North Kuril Islands Research Articles

About the forced and later spawn of Atka mackerel Pleurogrammus monopterygius Pallas, 1810 (Scorpaeniformes: Hexagrammidae) in the waters of the North Kuril Islands

Results of the research indicate that the eggs of Atka mackerel are a part of forage for this speciesis from May to December. Captures of the Atka mackerel individuals spawning and feeding on the own eggs far from the coast indicate that a certain part of the stock spawns at the depths considerably lower than normal spawning grounds. Spawning individuals of Atka mackerel is were observed in research from June to December. Emergence of larvae from the eggs laid in November–December is expected in spring.

Камчатка и Командорские острова

The seismicity of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2013 is viewed. The minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.25 in the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue totally, and MLmin=4 for earthquakes under the Okhotsk sea (with h≥350 km). The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue of 2013 with ML≥3.6, which includes 1750 events, is published. 146 earthquakes of published catalog with ML=3.6–7.8 were felt with seismic intensity ranged from 2 to 7 of the MSK-64 scale in Kamchatka and surrounding areas. Focal mechanisms were determined in two ways: 1) from first motion P-wave arrivals for 107 earthquakes; 2) using waveforms for 25 earthquakes. The background seismicity level (SESL’09) within the Kamchatka responsibility zone was extremely high in 2013. It exceeded the rate of seismicity in all previous years of observations. There were 6672 earthquakes, including 129 events with КS≥11.5 (ML≥5) in the region during the year. The mechanisms of 107 earthquakes were defined. 148 earthquakes were felt with intensity from 2 up to 7 on the territory of Kamchatskii Krai, North Kuril Islands, and Komandor Islands. There were several unusual events in 2013. The strong earthquake with magnitude Mw=5.8 on March 13 in the area of the Kamchatka Isthmus (Il'pyr earthquake), which is a rare phenomenon for the Northern Kamchatka. There was the strongest deep earthquake in the world (Mw=8.3) on May 24 under the Sea of Okhotsk (Okhotsk earthquake) at the depth of 630 km. The event caused an abnormal macro-seismic effect. The intensive earthquake swarm was observed in the Avacha Bay (Mwmax=6.1) in May 2013. It is the strongest earthquake swarm registered by the Kamchatka network during the period of detailed seismological observations since 1962

The Population Genetic Organization of Pacific Cod Gadus macrocephalus in the North Pacific Based on Microsatellite Analysis

Six groups have been identified in the species' population structure based on the analysis of microsatellite markers' polymorphism in Pacific cod Gadus macrocephalus samples within the entire western part of the North Pacific, including waters of the Pacific coast of Canada. The first group includes cod from waters of the Yellow Sea; the second group consists of cod from the Sea of Japan (eastern coast of Korea and Peter the Great Bay); the third group combines cod from Tatar Strait and the South Kuril Islands (both Sea of Okhotsk and Pacific Ocean sides); the fourth group is formed by cod from the northwestern Sea of Okhotsk and Taui Bay; the fifth-largest group includes cod from waters off western Kamchatka, the North Kuril Islands (Sea of Okhotsk and Pacific Ocean sides), Karaginsky Bay, Navarinsky area in the Bering Sea, and Anadyr Bay; the sixth group is formed by cod from coastal waters of Canada.

The 2016 Eruptions in Kamchatka and on the North Kuril Islands: The Hazard to Aviation

Large explosive eruptions of volcanoes pose the highest hazard to modern jet flights, because such eruptions can eject as much as several cubic kilometers of volcanic ash and aerosol into the atmosphere during a few hours or days. The year 2016 saw eruptions on 5 of the 30 active Kamchatka volcanoes (Sheveluch, Klyuchevskoy, Bezymianny, Karymsky, and Zhupanovsky) and on 3 of the 6 active volcanoes that exist on the North Kuril Islands (Alaid, Ebeko, and Chikurachki). Effusive activity was observed on Sheveluch, Klyuchevskoy, Bezymianny, and Alaid. All volcanoes showed explosive activity. The large explosive events mostly occurred from September through December (Sheveluch), a moderate ash emission accompanied the entire Klyuchevskoy eruption in March–November, and explosive activity of Karymsky, Zhupanovsky, Alaid, and Chikurachki was mostly observed in the earlier half of the year. The ash ejected in 2016 covered a total area of 600 000 km2, with 460 000 km2 of this being due to Kamchatka volcanoes and 140 000 km2 to the eruptions of the North Kuril volcanoes. The activity of Sheveluch, Klyuchevskoy, and Zhupanovsky was dangerous to international and local flights, because the explosions sent ash to heights of 10–12 km above sea level, while the eruptions of Bezymianny, Karymsky, Alaid, Ebeko, and Chikurachki were dangerous for local flights, since the ash did not rise higher than 5 km above sea level.

