Southern Slope Research Articles

Plant Formations Found in Xerophytic (Arid) Sparse Forests in the Azerbaijan Territory and Their Protection

Based on the ecological and geobotanical studies conducted in xerophytic (arid) sparse forests in the territory of Azerbaijan and the study of the relevant literature, a classification scheme was developed taking into account xerophytic tree species that form such groups as Caragana grandiflora DC. and Astragalus microcephalus Willd. In the course of the study, based on phytocoenological principles, a xerophytic (arid) sparse forest type of vegetation was noted in the Turyanchay Reserve, in the mountainous part of the Lankaran-Yardymli district, in Nakhchivan and the Gabala district located on the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus. It was established that this type of vegetation consists of 1 formation class, 2 formation groups and 2 associations. A geobotanical description and species composition of the formations was carried out and it was established that the sparse forests of Caraganeta-Pistacetum-Juniperosum, found in the leguminous shrubs, need protection from the negative impact of anthropogenic factors. And this, in turn, creates the basis for the conservation of plant formations found in the forest ecosystems of Azerbaijan.

Research on Improving the Accuracy of SIF Data in Estimating Gross Primary Productivity in Arid Regions

Coupling solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) with gross primary productivity (GPP) for ecological function integration research presents numerous uncertainties, especially in ecologically fragile and climate-sensitive arid regions. Therefore, evaluating the suitability of SIF data for estimating GPP and the feasibility of improving its accuracy in the northern region of Xinjiang is of profound significance for revealing the spatial distribution patterns of GPP and the strong coupling relationship between GPP and SIF in arid regions, achieving the goal of “carbon neutrality” in arid regions. This study is based on multisource SIF satellite data and GPP observation data from sites in three typical ecosystems (cultivated and farmlands, pasture grasslands, and desert vegetation). Two precision improvement methods (canopy and linear) are used to couple multiple indicators to determine the suitability of multisource SIF data for GPP estimation and the operability of accuracy improvement methods in arid regions reveal the spatial characteristics of SIF (GPP). The results indicate the following. (1) The interannual variation of GPP shows an inverted “U” shape, with peaks values in June and July. The cultivated and farmland areas have the highest peak value among the sites (0.35 gC/m2/month). (2) The overall suitability ranking of multisource SIF satellite products for GPP estimation in arid regions is RTSIF > CSIF > SIF_OCO2_005 > GOSIF. RTSIF shows better suitability in the pasture grassland and cultivated and farmland areas (R2 values of 0.85 and 0.84, respectively). (3) The canopy method is suitable for areas with a high leaf area proportion (R2 improvement range: 0.05–0.06), while the linear method is applicable across different surface types (R2 improvement range: 0.01–0.13). However, the improvement effect of the linear method is relatively weaker in areas with high vegetation cover. (4) Combining land use data, the overall improvement of SIF (GPP) is approximately 0.11%, and the peak values of its are mainly distributed in the northern and southern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains, while the low values are primarily found in the Gurbantunggut Desert. The annual mean value of SIF (GPP) is about 0.13 mW/m2/nm/sr. This paper elucidates the applicability of SIF for GPP estimation and the feasibility of improving its accuracy, laying the theoretical foundation for the spatiotemporal coupling study of GPP and SIF in an arid region, and providing practical evidence for achieving carbon neutrality goals.

A Rock-cut Tomb from Arpacık Boyalı Mevkii with an Inscription in Lycian

The research project entitled “Byzantine Settlements around Alacadağ in the Lycian Region” has been underway since 2014 with the aim of identifying and documenting Late Antique and Medieval rural settlements in the mountainous area north of Demre (Myra), Antalya district. During the surveys in 2022, a rock tomb and some building remains that can be dated to the Classical period were found in the mountainous area north of Belören village in a place called Katranağaç and Arpacık Tepe by the locals. The buildings were placed at intervals on the southern slope of the hill, facing the village, along a line of about 750 metres in an east-west direction. The rock tomb with an inscription in the Lycian language, which is the subject of this article, is located on the eastern side of the rock at an altitude of 937.60 metres in the Arpacık locality. There are also agricultural areas formed by terraces in front of the tomb structure towards the south. The inscription in Lycian language is written in 4 lines in funerary style. The analysis of the inscription and the tomb is the subject of this study.

Biodiversity of Parasitengona (Acari: Prostigmata) in the northern and southern slopes of Joghtai mountain range, Razavi Khorasan province

Biodiversity of Parasitengona (Acari: Prostigmata) in the northern and southern slopes of Joghtai mountain range, Razavi Khorasan province

Hydrochemical and isotopic characteristics on the southern and northern slopes of the Himalayas: spatio-temporal controls and source apportionment

Water-soluble ions, inorganic nitrogen, and stable isotopes in precipitation were assessed from the southern (Koshi Tappu and Khandbari) and northern slopes (Lhasa and SET) of the Himalayas to understand the sources, chemistry of regional precipitation, and climatic processes. Water soluble ions showed distinct seasonal variation, with higher concentrations in the non-monsoon. The concentration of ionic species was highest in Koshi Tappu, followed by Lhasa, SET, and Khandbari. The sources were from the terrigenous (Ca2+, HCO3−), marine (Na+ and Cl−), anthropogenic (SO42−, NO3−, and NH4+), terrigenous and marine (Mg2+), and biomass-burning (K+). The southern slope, relative to the northern, was more prone to anthropogenic emissions with higher deposition. Among all sites, inorganic nitrogen deposition at Koshi Tappu was higher than the threshold value (10 kg ha−1 y−1). The isotopic composition during the study period was higher in non-monsoon, started declining from June, and depleted in July and August compared to other months, i.e., the monsoon mature phase, along the south-to-north transect. The diminished value of stable isotopes in precipitation with increasing altitude underlines the evidence of the orographic effect in isotopic composition. Our study delineated that the higher/lower d-excess value increased with altitude on the southern/northern slope of the Himalayas. The backward trajectory analysis and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction's Final (NCEP FNL) datasets identified that most of the trajectories arrived from warm and humid low-latitude regions during monsoon and westerlies in non-monsoon. Thus, the chemical characteristics and stable isotopic composition of precipitation differed on the southern and northern slopes of the Himalayas by orographic effect and various sources. This study provides new insights into the atmospheric environment and climatic control of stable isotopes in the Himalayan Tibetan Plateau and facilitates monitoring of transboundary air pollution.

WRF numerical simulation of summer precipitation and its application over the mountainous southern Tibetan Plateau based on different cumulus parameterization schemes

The extreme scarcity of meteorological observation data caused by harsh natural environments greatly limits our understanding of precipitation and related atmospheric processes over the mountainous regions of the southern Tibetan Plateau and its surrounding areas (hereafter mountainous southern TP). Precipitation simulation has been challenging in this region due to the complex topography and large elevation differences. Considering the high sensitivity of precipitation to the choice of cumulus parameterization scheme (CPS) over the TP, this study systematically evaluated the precipitation simulation performance of 11 CPSs in July 2018 using the WRF model. The characteristics of atmospheric circulation and gradient variation of precipitation were also revealed based on the optimal CPS over this region. The results indicated that the scale-aware schemes (KIAPS SAS [KSAS] and multi-scale Kain–Fritsch [MSKF]) demonstrated excellent potential for precipitation simulations. Due to the reasonable expression of atmospheric stability and the resulting accurate simulation of the timing and amount of regional heavy precipitation events, the KSAS scheme was superior to the MSKF scheme. The output of the KSAS-configured experiment revealed two main water vapor transport channels for the mountainous southern TP in summer, namely the southern monsoonal channel and the western westerly channel. Based on the precipitation profiles along the typical paths of these two channels (longitudinal path of 95.5°E and latitudinal path of 29.5°N), two precipitation belts and one precipitation belt existed on the southern and western slopes of the TP, respectively.

Closing the Water: Ethnography of a Nahua Ritual

“Closing the water” is a ritual connected to the agrarian cycle and belongs to a set of rituals which are performed for the purpose of securing an abundant harvest of maize and other crops. This case study is based on fieldwork conducted by the author in Hueyapan, a Nahua community situated in the Highlands of Morelos on the southern slopes of the Popocatepetl volcano in Central Mexico. It consists of two parts: the first provides a description of the ritual; that is, it presents the ritual itself and the sequence of its parts. The second represents an analysis and explanation of the ritual from an anthropological point of view. Since the ritual of “Closing the water” belongs to a millennial tradition of Mesoamerica related to a ritual landscape, sacred mountains and agrarian cycle, the paper shows how this tradition and this ritual were incorporated into Catholicism in a process of religious syncretism.

Meteorological regime of the Elbrus high-mountain zone during the accumulation period

Unique automated meteorological observations were carried out on the southern slope of Elbrus, near Pastukhov Rocks, at 4700 m a.s.l., during the 2021–2022 accumulation season. Data were obtained on air temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, snowdrift and radiation fluxes with a temporal resolution of 1 minute or less. Analysis of the data series showed that the representative winter air temperature at this altitude on the southern slope of Elbrus is –10 °С, and the minimum is –36.4 °С; the partial pressure of water vapor does not exceed 3.5 hPa. At the same time, the average daily maximum of wind speed amounted 13.1 m s–1 with the absolute maximum of 54.1 m/s. Snowstorms with a snow transport intensity of more 0.1 kg/m2s–1 are quite common phenomenon in winter, while the maximum average value of the transport reaches 0.87 kg/m2s–1. An empirical relationship was established between the average hourly wind speed and the maximum gust speed for the same period, and it was shown that for these conditions the wind gust exceeds the average hourly wind speed by 1.8 times, while the representative value of the standard deviation of wind speed is 5.8 m s–1. This information may be useful not only for the glaciologic problems and modeling, but also for construction and engineering surveys, which are relevant in view of the present-day active development of the mountain ski infrastructure on the southern macro-slope of the Elbrus. In addition, the obtained series of instrumental observations were used to assess the quality of reanalysis data for high mountain regions taking as an example the ERA5. The ERA5 reanalysis was demonstrated to reproduce rather successfully the air temperature, wind speed and humidity in high mountain conditions, but extreme values for all these parameters are underestimated. Thus, the minimum temperature in winter turned out to be overestimated by 2 °C, and the maximum was underestimated by 4 °C, while the wind speed, according to the ERA5 reanalysis, never exceeded 40 m/s during the above observation period. It is also shown that the FlowCapt4 acoustic blizzard gauge (driftometer) can be used to estimate average wind speeds since it is less sensitive to severe high-altitude conditions compared to acoustic and cup anemometers.

Combining traceological analysis and ZooMS on Early Neolithic bone artefacts from the cave of Coro Trasito, NE Iberian Peninsula: Cervidae used equally to Caprinae.

Few studies have combined the analysis of use-wear traces, traceology, and the proteomic taxonomic identification method Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS). Traceology provides information on the usage, in this case, of bone artefacts, while ZooMS allows for taxonomic identifications where diagnostic features are otherwise gone. The approaches therefore offer complementary information on bone artefacts, allowing for insights into species selection strategies in bone tool manufacture and their subsequent use. Here we present a case study of 20 bone artefacts, mainly bone points, from the Early Neolithic cave site of Coro Trasito located on the southern slope of the Central Pyrenees. Hitherto, studies on Early Neolithic bone artefacts from the Iberian Peninsula have suggested based on morphological assessments that Ovis aries/Capra hircus constituted the majority of the bone material selected for bone tool production. However, the taxonomic identification in this study suggests that, at this site, Cervidae was selected equally to that of O. aries/C. hircus. Furthermore, bone artefacts made from Cervidae specimens seem to be utilised in a wider range of artefact types compared to O. aries/C. hircus. Coro Trasito's bone artefact species composition is probably site-specific to some degree, however, morphological assessments of bone artefacts might not be representative and could be biased towards certain species. Therefore, research on bone artefacts' usage could possibly gain new insights by implementing ZooMS in combination with traceology.

Clonal growth characteristics and diversity patterns of different Clintonia udensis (Liliaceae) diploid and tetraploid cytotypes in the Hualongshan Mountains

Polyploidization plays an important role in plant evolution and biodiversity. However, intraspecific polyploidy compared to interspecific polyploidy received less attention. Clintonia udensis (Liliaceae) possess diploid (2n = 2x = 14) and autotetraploid (2n = 4x = 28) cytotypes. In the Hualongshan Mountains, the autotetraploids grew on the northern slope, while the diploids grew on the southern slopes. The clonal growth characteristics and clonal architecture were measured and analyzed by field observations and morphological methods. The diversity level and differentiation patterns for two different cytotypes were investigated using SSR markers. The results showed that the clonal growth parameters, such as the bud numbers of each rhizome node and the ratio of rhizome branches in the autotetraploids were higher than those in the diploids. Both the diploids and autotetraploids appeared phalanx clonal architectures with short internodes between ramets. However, the ramets or genets of the diploids had a relatively scattered distribution, while those of the autotetraploids were relatively clumping. The diploids and autotetraploids all allocated more biomass to their vegetative growth. The diploids had a higher allocation to reproductive organs than that of autotetraploids, which indicated that the tetraploids invested more resources in clonal reproduction than diploids. The clone diversity and genetic diversity of the autotetraploids were higher than that of the diploids. Significant genetic differentiation between two different cytotypes was observed (P < 0.01). During establishment and evolution, C. udensis autotetraploids employed more clumping phalanx clonal architecture and exhibited more genetic variation than the diploids.

Single grain pIRIR dating of glacigenic deposits in the Yuzhu Peak area of Kunlun Mountains of Tibetan Plateau revealed the glaciations during Holocene period

The variations of glaciers in the Kunlun Mountains of the northern Tibetan Plateau are influenced by the complex interaction of the East Asia summer monsoon (EASM), Indian summer monsoon (ISM) and Westerlies, as well as human activity during the Holocene period. Consequently there is ongoing debates regarding the evolution of glaciers and the factors driving their changes. The reconstruction of glacial evolutions in these regions has been hindered by insufficient chronological data for moraines and other glacial landforms. In this study, glacial sediment samples were collected from five moraine sequences located on the southern and northern slopes of the Yuzhu Peak in the Kunlun Mountains. These poorly bleached moraine samples were dated using the single-grain quartz optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and K-feldspar post-infrared infrared stimulated luminescence (pIRIR) dating methods. The luminescence characteristics analysis of quartz grains shows that single grain quartz OSL dating cannot be used to date Holocene moraine samples due to the low brightness of quartz OSL signals. Various tests were conducted to assess the reliability of K-feldspar pIR50IR170 dating, including anomalous fading tests, dose recovery, and residual dose tests. The K-feldspar pIR50IR170 ages, determined using the Minimum Age Model (MAM), indicate that during the early Holocene, glaciations have expanded by ∼800 m in length at ∼ 8 ka, and during the end of the Neoglacial period, they extended by ∼200 m in length at ∼ 1 ka. The strengthened ISM precipitation and northward movement of ISM boundary likely contributed to the glacial expansion in the early Holocene. During the end of the Neoglacial period, the increase in westerlies precipitation and cold events may have played a role in the advancement of glaciers.

Mineralogy of Lateritic Weathering Profiles Developed on the Rocks under a Sub-equatorial Monsoon Climate: Case of the Bambouto Mountains

