Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Remote mountain lakes of Eastern Siberia: a pattern of ecologically pure non-industrialised water-bodies

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Environmental Earth Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A 3-year study of the biota of the remote mountain lakes of Amut, Balan-Tamur, and Yakondykon, situated in the Dzherginsky State Reserve in the Baikalian region of Eastern Siberia, was carried out from 2006 to 2008. Examining the biota of non-modern and non-industrialised mountain lakes allowed us to reveal its background in relation to the species composition of plankton, the main groups of benthos and fishes, production potential, and seasonal dynamics of the ecosystem’s basic links. Our data on pH and biota were compared with the findings of a previous study in 1986 in order to evaluate possible changes associated with probable acidification. We observed that the lakes of the Dzherginsky State Reserve have high species diversity. Despite this, they are classed as oligotrophic water-bodies with regard to the development level of their planktonic and benthic coenoses. These lakes are not polluted by anthropogenic activity and so could be considered as a pattern of ecologically pure water-bodies. It is important to add that high mountain lakes of Pribaikalye presently serve as refuges for species that were widespread during past geological epochs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andronikova IN (1996) Structural and functional organization of zooplankton in lake ecosystems of different trophic status. Nauka, Sankt-Peterburg (in Russia)

    Google Scholar 

  • Baikalian Reserve,. http://www.baikal-center.ru, Accessed 15 May 2016

  • Balushkina EV, Winberg GG (1979) Correlation between body weight and length in plankton crustacean. In: Winberg GG (ed) Experimental and field studies of biological basis in lakes productivity. Nauka, Leningrad, pp 58–79 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Battarbee RW, Grytnes J-A, Thompson R et al (2002) Comparing paleolimnological and instrumental evidence of climate change for remote mountain lakes over the last 200 years. J Paleolimnol 28:161–179

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bogdanov VT (ed) (1986) Lakes of the Barguzin valley. Nauka, Novosibirsk (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Bondarenko NA, Sheveleva NG, Domysheva VM (2002) Structure of plankton communities in Ilchir, an alpine lake in eastern Siberia. Jpn J Limnol 3:127–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Catalan J, Ventura M, Brancelj A et al (2002) Seasonal ecosystem variability in remote mountain lakes: implications for detecting climatic signals in sediment records. J Paleolimnol 28:25–46

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dillon PJ, Reid RA, De Grosbois E (1987) The rate of acidification of aquatic ecosystems in Ontario, Canada. Nature 329:45–48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dixit S, Dixit A, Evans R (1988) Sedimentary diatom assemblages and their utility in computing diatom-inferred pH in Sudbury Ontario lakes. Hydrobiologia 169(2):293–306

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dulmaa A (2009) Crustacea of the waters of the Darkhat lowland. In: Timoshkin OA (ed) Annotated list of the Lake Baikal fauna and its catchment area. Water-bodies and flows of southern East Siberia and Northern Mongolia. Nauka, Novosibirsk, pp 628–642 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Einsle U (1996) Copepoda: cyclopoida. Genera cyclops, megacyclops, acanthocyclops. In: Dumont HJF (ed) Guides to the indentification of the microinverbrates of the continental waters of the world. SPB Academic Publishing, Amsterdam, pp 1–82

    Google Scholar 

  • Fedotov AP, Vorobyeva SS, Bondarenko NA et al (2016) The effect of natural and antropogenic factors on the evolution of remote lakes in East Siberia for the last 200 years. Rus J Geol Geophys 57:394–410

    Google Scholar 

  • Felip M, Sattler B, Psenner R, Catalan J (1995) Highly active microbial communities in the ice and snow cover of high mountain lakes. Appl Environ Microbiol 61:2394–2401

    Google Scholar 

  • Fott J, Blazo M, Stuchlík E, Strunecký O (1999) Phytoplankton in three Tatra Mountain lakes of different acidification status. J Limnol 58:107–116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Genkal SI, Bondarenko NA (2006) Are Lake Baikal diatoms endemic? Hydrobiologia 568(S):143–153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Genkal SI, Bondarenko NA (2010) Cyclotella melnikiae sp. nov., a new diatom from the mountain lakes of Pribaikalie, Russia. Diatom Res 25(2):281–291