Pest categorisation of Cronartium harknessii, Cronartium kurilense and Cronartium sahoanum.

Following a request from the European Commission, the EFSA Panel on Plant Health performed a pest categorisation of Cronartium harknessii, Cronartium kurilense and Cronartium sahoanum, which are well‐defined and distinguishable tree fungal pathogens of the family Cronartiaceae. In 2018, these species were moved from the genus Endocronartium to the genus Cronartium. These pathogens are not known to be present in the EU and are regulated in Council Directive 2000/29/EC (Annex IAI) (as non‐European Endocronartium spp.) as harmful organisms whose introduction into the EU is banned. These three fungi are autoecious rusts completing their life cycle on Pinus spp. C. harknessii is known as the western gall rust or pine‐pine gall rust in North America (Canada, the USA and Mexico). C. kurilense and C. sahoanum are reported from Russia (North Kuril Islands) and Japan. The pathogens could enter the EU via host plants for planting and cut branches. The pathogens could establish in the EU, as climatic conditions are favourable and Pinus spp. are common. The pathogens would be able to spread following establishment by movement of host plants for planting and cut branches, as well as natural spread. Should these pathogens be introduced in the EU, impacts can be expected on pine forests, plantations, ornamental trees and nurseries. The pathogens cause formation of stem galls, which kill young trees and result in stem defect in older trees. The main knowledge gap concerns the limited available information on C. kurilense and C. sahoanum compared to C. harknessii. The criteria assessed by the Panel for consideration of C. harknessii, C. kurilense and C. sahoanum as potential quarantine pests are met, whilst, for regulated non‐quarantine pests, the criterion on the pest presence in the EU is not met.

Reservoir Correction for the Central and North Kuril Islands in North Pacific Context

AbstractWe present new marine reservoir ΔR correction terms for the central and northern Kuril Islands. We estimate ΔR from a series of archaeological charcoal-shell pairs from two archaeological sites using standard calibration procedures and Monte Carlo simulation. The combined ΔR estimate for all paired samples for the Kuril samples is 508±127 yr. In the context of available North Pacific Rim ΔR estimates, the new Kuril data support the interpretation of a well-mixed, 14C-depleted North Pacific Subarctic Gyre. For the broader subarctic North Pacific region, a ΔR estimate in the range of 440±127 yr is a reasonable correction for any coastal marine shell date, and may be applied to fish and marine mammal dates for taxa known to reside within these waters throughout their life-histories. This generalization fails as one moves south from Hokkaido along the East Asian coast. There, well-equilibrated subtropical water minimize the ΔR offset.

Scoliorhapis stepanovi-new species of sea cucumber from the North-West Pacific (Holothuroidea: Synaptida: Chiridotidae: Taeniogyrinae)and some remarks on the genus Scoliorhapis.

New species Scoliorhapis stepanovi has been collected from depths of 10-23 m on the sandy bottom of Avacha Bay (east coast of Kamchatka), Paramushir Island (North Kuril Islands), and Matua Island (Middle Kuril Islands). It is unique in having sigmoid ossicles in the body wall with points at both ends (without an open-eye, and with the two points lying in a perpendicular plane). Such sigmoids do not occur in any other taeniogyrinid species. The two-pointed sigmoids are 80-115 µm in length, and are scattered in the body wall and not clustered. Probably the two-pointed sigmoids are underdeveloped typical sigmoid with open-eye. In the tentacles there are straight and C-shaped rods, sometimes branched at the ends, 70-90 µm in length. It is assumed that atypical two-pointed sigmoid ossicles may have been originated due to deviating from the usual course of sigmoid development in the middle stages. Scoliorhapis stepanovi resembles S. lindbergi. A key for species of Scoliorhapis is provided.