ABSTRACT The main objective of this work is to make a comparative assessment of the mineralogy on weathering profiles resulting from the alteration of the different rocks in an equatorial microclimate of altitude. This was carried out in the lower flank of the southern slope of the Bambouto Mountains. Mineralogical analysis and normative restructuring have given very interesting results on the profiles, between the basement rocks and the surface/cover rocks. Given that the alteration pathways of the basement rocks are different, they are similar within the zone of containment and potential leaching. Meanwhile, the cover rocks vary from one domain to another: virtual weathering, potential confinement, potential and virtual weathering, and induration. The alterological activity is very intense in the profile on trachybasalt. The predominant weathering processes in all cases are allitization and monosialitization, which are marked by a singular phenomenon of ferrolysis. The characteristic minerals of this profile are kaolinite and diopside. The weathering profile on biotite and hornblende granitoid is not very differentiated and is particularly rich in quartz (max: 40 weight-%) and microcline (max: 40 weight-%). The soils developed on granitoid, adopt elastic-fragile deformation to elastoplastics with sharp break in relation to the load applied. The alteration profile on orthogneiss is poorly differentiated, and thin, with a low degree of alteration. Hydrolytic alteration by monosiallitization marked this profile. This is particularly rich in quartz (max: 100 weight-%) and kaolinite (max: 57 weight-%). The profile on anatexite is particularly rich in quartz (max: 66 weight-%) and kaolinite (max: 40 weight-%). The normative restructuring confirmed over 98 weight-% of the various minerals obtained and thus made it possible to better characterize the alteration and its application in geotechnics. These soils constitute potential deposits of chromatogenic minerals: kaolinite, hematite, goethite, gibbsite, magnetite, biotite.

Nature-based solutions for monitoring the impact of vehicular particulate matter and for the preventive conservation of the Palatine Hill archaeological site in Rome, Italy

Magnetic and chemical biomonitoring methodologies were applied to the southern slopes of the Palatine Hill archaeological area in Rome, Italy. Plant leaves and lichen transplants were respectively sampled and exposed between July 2022 and June 2023 to assess the impact of vehicular particulate matter from Via dei Cerchi, a trafficked road coasting Circus Maximus, towards the archaeological area upon the Palatine Hill. The magnetic properties of leaves and lichens, inferred from magnetic susceptibility, hysteresis loops and first order reversal curves, were combined with the concentration of trace elements. It was demonstrated that the bioaccumulation of magnetite-like particles, associated with tracers of vehicular emissions, such as Ba and Sb, decreased with longitudinal distance from the road, without any important influence of elevation from the ground. Lichens demonstrated to be more efficient biomonitors of airborne PM than leaves, irrespective of the plant species. Conversely, leaves intercepted and accumulated all PM fractions, including road dusts and resuspended soil particles. Thus, plant leaves are suitable for providing preventive conservation services that limit the impact of particulate pollution on cultural heritage sites within busy metropolitan contexts.

The Influence of Slope Exposure, Profile Depth and Erosion Processes on Changes in the Content of Potassium, Phosphorus and Humus in Brown Soils of Mountain Pastures of Uzbekistan

Humus, potassium, and phosphorus are key components of soil that play crucial roles in ecosystem productivity, plant growth, and development. They control a wide range of processes, including greenhouse gas fluxes, nutrient cycling, infiltration, and water retention. This article presents the results of evaluating humus, potassium (K), and phosphorus (P) content in the profile of brown soils in mountain pastures of Uzbekistan, as well as their distribution within these soils. The brown soils studied in the mountain pastures of Uzbekistan have a loamy granulometric composition, with the clay fraction not exceeding 20%. The carbonate content is low (2.5-9%), with the maximum amount found in the carbonate horizon. The soils exhibit weak leaching. The total humus content in the upper horizon varies from 1 to 6.6%. It was observed that the soils on the more moistened northern and western slopes contain more humus than those on the southern and eastern slopes, indicating a dependence of high humus content on slope exposition. For the first time, the article allocates phosphorus and potassium of near, labile, and potential reserves (as a percentage of the total content) to estimate the change in the nature of brown soils under economic use. It was found that the potential reserve of phosphorus and potassium (35.5-90%) prevails in soils. Further study of the features of humus, potassium, and phosphorus, their accumulation, and restoration in brown soils is essential for developing recommendations for the rational use, anti-erosion protection, and increased productivity of mountain pastures in Uzbekistan.