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Genkal SI, Bondarenko NA (2011) Diatoms in mountain lakes of the Dzherginskiy reserve (the Baikal region). 2. Pennatophyceae. J Ecol Volga Reg 3:266–279 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Ginn BK, Cumming BF, Smol JP (2007) Diatom-based environmental inferences and model comparisons from 494 northeastern North American lakes. J Phycol 43:647–661

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gleser SI, Makarova IV, Moisseeva AI, Nikolaev VA (eds) (1988) Diatoms of the USSR (fossil and recent). Nauka, Sankt-Peterburg (in Russia)

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldman Ch, Horne A (1983) Limnology. McGraw-Hill Inc., New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Hindak F, Zagorenko G (1992) Contribution to the knowledge of the species composition of summer phytoplankton of Lake Hubsugul. Mong J Folia Geobot Phytotax Praga 27:19–439

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitaev SP (2007) Basic limnology for hydro-biologists and ichthyologists. Karelian Research Centre of RAS, Petrozavodsk (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Koveshnikov MI (2010) Spatial distribution of zoobenthos in flows of the River Biya basin. Altai J Biol Inland Waters 3:66–74 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Kownacki A, Dumnicka E, Kwandrans J et al (2006) Benthic communities in relation to environmental factors in small high mountain ponds threatened by air pollutants. Boreal Environ Res 11:481–492

    Google Scholar 

  • Kozhova OM, Izmest’eva LR (1998) Lake Baikal: evolution and biodiversity. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden

    Google Scholar 

  • Kutikova LA (1970) Rotifers in USSR fauna (Rotatoria). Nauka, Leningrad (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Lacoul P, Freedman B, Clair T (2011) Effects of acidification on aquatic biota in Atlantic. Can Environ Rev 19:429–460

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ler PA (ed) (1997) Key-book to insects of far Eastern Russia. Caddy flies and scale-winged. Dalnauka, Vladivostok (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Logachev NA, Antoshchenko IV, Bazarov DB et al (1974) Highlands of Pribaikalie and Zabaikalie. Nauka, Moscow (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Marchetto A (1998) The study of high mountain lakes in the activity of the Istituto Italiano di Idrobiologia. J Limnol 57:1–10

    Google Scholar 

  • Matveev AN, Samusenok VP, Rozhkova NA et al (2006) Biota of the vitim state natural preserver: structure of biota in aquatic ecosystems. Geo, Novosibirsk (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Matvienko OM, Litvinenko RM (1977) Key book of freshwater algae of the Ukrainian SSR Pyrrophyte algae—Pyrrophyta. Naukova Dumka, Kiev (in Ukraine)

    Google Scholar 

  • Nedbalova L, Stuchlik E, Strunecky O (2006) Phytoplankton of a mountain lake (Ladove pleso, the Tatra Mountains, Slovakia): seasonal development and first indications of a response to decreased acid deposition. Biol Bratisl 61(18):91–100

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ormerod SJ, Durance I (2009) Restoration and recovery from acidification in upland Welshstreams over 25 years. J Appl Ecol 46:64–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Popov PA (2013) On a manner of the fish distribution along the Mountain Altai area. Bull Tomsk State Univ Biol 2:141–149 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Rautio M, Vincent W (2006) Bentic and pelagic food resources for zooplankton in shallow high-latitude lakes and ponds. Freshw Biol 51:1038–1052

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rühland KM, Paterson AM, Smol JP (2008) Hemispheric-scale patterns of climate-related shifts in planktonic diatoms from North American and European lakes. Glob Change Biol 14:2740–2754

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruttner-Kolisko A (1977) Suggestion for biomass calculation of planktonic rotifers. Arch Hydrobiol Beih Ergebn Limnol 8:71–78