On a possible origin of the anomalous effects that were observed during the May 24, 2013 earthquake in the Sea of Okhotsk

The deep-focus Sea of Okhotsk earthquake that occurred on May 24, 2013 (h = 630 km, Mw = 8.3) was accompanied by anomalous effects that were unknown previously. A combined analysis of published data concerning the source rupture evolution and some features of the deep structure provided an explanation of some anomalous effects, such as the large number of aftershocks and the low level of ground shaking in the epicentral area. However, GPS observations revealed high coseismic vertical displacements in the area. The seafloor uplift in the Sea of Okhotsk and the adjacent coasts was 3–12 mm, peaking at the approximate center of the sea, while Kamchatka and the North Kuril Islands subsided by 3–18 mm, peaking at the Apacha station 190 km east of the earthquake epicenter. These maximum estimates are 1.2–1.8 times the analogous values (10 mm) for the Chile mega-earthquake of May 20, 1960 (Mw ~ 9.5). It is known that the large distances at which ground shaking is felt during deep-focus earthquakes are due to the fact that the body waves travel through the high-Q lower mantle. However, this does not explain the paradox of the present earthquake in the Sea of Okhotsk, viz., a constant intensity of shaking (two grades) in the range of epicentral distances between 1300 and 9500 km. The explanation requires consideration of the earth’s free oscillations excited by the earthquake.

A study of the relationship between volcanic activity and great earthquakes: The Kuril-Kamchatka region

We used the data on the activity of volcanoes in Kamchatka and the North Kuril Islands for the period from 1840 to early 2013 to identify the most significant cyclic components. The resulting periodicities were compared with the recurrence spectrum for great (M ≥ 7.7) earthquakes in the Kuril-Kamchatka region for 1841–2012. We detected 52.8–54.0, 8.58, and 5.72-year cycles, which are common both to seismicity and to volcanic activity. The first interval is close to the three times the value of the 18.613-year lunar rhythm (55.84 years). The 8.58 and 5.72-year periodicities seem to be controlled by solar activity variations and are the second and third harmonics in the 17.15-year cycle. This cycle and its harmonics are used for long-term prediction of great (M ≥ 7.7) earthquakes in the Kuril-Kamchatka region as a whole. It was concluded that the existing increased hazard of great earthquake occurrence in the Kuril-Kamchatka region will last until February 2016 (a 40% probability of a great earthquake during that period). In addition, the long-period phase of increased seismic hazard will last until 2027 with the probability of great earthquakes being 1.6 times the long-term average value.

Members of the order Palmariales (Rhodophyta) at the Russian Pacific coasts. the genus Palmaria Stackhouse

The only fertile specimen of the red algal genus Palmaria (Palmariales, Palmariaceae) was found at the North Kuril Islands (Atlasov Island). The specimen bore spermatangia, and its morphological and anatomical examination showed that it differed from the all currently known species of the genus and belonged to a new species; the Palmaria integrifolia Selivanova et Zhigadlova, sp. nov was proposed. Its description, illustrations, and comparison with other representatives of the family Palmariceae inhabiting waters at the Pacific coast of Russia are given in the article. The genus Palmaria has been shown to have seven species in this area, including the new one.

Spawning of walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) off the Southwestern coast of Kamchatka

The results of ichthyoplankton surveys conducted in 2007–2008 showed that waters off Southwest Kamchatka and North Kuril Islands were areas of mass spawning of walleye pollock. The peak spawning occurred during the last 10 days of April and in early May, which was much later than the peak at the main spawning site off West Kamchatka. The spawning activity of walleye pollock near the southwestern shores of Kamchatka is a regular event, as the analysis of archive materials shows. This gave us grounds to suspect the existence of a southern site that coincided well with the mass spawning in the Shelikhov Gulf in its timing and scale, but was missed during standard ichthyoplankton surveys conducted in early April. After analyzing the growth rates of spawners, the assumption was made that the southern spawning was performed by the East Kamchatkan walleye pollock population, whose mass spawning usually occurs in late April-early May. According to the data of 2008, the estimated biomass of walleye pollock spawning in the area of the Ozernovskaya basin in late April was nearly 600000 tons. Regular monitoring of the southern spawning is proposed by means of additional ichthyoplankton surveys south of 53° N, including the Okhotsk Sea waters of the North Kuril Islands, in late April—early May.

