Western Kamchatka Research Articles

Species composition, distribution, and specific features of feeding of Fish Larvae, and fry in the Sea of Okhotsk from October to December 2007

Ichthyoplankton of the Sea of Okhotsk from October to December 2007 comprised larvae and fry of eight fish species belonging to five families. The larvae of lord Hemilepidotus gilberti, white-spotted greenling Hexagrammos stelleri, and Atka mackerel Pleurogrammus monopterygius were the most widespread and numerous in the study period. Fish larvae from October to December 2007 were seined over the vast water area of the Sea of Okhotsk, maximum catches were made in waters of western Kamchatka. The food spectrum of larvae of five fish species (H. gilberti, Hexagrammos octogrammus, H. stelleri, P. monopterygius, and Bathymaster signatus) included approximately 20 plankters. Irrespective of species belonging, copepods Pseudocalanus minutus and Oithona similis, eggs and nauplii of copepods, as well as juveniles of pteropods were common food items for all fish. Larvae of all considered fish species in the Sea of Okhotsk fed mainly during the light hours of the day.

New data on helminths of juvenile starry flounder Platichthys stellatus (Pallas, 1787) (Osteichthyes, Pleuronectidae) inhabiting western Kamchatka Rivers

More than twenty helminth species have been found for the juvenile starry flounder inhabiting the Ukhtolok River on the coast of western Kamchatka. Most of the species have been registered for the first time. Pictures and a morphological description of monogeneans of Gyrodactylus genus (G. flesi, G. cf. robustus and Gyrodactylus sp.) and nematode larvae (Acuariidae gen. sp.), as well as a brief ecological analysis of the parasitic invasion of the studied fish, are presented.

Comparison of different methods of census of juvenile salmonids (Salmonidae) in the small river Mikocheva (Western Kamchatka)

Seinings of the lowland bed of a typical small river of Western Kamchatka demonstrated that of several methods for the census of juveniles of salmonids (Salmonidae) the most accurate result in comparison with complete removal is obtained by three-fold seining with calculation of abundance by the Zippin method. In comparison with a seine, a drive-in trap and electrofishing possess a lower average catching efficiency and a higher selectivity. The average density of fish estimated by the results of seining at the investigated stretch was 0.55–0.57 specimens/m2.

Available potassium in volcanic soils of Kamchatka

The distribution of available potassium in the profiles of synlithogenic volcanic soils of Kamchatka has been studied. Most of the soils in the Central Kamchatka Depression and the Western Kamchatka Lowland are characterized by a medium content of nonexchangeable potassium and a high content of exchangeable potassium. The soils of the east coast are less rich in potassium. The reserves of available potassium in the root layer of the virgin and cultivated soils of Kamchatka have been calculated. It is shown that differences in the reserves of potassium are related to different degrees of the soil tolerance toward the depletion of potassium and to the uneven application of potassium fertilizers. In most cases, soil cultivation is accompanied by a general rise in the reserves of available potassium with an increase in the portion of exchangeable potassium relative to its nonexchangeable forms.

Reproduction ecology of masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou in the Kol basin (Western Kamchatka)

In the Kol basin, one of the typical salmon rivers of Western Kamchatka, special traits of reproduction ecology of masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou are studied (characteristics and behavior of spawners during spawning, localization of spawning grounds, topography and hydrology of redds, and interaction with other species of salmonids). The masu salmon spawns in the Kol basin in tributaries of the upper reaches of the river and only in downwelling. Spawning grounds of masu samlmon are confined to stretches with overhanging banks, log jams creating shelters for spawners and favorable hydrological conditions for spawning and egg development. All over its range, masu salmon requires similar conditions for reproduction. In the north of its range, in Kamchatka, masu salmon retains the properties of the most warm-water species in the genus Oncorhynchus and selects for spawning the grounds characterized by the highest temperature in the period of spawning and development.