    Google Scholar 

  • Sheveleva NG, Shaburova NI (2014) Fauna of the pelagic plankton in the high mountain lake Amut. In: Materials of the international scientific conference on biological diversity and problems of the caucasus fauna protect. September 23–26, 2014, Erevan, Armenia, pp 351–355

  • Sienkiewicz E, Gąsiorowski M, Hercman H (2006) Is acid rain impacting the Sudetic lakes? Sci Total Environ 369:139–149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smol JP, Stoermer EF (2010) The Diatoms: applications for the environmental and earth sciences, 2nd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Sørensen TA (1948) Method of establishing groups of equal amplitude in plant sociology based on similarity of species content and its application to analysis of the vegetation on Danish commons. Biologiske Skrifter 5:1–34

    Google Scholar 

  • Starmach K (1985) Chrysophyceae und Haptophyceae. In: Pascher A (ed) Subwasserflora von Mitteleuropa. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Jena

    Google Scholar 

  • Timoshkin OA, Bondarenko NA, YeA Volkova et al (2015) Mass development of green filamentous algae of the genera Spirogyra Link and Stigeoclonium Kuetz. (Chlorophyta) in the litoral zone of the southern part of Lake Baikal. Hydrobiol J 51:13–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tolotti M (2001) Phytoplankton and littoral epilithic diatoms in high mountain lakes of the Adamello-Brenta Regional Park (Trentino, Italy) and their relation to trophic status and acidification risk. J Limnol 60:171–188

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tsalolikhin SYa (ed) (1995) Key-book to freshwater invertebrates of Russia and adjacent areas. Nauka, S-Peterburg (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsalolikhin SYA (ed) (2010) Key-book to zooplankton and zoobenthos of the fresh waters of European Russia. Zooplankton. Association of Scientific Publications КMК, Moscow-S-Peterburg (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsarenko PM (1990) Brief key-book to chlorococcale algae of the Ukrainian SSR. Naukova Dumka, Kiev (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Vasilieva GL (1967) Planktonic crustacea of southern East Siberia. In: Kozhov MM (ed) Proceedings of biological and geographical scientific institute of Irkutsk state university. Irkutsk State University Press, Irkutsk, pp 130–142 (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

  • Wetzel RG, Likens GE (1991) Limnological Analyses. Springer-Verlag, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Winberg GG (ed) (1984) Methods on sampling and processing materials in hydrobiological studies of fresh water-bodies. State Research Institute of Fish Industry Design, Leningrad (in Russian)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The paper preparation has been supported by the state project of the FANO 0345–2016–0006. The authors thank the government of the Dzherginsky Reserve namely the director Dr. Ts.Z. Dorzhiev and vice-director on scientific deals K.A. Prosekin for their help in carrying out field works within the reserve area. We thank K.A. Mel’nikov, I.V. Samusenok, A.A. Solovyev, and A.N. Tel’pukhovski for their assistance in sample collecting. Also we thank our colleagues participated in identification of some taxonomic groups: E.A. Erbaeva, D.V. Matafonov, L.V. Petrozhitskaya, O.N. Popova, T.Ya. Sitnikova, V.P. Semernoy, V.A. Teslenko, and T.M. Tiunova. These results will be published later in a joint paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Limnological Institute SB RAS, Ulan-Batorskaya, 3, Irkutsk, Russia, 664033

    Nina Bondarenko, Natalia Sheveleva & Natalia Rozhkova

  2. Irkutsk State University, Sukhe-Batora, 5, Irkutsk, Russia, 664003

    Arkadiy Matveev, Vitaliy Samusenok, Alexey Vokin & Anatoliy Yuriev

Authors
  1. Nina Bondarenko
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Natalia Sheveleva
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Natalia Rozhkova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Arkadiy Matveev
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Vitaliy Samusenok
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Alexey Vokin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Anatoliy Yuriev
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nina Bondarenko.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Bondarenko, N., Sheveleva, N., Rozhkova, N. et al. Remote mountain lakes of Eastern Siberia: a pattern of ecologically pure non-industrialised water-bodies. Environ Earth Sci 76, 378 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-017-6708-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-017-6708-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation