Some geochemical features of soils formed under conditions of abandoned mercury deposits in Krasnodar Krai

Geochemical features of soils formed under conditions of abandoned cinnabar deposits in the Northwest Caucasus were studied for the first time. It was shown that the predominant elements in them are represented by titanium and manganese in the group of lithophilic elements, nickel and cobalt among siderophilic elements, and zinc and copper among chalcophilic elements. Similar regularities were revealed for the ash composition of tree species. Despite the fact that the modern soil cover is formed on various features of mesotopography, the content of elements is slightly contrasting.     

Structural and Functional Organization of Forest Litters as Indicators of Biological Cycling Intensity in Urban Forest Stands (an Example of Moscow)

Eurasian Soil Science - Annual dynamics, composition, and pools of total organic matter and ash elements in litters of urban forests in Moscow were studied. The destructive litters are shown to...     

Assessment of Intra-Biogeocenotic Variability of Forest Litters and Dwarf Shrub–Herbaceous Vegetation in Spruce Stands

Eurasian Soil Science - The differences in the species composition of the ground cover in spruce forest in dependence on the position in tessera are identified. Tessera is perceived as a...     

Features of the Ground Cover and Forest Litter of Artificial Lime Plantations Depending on the Nature of Care

The peculiarities of the litter in three parkland lime plantations of Moscow oblast with different periods of mowing of the grass cover are studied. The forest litter is characterized as destructive low-power with a comparatively low margin. The most significant indicators of forest conditions are total litter stocks, the proportion of detritus, and the ratio of stocks of grass in the litter and biomass stocks of the grass layer, which indirectly indicates the intensity of the biological cycle. The maximum rate of the biological cycle is revealed for periodically extruded lime plantations.     

Diversity of the soil biota in burned areas of southern taiga forests (Tver oblast)

Relations between soil biota diversity and its contribution to the performance of some ecosystem functions were assessed based on the results obtained in undisturbed and burned spruce forests near the Central Forest Nature Biosphere Reserve (Tver oblast). In August 2014, in two 4-year-old burned areas, abiotic parameters of the soils, indicators of the state of the microbial communities, the number, taxonomic diversity, and the abundance of the main groups of soil invertebrates (testate amoebae, nematodes, enchytraeids, mites, collembolans, and the mesofauna as a whole) were determined. In the soils of the burned areas, higher CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O emissions were observed. The number of bacterial cells remained similar, and the total length of active mycelium was not significantly different. All this implies a certain intensification of biogenic processes promoting the mobilization of carbon and nitrogen after fire. The number of most of the groups of soil animals was lower (not always significantly) in the burned area than that in the soils of the undisturbed forests. The changes in the taxonomic diversity were specific for each taxon studied. Overall, the diversity of invertebrates was related to the litter thickness. However, the high taxonomic diversity of soil fauna did not always correspond to the active functioning of the ecosystem. Thus, for some taxa, a quite close correlation was found, for instance, between the total number of species (of testate amoebae in particular) and the berry crop, as well as between the soil mesofauna population and the dead wood stock. The total diversity of the investigated taxa included in the detrital trophic web was the most reliable indicator of the carbon stock in the burned areas.     

Methodical aspects of investigation of dynamic of litter fall input under conditions of stationary soil lysimeters

Time regularities of litter fall input are revealed in the investigation of phytocenoses under conditions of stationary soil lysimeters. These regularities correlate well with the dynamics typical of phytocenoses of the Botanical Garden of Moscow State University. The data on litter fall input obtained by sampling with the use of stationary litter fall traps and by the approach of collection of the total year litter fall are highly comparable. The total amount of organic substance and ash elements received with litter fall corresponds to the data given for natural ecosystems. It may be concluded that the functioning of modern phytocenoses under conditions of very restricted volume and area of soil lysimeters is normal.     

Natural waters in the system of related landscapes

A comparative analysis of natural waters in the system of southern taiga landscapes showed that the difference in their composition was due not only to their belonging to a certain type of a water entity but also to the nature of water-enclosing rocks. The specificity of the composition is particularly evident in the case of high carbonate concentration tending to the near-terrace area of the Klyazma River. It was found that snow waters of Moscow region landscapes were less polluted than urban waters. A comparison of lysimetric and natural waters suggests that two conventional groups are observed in nature: the former is formed by watercourses of floodplain landscapes with an increased carbonate content, and the latter is made up by natural waters that belong to landscapes outside the impact of carbonates. Lysimetric soils of unpolluted areas obviously tend to natural landscapes, whereas waters in the zone of impact of deicing agents form an independent group.