Biomagnetostratigraphy of the Eastern Gobustan’s paleogene rocks

On the territory of Azerbaijan, Paleogene deposits are widespread and often have facies alteration. To address the issues of stratigraphic, paleogeography, facies and paleoecological directions, a detailed stratigraphic basis of both the region as a whole and its individual sections is required. This article presents the results of joint magnetobiostratigraphic studies of the Paleogene deposits of the Greater Caucasus (Azerbaijan) in order to clarify the boundaries of the Paleocene, Eocene, Oligocene and Miocene. Biostratigraphically dated Paleogene deposits of the Khilmili, Pirakushkul, Dzhangi sections (southern slope of the Greater Caucasus) were chosen as the object of study. Paleomagnetic studies of the Paleogene deposits of Azerbaijan showed frequent reversals of the geomagnetic field of this period. The results of scientific studies of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus confirmed this fact. We have identified two paleomagnetic zones: 1) Khorem (Maastrichtian 70 Ma - Eocene 45 Ma) (zones of reverse polarity prevail in it, but the upper part of the Paleocene has a direct polarity) and 2) Sogdiana (RN-Oligocene and Miocene - characterized by alternating direct and reverse polarity paleomagnetic field). In the Lower Paleocene, 2 subzones of direct polarity were distinguished: Danian and Selandian. The position of the R-zone made it possible to draw the boundary between the Danian and Selandian stages. The identification of a paleomagnetic zone of reverse polarity contributed to the determination of the boundary between the Selandian and Thanetian stages. This result was confirmed by identifying changes in the micro-faunistic composition of deposits and observing the nature of variations in micro-floristic complexes. Such a paleomagnetic zone of reverse polarity is the benchmark (plug) for establishing the boundary between the Mons and Thanetian stages. Keywords: paleomagnetism; southern slope of the Greater Caucasus; Paleogene; magnetostratigraphic boundaries.

Status of Pig Rearing Practices in the Urban Districts of Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand, a mountainous state located on the southern slope of the Himalayas, relies heavily on animal husbandry for its economy. However, the piggery sector in the state is unorganized and insufficient to meet the growing demand for pork. Moreover, the increasing urbanization and deforestation in the planar districts have blurred the boundaries between wildlife, livestock and human habitats. This study through a household survey approach aims to determine the socio-economic characteristics of the pig rearing community, the pig husbandry practices they adopt and also assess the ecological impacts of pig farming in urban districts of Uttarakhand. 28 households were surveyed and analysis of the result shows dismal socio-economic condition of the pig rearing community. Furthermore, 28.6% maintained breeding boar of feral origin and 96.94% followed semi-intensive pig rearing practices; hence human settlements have stayed in close association with pigs (domestic and wild) and other domestic animals. The possibility of the emergence of zoonotic disease and its easy transmission to humans has become more prominent in the urban setting. The findings of this study provide a preliminary picture of the current status of pig husbandry practices and challenges faced by piggery sector and government can take into account these crucial insights for a holistic piggery development program in the state.

Новые памятники археологии на северном побережье Кандалакшского залива Белого моря

The article is devoted to the results of the archaeological expedition of the Kola Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences on the northern shore of the Kandalaksha Bay of the White Sea near the city of Kandalaksha and on the Kolvitsa River in 2023. Three new archaeological monuments have been recorded: Niva XXIII — boulder pit, Kandalaksha XVI – charcoal pits and Kolvitsa – stone structures. The boulder pit is located on an ancient sea terrace, on the western slope of Mount Volosyanaya, 1 km from the Niva River. Three charcoal pits are located on the northern shore of Malaya Pitkulya Bay, near the southern slope of Mount Krestovaya, not far from the labyrinth. This is the first discovery of such objects in Russian Lapland and they date back to the late 15th–16th centuries. Seven formations of boulders are located on the northern bank of the Kolvitsa River near the rapids. Analogs are known to them in other places of Russian Lapland. There are also boulder pits on the Khlebnaya River and on the coast of the Barents Sea. The dating and ethnicity of the boulder structures are still speculative.