Distribution of the Eelpout Lycodes soldatovi (Pisces: Zoarcidae) over the Continental Slope of the Sea of Okhotsk

The eelpout Lycodes soldatovi was found at depths of 153 to 1005 m in the Sea of Okhotsk; however, it usually inhabits the depth range of 400 to 800. The mean and maximum abundance and the biomass of this species were 198.5 and 1037 individuals per km2 and 173.7 and 1275 kg/km2, respectively. In view of the data on the distribution of young fish (up to 30 cm in total body length) and the reports on the absence of Lycodes larvae, a hypothesis was developed that this species spawns predominantly in the waters off western Kamchatka and eastern Sakhalin at the depth range of 700 to 900 m. Large individuals (>50 cm) exhibit higher migratory activity and are more tolerant of environmental conditions. That is why they are encountered throughout the distribution area of this species, even in subzero temperature areas. Lycodes soldatovi seems to be a typical inhabitant of the Sea of Okhotsk, except for the waters off the South and Central Kuril Islands and the Pacific waters off the North Kuril Islands.

An annotated checklist of geometrid moths (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) from the Kamchatka Peninsula and adjacent islands

A checklist of the Geometridae of the Kamchatka Peninsula and the adjacent islands is presented. A total of 80 species are recorded, and 20 species are omitted as doubtful for the fauna of the territory. One new species and five new subspecies are described (Xanthorhoe okhotinaria Beljaev & Vasilenko sp. n., Xanthorhoe okhotinaria sikhotenaria Beljaev & Vasilenko ssp. n., Dysstroma citratum kamtshadalarium Beljaev & Vasilenko ssp. n., Hydriomena impluviata djakonovi Beljaev ssp. n., Epirrita autumnata smetanini Beljaev ssp. n., Eupithecia kurilensis mironovi Beljaev ssp. n.). One species is recorded as new for the Russian Far East (Kamchatka Peninsula included) (Macaria halituaria [Guenée, 1858]). Two species are recorded as new for the Kamchatka Peninsula: Eupithecia antaggregata Inoue, 1977 and Eupithecia gelidata Möschler, 1860, and three species are recorded as new for the North Kuril Islands (Xanthorhoe derzhavini [Djakonov, 1931], Entephria caesiata [Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775] and Psychophora sabini [Kirby, 1824]). In addition, several species are reported for the first time in neighbouring territories: two species for Magadan Province (Xanthorhoe ferrugata [Clerck, 1759] and Xanthorhoe kamtshatica [Djakonov, 1929]); four species for North Koryakiya (Entephria caesiata [Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775], Eulithis populata [Linnaeus, 1758], Eupithecia gelidata Möschler, 1860, Carsia sororiata [Hübner, 1813]) and three species for Chukotka (Xanthorhoe kamtshatica [Djakonov, 1929], Xanthorhoe derzhavini [Djakonov, 1931] and Rheumaptera hastata [Linnaeus, 1758]).

12 カムチャッカ半島のイエバエ類

12 カムチャッカ半島のイエバエ類

サケの生物測定学的研究

A) Sexual dimorphism. The data on which the present study is based were obtained from the records of the Hokkaido Fisheries Experimental Station concerning four-year old dog salmons, consisting of 151 males and 116 females, captured in North Kuril Islands from June 11 to July 30, 1932. The results are given in Tables 1-4, and may be summarized as follows: -(1) Males are larger than females in size. (2) The ratio, body length/body height, in female is a little greater than that in male, and two ratios, body length/head length and head length/ snout length, are in female considerably greater than those in male. This is probably due to the well known change in shape of males in the spawning season. (3) Correlations between body length and body height, body length and head length, head length and snout length, and head length and height of caudal peduncle respectively are comparatively high in both sexes and these are without exception higher in male than in female. Correlation coefficient between head length and snout length in male is the greatest of all. The partial orrelation of head and snout length in male, holding the date of capture constant, is much higher than the ordinary correlation between these characters, since there occurs the prolongation of snout in male during this period. B) Races of dog salmon. According to S. KAWAKAMI the dog salmon in Hokkaidô is to be grouped into two distinct races, Pacific and of Japan Sea, which latter may be subdivided into two races. For the distinction between the last two, he has given means and modes of branchiostegals, developed dorsal fin rays, anal fin rays, gill rakers, and pyloric eoeea. The results of the x2-test applied on his data, po ?? nted to the conclusion that according to all characters, except pyloric coeca, the two groups are really differentiated samples, and they may be safely separated into two races.