved lavender (Lavandula angustifolia Mill.) with different planting densities in the conditions of the Left Bank Forest Steppe of Ukraine

The efficiency of growing narrow-leaved lavender (Lavandula angustifolia Mill.) with different planting densities in the conditions of the Left Bank Forest Steppe of Ukraine

Integrative taxonomy of Cercomacroides serva (Sclater, 1858) demonstrates the validity of C. hypomelaena (Sclater, 1890) comb. nov. (Aves: Thamnophilidae)

Abstract Cercomacroides serva is widely distributed in northern South America. However, this species has never been thoroughly evaluated taxonomically. We conducted a taxonomic study of three taxa currently classified under Cercomacroides serva, based on a study of 307 skins and 145 recordings of male loudsongs. Females from the northwest Amazonian population differ qualitatively from populations from the southwest Amazon in the coloration of the upperparts, primary, and tail. Male loudsongs are superficially similar between these two populations, but the shape of the notes differs significantly. There is no evidence of intergradation or clinal variation in female plumage or male loudsongs. Based on differences in plumage coloration, loudsongs, and lack of evidence of intergradation, we suggest that two species are best recognized. The name Cercomacroides serva is here restricted to populations north of the Marañon River in Peru, to the north in Ecuador, and in southwestern Colombia. The name Cercomacroides hypomelaenacomb. nov. is revived. This species is found south of the Marañon River, and on both banks of the Ucayali River in Peru, to the eastern left bank of the Madeira River in Brazil, and in northern Bolivia.

Understanding Morphological Dynamics of the Mahanadi River Reach

Abstract This work examines specific river morphometry parameters like bank erosion, active channel bank shift, and the sinuous behavior at identified stretches of the Mahanadi River. The specific stretches of the Mahanadi River from Baipur to Gopinathpur, Cuttack of around 270 km have been subdivided into five different reaches to simplify the study from a large scale to an average range. The Digital Shoreline Analysis System was used to investigate the river bank shifting and for the bank shifting prediction using Kalman Filter Model. The outcomes of the work show that, for the most part, the Mahanadi River is sinuous; however, at Kantilo, which is designated as reach four is meandering. In terms of Sinuosity, most reaches are unstable, whereas reaches 2 and 3 are stable. The flow area ratio to channel area has fallen by 25-30% due to the construction of barrages and dams in the upper portion of the Mahanadi River, affecting aquatic life, people and industries. At the same time, due to climate change, irregular rainfall causes floods in the lower reach of the river. The river flow erodes the bank along which it flows, even when the discharge is minimal. According to the bank shift analysis, the right bank is more unstable, ranging from 222 to -2900 m, while the left bank fluctuates from 996 to -1600 m. This study will help to understand the pattern of river bank shifting and change in the planform dynamics at the respective locations of the Mahanadi River.

The impact of physical geography factors on the division of Kurdish language – taking the dialect of Surchi tribe as example

The title of our research is about (The impact of physical geography factors on the division of Kurdish language – taking the dialect of Surchi tribe as example). In this study, we will try to highlight the physical geography factors which can divide a language into several dialects, there are similar factors that divided the Kurdish language into four main dialects, each of which is divided into several sub-dialects, we will also try to focus on a physical geography factor which is the Great Zab River in the territory of ​​the Surchi tribe, which has made the population belonging to the tribe on both sides of the river, although whose main language is Kurdish, their speech styles may differ in terms of language levels, and these distinctions are more noticed by linguists. In this research, we have done several field visits and interviews with villagers of some villages belonging to the Surchi tribe on both sides of the Great Zab River. After researching and interviewing in these areas, we decided to take two villages as samples of our research, each of which is different in terms of physical geography and speech styles. Zerav village is located on the bank of a river on the right side of the Great Zab, while Kalakin village is located on the left bank of the Great Zab. This study is divided into three main parts: First part concerns Kurdish Language and its dialects, second part is about physical geography factors on division of the Kurdish language, third part presents Surchi tribe, it describes the geographical boundaries of Surchi tribe, then analyzes the speech style of Surchi tribe in general and identifies the phonemes of both villages (Kalakin Sarchia) and (Zerav) in particular, then compare them with each other in terms of phonology.