Assessment of the state of forest vegetation of waste dumps of coal mines in Ukraine

The aim of the work was to assess the current state of protective vegetation cover formed as a result of forest reclamation and natural overgrowth of all rock dumps of coal mines in Ukraine. The relevance of the research is conditioned by the important role of taking into account the degree of forest cover on the surface of dumps when assessing their ecological hazard to the environment. Forest plantations reduce the intensity of deflation and erosion of the surface of dumps, so the intensity of pollutants entering the adjacent territory is also sharply reduced. The main research method was the analysis of space images. The scientific novelty of the research results consists in the estimation of the average afforestation of the surface of dumps of the Lviv-Volynsky coal basin, Western and Central Donbass and in the established dependence of the afforestation of dumps slopes on their exposure and insolation coefficient proposed by the authors. Differences in afforestation of dumps of the above-mentioned basins (50.6%, 5.6% and 10.6%, respectively) testify both to the role of differences in climatic conditions and to the low level of dump reclamation in the Donetsk coal basin. Almost 1,900 ha or 79.5% of the dump surface in the north-eastern part of the Central Donbas is not forested and is a source of intensive environmental pollution. The afforestation of southern slopes in the Central Donbas is 4.7 times lower than that of northern slopes. However, a part of dumps is characterised by almost complete afforestation of southern slopes. This important fact proves the possibility of growing plantations under conditions of unstable moisture inherent in Donbas, even on such slopes. The practical significance of the work consists in the presented low-cost reclamation technology and the results of its use by the authors in forest reclamation of two rock dumps of PJSC ‘Lisichanskvugillia’. The given results of the survey of forest plantations more than 30 years after their creation by the authors prove the possibility of mass afforestation of rock dumps in Ukraine and, as a consequence, the reduction of the area of agricultural lands polluted by dumps and the intensity of their pollution.

Glacial relief of the central part of the Kola Region

Improvement in quality of digital elevation models and satellite images of the Earth’s surface led to a tendency to interpret them without sufficient confirmation by geological research methods. At the same time, the geological data is critical for the interpretation of genesis of accumulative glacial landforms and regional landscape reconstruction during the last glaciation. The article provides a classification and geologic structure of the glacial relief of one of the key areas in the Kola region. New data were obtained using morphometric analysis of relief, geological, structural analysis of glacial landforms, petrographic analysis of coarse glacial deposits, and the study of lake sediments. Two bands of glacial accumulative relief were identified in the study area. The first band forms a parallel ridge relief on the southern slope of the Lovozero Tundra. It represents the formations of a lateral moraine formed at the edge of a glacier moving from the west to the east along the slope. Also a hummocky-ridge relief along the slopes of the Lovozero, Panskie, and Fedorova Tundras that consist of terminal moraines is included in this band. The moraines are composed of dislocated limno- and fluvioglacial deposits, dump and ablative moraines. The second band is formed by three subparallel chains of ridge-hummocky relief. They include folded and imbricated-thrust glaciotectonically deformed deposits. Fluvioglacial deposits are developed on the distal slope of the outer chain. Both bands of glacial relief are associated with formation of marginal landforms during two stages of glacial retreats. Analysis of deglaciation models of the last ice sheet in the Kola and adjacent regions and data on the position of known marginal glacial formations made it possible to compare the stages with the final episodes of the Luga (Karelian) and Neva (Syamozero) Stages. The information obtained reveals more details about the stages of development of the last ice sheet and the deglaciation pattern of the Kola region in the Late Glacial.

Radial growth response of Populus euphratica and Picea schrenkiana to climate extremes on the arid southern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains

With global warming, the frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme climate events are likely to escalate across a broad range of regions in the 21st century. However, the impacts of such extreme climate phenomena on forest ecosystems vary significantly across different geographical areas. Trees in arid zones tend to exhibit heightened sensitivity to climatic anomalies. This study uses dendrochronological methods to examine the relationship between climate extreme and two unique natural forests found on the southern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains—Diversifolious Poplar (Populus euphratica Oliv.) and Schrenk spruce (Picea schrenkiana Fisch. et Mey.). The findings reveal a high degree of climate sensitivity in P. schrenkiana, in contrast to the relative stability of P. euphratica. The warming trend has notably altered the growth responses of both species to extreme climate events, with P. euphratica, due to its lower elevation habitat, experiencing more pronounced effects from extreme precipitation events compared to P. schrenkiana. These outcomes underscore the substantial perturbations that extreme climate changes can inflict upon radial tree growth. In light of these findings, tailored management and conservation strategies should be implemented for distinct climate extremes and tree species.