Population structure of the masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou from the Kol River (Western Kamchatka) and geographic variation in the species area

According to materials from original investigations in Kamchatka as well as published data, the population structure and geographical variation of the masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou are considered in the species area. The intraspecies structure, dates of their run to rivers, dates of spawning, traits of spawning, size-age and sex composition, fecundity, biological traits of parr, downstream migration of smolts are investigated. The relationship is shown between the manifestations of geographical variation of masu salmon and the factor of temperature. It is assumed that the global warming of climate would contribute to the advancement of this species to northern areas and to the increase in its abundance.

New data on diatoms from the marine Paleogene of Western Kamchatka

Diatom assemblages from the marine Paleogene of Western Kamchatka (the Kovachina, Viventek, and Kuluven formations) are studied. The shallow-water neritic assemblage from the Kovachina Formation of the Pyatibratskii Cape section is tentatively attributed to the middle Eocene, as it is lacking zonal index species. A high abundance and great taxonomic diversity are characteristic of diatoms from the upper part of the Viventek Formation in the Kovran River section. The zonal index species Cavitatus rectus identified here among the diatoms suggests that the respective assemblage is macerated from the synonymous diatom zone of the middle Oligocene (29.6−28.2 Ma). According to its taxonomic composition and structure, this assemblage is indicative of transgression environments and the presumable influence of the middle Oligocene climatic optimum. The Rocella gelida (upper part) and Thalassiosira praefraga diatom zones of the Oligocene-Miocene transition are established in the Kuluven Formation sediments of the Mt. Uvuch section in Kovachina Bay.

Oligocene biogeography of the North Pacific (Implications of Mollusks)

First biogeographic maps are proposed for the late Eocene-Oligocene of the North Pacific. The maps are compiled based on distribution of 120 molluscan species studied in 30 reference sections of the region. The analyzed Machigar (Sakhalin), Rategin, Amanina-Gakh (western Kamchatka), Asagai-Momidziyama (Japan) type assemblages and their age analogues are well known and described long ago. Over 50 schematic biogeographic maps illustrate distribution areas of different taxa in the late Eocene, early Oligocene, and late Oligocene epochs. Some of them characterize distribution areas of individual species, while the others depict habitat areas of typical (Machigar and Rategin) assemblages or certain genera different in terms of their thermotropism. Analysis of the maps resulted in recognition of the Japan-Kamchatka and Kamchatka-North American paleoprovinces, and indications of general gradual seawater temperature decrease during the Oligocene are defined. The attention is paid to the commenced diversification of North Pacific biota that leads to formation of boreal communities and also to different-rank the amphipacific dusjunctions.

Diatoms in surface sediments of the Sea of Okhotsk and the northwest Pacific Ocean

The present investigation was targeted at diatom composition studies in the surface sediments (0–1 cm) sampled in the Sea of Okhotsk and the northwest Pacific in the depth range from 130 to 6110 m. The taxonomic analysis, as well as the quantitative (the diatom cell abundance per sediment dry weight unit) content and ecological group definition, was applied. Ten diatom taxa are the main body (80–100%) of the diatom assemblages: Bacterosira bathyomphala, Chaetoceros spp. (spores), Actinocyclus curvatulus, Thalassiosira latimarginata (group), T. antarctica (spores), Neodenticula seminae, Rhizosolenia hebetata f. hiemalis, Thalassiothrix longissima, Coscinodiscus marginatus, Coscinodiscus oculus iridis. The relative content of these species reflects the sedimentation conditions for different parts of the sea: the shelf, the continental slope, the open sea, and the ocean. The highest diatom content (45.6.3–60.0 106 per g of dry weight) was found for the surface sediments in the central part of the Sea of Okhotsk and the continental slope of western Kamchatka.

Correlation of the Jurassic-Cretaceous siliceous-volcanogenic sediments in northwestern surroundings of the Pacific (Koryak Upland)

In distribution areas of the Pekul’neiveem and Chirynai formations customary distinguishable in the Koryak Upland, complicated tectonostratigraphic units are composed of alternating thrust sheets of different lithologic composition and age, which are juxtaposed because of widespread thrust faulting, as is proved by the radiolarian analysis. Nineteen radiolarian assemblages of different age are first established here in the Lower Jurassic-Hauterivian succession of siliceous-volcanogenic sediments. In the Lower Jurassic interval, the lower and upper Hettangian, lower and upper Sinemurian, and Pliensbachian beds are recognized. Paleontological characterization is also presented for the Aalenian (or Toarcian?-Aalenian), upper Bajocian, lower and upper Bathonian, and Callovian beds of the Middle Jurassic. Within the Upper Jurassic, the Oxfordian-early Kimmeridgian, late Kimmeridgian-early Tithonian, Tithonian, and late Tithonian-early Berriasian radiolarian assemblages are distinguished. The late Berriasian-early Valanginian, middle-late Valanginian, and Hauterivian radiolarian assemblages are first recognized or compositionally revised. Radiolarians and lithofacies data are used to correlate the tectonostratigraphic units and individualize the jasper-alkali basaltic (lower Hettangian), chert-terrigenous (Hettangian-Sinemurian), jasper-cherty (Pliensbachian-Aalenian), jasper (Bajocian-Hauterivian), jasper-basaltic (upper Bajocian-Valanginian), Fe-Ti basaltic (upper Bajocian-Bathonian), tuffitejasper-basaltic (Bathonian-Hauterivian), and terrigenous-volcanogenic (Bajocian-Valanginian) sequences. The correlation results are extrapolated into other continental areas flanking the Pacific, i.e., to the western Kamchatka, northern and northwestern coastal areas of the Sea of Okhotsk, where the analogous radiolarian assemblages are characteristic of comparable allochthonous units of terrigenous-siliceous-volcanogenic sediments.

Specific features of distribution and some features of biology of Korean flounder Glyptocephalus stelleri (Pleuronectidae) in waters off Kamchatka in the Sea of Okhotsk

According to materials of 1997–2002, the characteristic of the spatial-bathymetric distribution, size and age composition, size and sex structure, and feeding of the Korean flounder Glyptocephalus stelleri in the summer period in waters off Kamchatka in the Sea of Okhotsk (the site from 51°15′ to 57°20′ N, depths of 10–300 m) is given. It is shown that throughout the observation period, maximum catches of this flatfish were constantly observed at two sites of the western Kamchatka shelf (51°20′–53°00′ N and 55°00′–56°00′ N) in the zone exposed to the effect of anticyclonic gyres in the range of depths 101–200 m at the near-bottom temperature below 2°C. Unlike other habitat areas, off the coast of western Kamchatka, G. stelleri in the summer time is quite frequently found at negative temperature values, which is obviously determined by the specifics of thermal conditions of the eastern part of the Sea of Okhotsk. It was established that, in this species of flatfish, sex dimorphism is distinctly pronounced in sizes—males are considerably smaller than females whose relative number among individuals with a length larger than 50 cm reaches 100%. The main items of feeding of G. stelleri at the western Kamchatka shelf in the summer period are oligochaetes.

Red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) in the Barents Sea: A comparative study of introduced and native populations

Red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) was introduced into the Barents Sea in the 1960-1970s. Its present habitation area spans on the coastal zone from Hammerfest (Northern Norway) to the Barents Sea Funnel in the north-east of the Kola Peninsula. We studied the polymorphism of a mitochondrial gene encoding cytochrome oxidase (COI) and five nuclear microsatellite loci in four samples from the Barents Sea and two donor populations from the Western Kamchatka and Primorye. No decrease in the genetic diversity of the introduced populations was detected. Microsatellite assay demonstrated that the sample from Varrangerfjord was distinct from the rest five populations. However, no significant differences between the rest samples were found. Possible reasons underlying this phenomenon are discussed.