REMOTE SENSING OF HEAT POLLUTION SOURCES IN THE LIPETSK URBAN AREA

Positive temperature anomalies called “urban heat islands” (UHI) are formed in cities as a result of progressing urbanization, increasing area and density of buildings, motor transport load and anthropogenic heat emissions. Such UHI reduce the comfort of the urban environment, and affect population health and quality of life. Remote sensing data from the thermal band satellite sensors are widely used to study the UHI intensity and spatial structure. We analyzed Landsat 8 and 9 satellite imageries from 2020 to 2022 representing the Lipetsk urban area in Central Russia. Taking into account the image quality requirements, 5 “winter” and 4 “summer” scenes were selected to examine thermal anomalies. As a result of their processing a map of land surface temperature (LST) excesses over the background values and a map of LST seasonal variations were compiled. The produced maps made it possible to identify 33 principal sources of anthropogenic heat in Lipetsk. 26 of them are located within industrial zones of the left bank side of Lipetsk, including. 23 sources within the territory of the NLMK Group metallurgical combine. LST of the identified heat sources were approximately 4-9°C above the background temperatures in winter and 11-14°C above the background temperatures in summer. The results of the study could become an information-methodical basis for the space monitoring of thermal pollution in Lipetsk.

HYDRODYNAMIC ASSESSMENT ALONG THE COAST OF TANJUNG SEDELI, MALAYSIA

Tidal influence plays a significant role in coastal hydrodynamics as the impact may lead to coastal erosion. Tanjung Sedeli located on the southern coast of Malaysia is exposed to low tidal issues which disrupts the navigation of local fishermen due to the shallow river mouth in the area. This study presents the hydrodynamic processes along the shoreline of Tanjung Sedeli. BLUEKENUE was used as the pre-processor to create a bathymetry file and perform mesh generation to set up the initial model boundary which functions as input files for numerical study. TELEMAC2D further processes the hydrodynamic data (tides and currents), calibrated, and validated with the measured field data collected between 24th September to 6th October 2020 covering both spring and neap tide conditions. The nature of tides in the area was mainly mixed tides, predominantly semidiurnal tides. Modelled hydrodynamic values show good conformity with field measurements with an error of 1.4% for water level values, 10.6% and 20o for current speed and direction respectively. Water flows north into the estuary during spring tide with maximum velocity is 0.756m/s surrounding the river mouth and Pulau Tagal. Low velocity values were recorded at the left bank of the river (0.028 m/s) and Pulau Tagal (0.085 m/s) during spring tide. This study provides information on current hydrodynamic condition of the study area.

Active tectonics along the mountain front around the easternmost part of the Himalayan Range: Implications for geomorphic evolution

The frontal part of the easternmost zone of the Himalayas is tectonically active, which can be ascertained from different quaternary deformation features like tilted terraces, differential upliftment of terraces, and steep scarps. Along the mountain front, four and three levels of terraces are present on the right and left bank of the Siang River respectively with a maximum elevation of 303 m. Different levels of Quaternary terraces indicate episodic upliftment of the area. On the left bank of the Siang River, 300 m upstream from Dhobighat, the terrace deposits are present at an elevation of 150 m above the Siwalik Group, and 100 m downstream, tilted quaternary deposits are observed. Steep scarps near Mairam, indicate the presence of Himalayan Frontal Thrust (HFT), and based on convincing field evidence, HFT can be categorized into HFT-1 and HFT-2. Total eighteen basins are mapped which are elongated and aligned along the NW-SE direction, parallel to the trend of cross faults present in the area along the Siang River course. The mountain front sinuosity index, SL value, and elongation ratio reflect further that the area is tectonically active. Furthermore, the asymmetry factor and transverse topographic symmetry factor illustrate that all the basins are asymmetric and tilted. Most of the valley profiles are V-shaped, and the valley floor width-to-height ratio is low, indicating rapid upliftment of the area. Lineament maps show a similar trend of the orientation with the major structural features of the area and further, confirm that the area is tectonically active.

Строматолиты из нового местонахождения на Среднем Тимане: их морфологические и структурные особенности

The paper presents the results of macroscopic and microscopic study of Riphean stromatolites of the Pavyuga Formation from a new locality on the left bank of the Vorykva River (Middle Timan). The stromatolites form a stromatolite bioherm. The microstructure of the stromatolite assemblages is characterised by layering of different composition and granularity; traces of organogenic formations of clotted and filamentous type were found in microgranular interlayers. Numerous traces of secondary transformations, such as pyritization, dolomitization on shells, and fenestra formation, were noted. The taxonomic affiliation of the stromatolites to the species Gimnosolen sp. and Inseria djejimi Raab. allows dating to the Late Riphean. A similar association is known from the upper part of the Pavyuga Formation, but the colonies of stromatolites are orientated disorderly in that association, which indicates the environment of the organogenic buildup margins.

Is the Forest Fire adjacent to St. Clair’s Waterfall Natural or Man-made?

Forest fires have been showing an increasing trend in Sri Lanka over the past few years. Previous studies proved that most of the forest fires in Sri Lanka were caused by human factors. The main objective of this study is to identify the causes of forest fires in close areas of St. Clair‘s fall, which is situated on the western slope of the Central Highlands and to investigate the impacts and measures to reduce forest fires. Primary data as well as secondary data were used for this study. Primary data was obtained through a questionnaire survey and focused group interviews from the study area of Hollyrood, Wattegoda, and Dewon GN Division. Twenty (20) households have been interviewed from the random sampling. Focused group interviews were held with the Nuwara Eliya Forest Conservation Department, Tea Estate companies and Thalawakele Police Station. Rainfall and temperature data were taken as secondary data for the period from 2010 to 2020 from the Department of Meteorology, Colombo. 83 respondents stated that forest fires occurs from January to April because of the high temperature and low rainfall recorded in these months. Patana grasslands are spared on the lower slopes of the left and right banks of waterfall area and plantation forest and Tea plantation have spread in the higher part of the slope. According to the Forest Department, the understory of Patana grassland and undergrowth for forest plantations are exposures to fire in this area. 96 respondents stated that forest fires are purposely started by the people to catch fish from the Kothmale Oya, build bonfire on the rock, and burn fish. Fires are generated through those flames. 63 stated that forest fires are done for ―jungle based feedings‖ for cattle herds by the people in the Thalawakele plantation settlement. They expect fresh grass to boom in the rainy seasons by setting fires in the dry season. 22 respondents stated that forest fires are purposely done for hunting purposes. Most of the fires occur on the left bank of the Kothmale Oya River. In order to prevent fires in this area, the fire breaks fire belt and such as corridors without and with floras are established as buffer zones on the right bank. This fire belt is maintain by Thalawakele Plantation Company. When a forest fire occurs, the Forest Department sends the SMS message to alert the community. Planting hana trees as a green belt can be recommended to reduce the occurrence of fires in this area. 
 Keywords: Central Highlands, Random sampling, Bonfire, Hana trees

Jewelry, Accessories, and Decorative Elements of Women’s Funeral Costume of the First Half of the 6th Century BCE in the Territory of Forest-Steppe Scythia