Hydrocarbon potential of sedimentary cover of the Golyginsky basin (Kamchatka)

The Golyginsky sedimentary basin (hereafter, GSB) located in the southeastern Kamchatka Peninsula opens in the west and southwest toward the Sea of Okhotsk, where the sedimentary cover is forming (Fig. 1). The basin is of great significance as a region with hydrocarbon resources and, consequently, is part of the strategic interests of Russia in the Far East. In the onshore part, the sedimentary succession of the GSB is studied in rock outcrops along its periphery and cores recovered by boreholes. The detailed lithological–petrological characteristic of sediments in the GSB is presented in [1]. The sedimentary cover is 5–6 km thick in the offshore part of the basin. It comprises three regional seismostratigraphic complexes [2]. They are correlated with stratigraphic units defined in the general Kamchatka section [3]. Previous researchers noted the elevated content of volcanogenic material as compared with other areas of western Kamchatka. The study of the lithology of rocks and their petrophysical characteristics made it possible to define potential source and reservoir formations. Geochemical studies that would allow estimation of the hydrocarbon (HC) potential of rocks in this region are virtually absent. The current assumptions of the petroleum potential of the GSB are based on geodynamic concepts and paleogeographic reconstructions that make it possible to assess the petroleum geology of the GSB, as well as the composition and structure of its sedimentary section. In our previous estimates of the HC potential of this basin [2], we used characteristics of sediments from other areas.

On morphological diversity of southern Dolly Varden trout Salvelinus malma krascheninnikovi from water bodies of Sakhalin

Morphological and some biological specific features of nine samples of the southern form of Dolly Varden trout Salvelinus malma krascheninnikovi from water bodies of Sakhalin were studied. Comparative analysis was performed of our own estimates and estimates made by other authors of meristic characters of Sakhalin populations of Dolly Varden trout, as well as of samples from water bodies of the Kuril Islands and Western Kamchatka. Sakhalin populations of S. malma krascheninnikovi are characterized by a low level of morphological differentiation and the absence of geographic structure. No clinal latitudinal variation in sample averages was revealed in either of the nine studied meristic characters, including the number of vertebrae for populations of S. malma krascheninnikovi in the range from Bol’shoi Shantar Island to the south of Sakhalin. The cline in vertebral number from Kamchatka, along the Kuril Islands to Hokkaido, is most likely explained by specific features of distribution and introgressive hybridization at the secondary contact of populations of the northern and southern forms of Dolly Varden trout that originated from different glacial refugia and had a different vertebral number rather than by the temperature gradient.

Glauconite from Paleogene volcano-terrigenous rocks in Western Kamchatka

It is shown that glauconite-bearing interbeds are widespread in the layer-by-layer studied sections on the Sea of Okhotsk coast (Mainach section) and Kheisliveem River valley (Kavran section), the volcanoterrigenous rocks of the Kovachin, Amanin, and Gakkhin formations of the Paleogene in western Kamchatka (Upper Eocene-Lower Oligocene boundary beds). Detailed mineralogical and structural-crystallochemical characteristics of glauconite from the Amanin Formation are presented. It is suggested that such glauconite should not be used for geochronological purposes.

Distribution of fish and the biotopic structure of the basin of the small salmon river (the Nachilova River, Western Kamchatka)

For one of the small Western Kamchatka rivers, according to the combination of several characteristics (watershed, channel slope, water abundance of the flow, pattern of bottom sediments), the classification of channel processes was performed, and on its basis, six biotopes successively replacing each other from the effluents to the mouth were separated. It was shown that against the background of relatively stable conditions of the summer-autumn period, an independent population of Salmonoidei, an assembly, is formed within each biotope. This is manifested in specific features of species composition, size and age structure, and the density of populating biotopes. The stability of the distribution of fish population is supported by constant species composition in particular biotopes over three years and by a comparatively high level of residence of the dominant salmon species.

Reproduction of mykiss Parasalmo mykiss in the Kol river (Western Kamchatka) and its controlling factors

For the first time, special traits of the reproduction of mykiss Parasalmo mykiss in Kamchatka are studied: dates of spawning, localization, topography and hydrology of spawning grounds, structure and fractional composition of ground of redds, duration of incubation and larval period, and thermal conditions. Possibilities of reproduction of mykiss are constrained by a narrow range of variation of spawning conditions. Spawning occurs only in tundra rivers and tributaries. The principal factor limiting reproduction of mykiss is temperature, namely a rapid warming of water in May and attaining of a necessary sum of degree-days (over 500, from the middle of May until the middle of July) during spawning and the period of incubation. Presence of water bodies of the tundra type with their special thermal conditions predetermine a possibility of reproduction of mykiss in Kamchatka and its present-day comparatively narrow area in Asia.

“Neogene basanites in western Kamchatka: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and geodynamic setting” [Petrology, 2007, Vol. 15, No. 5, pp. 488–508

“Neogene basanites in western Kamchatka: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and geodynamic setting” [Petrology, 2007, Vol. 15, No. 5, pp. 488–508

Neogene basanites in western Kamchatka: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and geodynamic setting

Neogene (N12-N21?) K-Na alkaline rocks were found in western Kamchatka as a subvolcanic basanite body at Mount Khukhch. The basanites have a microphyric texture with olivine phenocrysts in a fine-grained doleritic groundmass. The olivine contains inclusions of Al-Cr spinel. The microlites consist of clinopyroxene, plagioclase, magnetite, and apatite, and the interstitial phases are leucite, nepheline, and analcime. The Mount Khukhch basanites are characterized by elevated concentrations of MgO, TiO2, Na2O, and K2O, high concentrations of Co, Ni, Cr, Nb, Ta, Th, U, LREE (LaN/YbN = 10.8−12.6, DyN/YbN = 1.4−1.6) at moderate concentrations of Zr, Hf, Rb, Ba, Sr, Pb, and Cu. The values of indicator trace-element ratios suggest that basanites in western Kamchatka affiliate with the group of basaltoids of the within-plate geochemical type: Ba/Nb = 10−12, Sr/Nb = 17−18, Ta/Yb = 1.3−1.6. The basanites of western Kamchatka show many compositional similarities with the Miocene basanites of eastern Kamchatka, basanites of some continental rifts, and basalts of oceanic islands (OIB). The geochemistry of these rocks suggests that the basanite magma was derived via the ∼6% partial melting of garnet-bearing peridotite source material. The crystallization temperatures of the first liquidus phases (olivine and spinel) in the parental basanite melt (1372–1369°C) and pressures determined for the conditions of the “mantle” equilibrium of the melt (25–26 kbar) are consistent with the model for the derivation of basanite magma at the garnet depth facies in the mantle. The geodynamic environment in which Neogene alkaline basaltic magmas occur in western Kamchatka was controlled by the termination of the Oligocene—Early Miocene subduction of the Kula oceanic plate beneath the continental margin of Kamchatka and the development of rifting processes in its rear zone. The deep faulting of the lithosphere and decompression-induced magma generation simultaneous with mantle heating at that time could be favorable for the derivation of mantle basite magmas.

Interannual variation of linear-weight indices, age structure, and rate of growth of chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta and factors affecting it (the Bol’shaya River basin, western Kamchatka)

The interannual variation in the size-age composition and the rate of growth of autumnal chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta in the Bol’shaya River basin (western Kamchatka) was studied. Data of biological analysis and results of back calculations of the linear growth of O. keta were analyzed for the period of 1993 to 1999. Possible reasons of interannual changes in indices such as the numerical ratio of the main age groups (3+ and 4+), average values of the length and weight of spawners, and the linear growth of O. keta are discussed. It was established that the main factor responsible for the variation of the growth and dynamics of the O. keta population in the Bol’shaya River are the numbers of the western Kamchatka pink salmon O. gorbuscha.