Among the antiquities of the archaic period of Forest-Steppe Scythia, a group of elite burials of women, possibly endowed with priestly functions during their lifetime, stands out. Until recently, only two unrobbed burial complexes were known to contain the main burials of women of high social rank, in whose graves golden costume elements were found—primarily expressive details of headdresses. The barrows (kurgans) were discovered at the end of the 19th century when amateur excavations were actively carried out on the right bank of the Dnipro. As a result of research conducted by the author at the Skorobir necropolis (in the area of the Bilsk fortified settlement, on the left bank of the Dnipro), two similar graves were recently discovered, which provided new material that significantly expanded the known geographical distribution of this phenomenon. The materials are closely analogous to the previously discovered elite female burials of the Middle Dnipro (barrow 100 near the village of Syniavka, barrow 35 near the village of Bobrytsa) and allow us to highlight a number of stable elements of the funeral costume of noble women and the sets of objects that complemented them. In this article, we consider the social and cultural significance of female attire in elite burials and delimit the chronological framework of this previously understudied phenomenon within the first half of the 6th century BCE. The new finds offer unprecedented insight into the form and meaning of one type of female headdress which researchers have tried to reconstruct for over a century.

Репродуктивные показатели липы Нащокина (Tilia nasczokinii Stepanov)

Tilia nasczokinii Stepanov (Naszokin’s lime) is endemic to the south of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and is of relict origin. Two of its populations grow in the vicinity of Krasnoyarsk on the left and right banks of the Yenisey River, being a part of pine forests and mixed pine-deciduous herb forests. The total number of the species is about 500 plant units, of which only 43 plants are currently bearing fruit. This research has determined the sizes and qualitative characteristics of T. nasczokinii fruits and seeds. The lime-capsules of T. nasczokinii, for 2 populations in general, have had the length of 5.7 ± 0.026 mm and the width of 5.0 ± ± 0.017 mm. The seeds have had the length of 3.6 ± 0.019 mm and the width of 2.9 ± 0.015 mm. It has been established that the lime-capsules in the left bank population are characterized by an elongated pear-shaped form, while in the right bank population the lime-capsules are spherical and slightly pointed at the top. In terms of the size of lime-capsules and seeds, T. nasczokinii did not differ statistically from the introduced T. cordata, which grows in the plantation under similar environmental conditions. In the left bank population, the masses of lime-capsules (18.3 g/1000 pcs.) and seeds (11.9–12.7 g/1000 pcs.) have turned out to be noticeably less than in the right bank population (lime-capsules – 24.8–29.9 g/1000 pcs., seeds – 16.1–18.0 g/1000 pcs.). In the left bank population, up to 60 % of the lime-capsules have been seedless and up to 43 % of the seeds have been empty. Seed viability has been equal to 17–32 %.In the right bank population, most of the lime-capsules have contained seeds (up to 91 %), and the proportion of empty lime-capsules has been small (up to 18 %). Seed viability has been equal to 66–83 %. Field germination of the seeds has been equal to 9.2 % (for some trees – up to 10.5 %) in the left bank population and 12.2 % (up to 21.1 %) in the right bank population. Despite the low field germination of the seeds in both populations, it is possible to obtain seed planting stock for creating artificial plantings of T. nasczokinii in order to preserve and restore the population of this rare relict species in the south of Central Siberia.

Importance of the Ramsar Site Labudovo Okno for Sustainable Tourism—Evidence from Vojvodina Province

The Ramsar Site Labudovo Okno (LO) is located in Vojvodina, on the left bank of the Danube. It covers an area of 3733 ha. This wet habitat is valuable for different ecosystems, among which the most important are those inhabited by rare bird species. The main natural resources are wetlands, created by the Danube in this shallow part of its flow. Thirty-seven sustainable tourism (ST) indicators were used to assess the current status and future prospects of tourist growth in the LO. For this study, a total of 625 respondents (255 tourists and 370 residents) were asked through a questionnaire to evaluate the current tourism and the impact on their satisfaction. Additionally, they showed that some resources are either misused or not used sufficiently, which has a detrimental effect on the LO. Part of the research was to determine how satisfied respondents were with ST. Although tourism in LO still has no important mass features, the respondents’ satisfaction with sustainable LO tourism is present to a significant extent. This is vital for ST and the creation of local tourism strategies, because the need for greater valorization of natural and social values, as well as the establishment of the roles of all subjects of tourism development, has been noticed. Certainly, nature-based, ecotourism, scientific research, and nautical and bird-watching tourism must be the primary forms of tourist movements in the LO.