CRTC for ITCAMP: Coastal Profiles. Russian Federation



SECTION 3. BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THE COASTAL ZONE AND BILOGICAL RESOURCES 3.3. Coastal Biological viriety Russian coast of Caspian Sea is situated within 3 landscapes: north- desert, semidesert and dry prairie. Sea delta, alluvial, accumulative plains are dominated with various combinations of meadowy-uliginous, rare cereal, sage-brush and saltwort plants, growing on brown semidesert meadowy, meadosy-uliginous, alluvial-sod lands of varisous types of salinity, frequently salt-marshed. Large area within considered zone is busy with sands and sandy lands. They are not used much in agricultur, mostly as grass. Vegetation is rare there and is performed with white sage-brush, one-yeared and ephemeral groups. Small part of Premountain Dagestan is busy with brown and light brown ground. Brown grounds are maintained for vineyards and fruid gardens, light brown ones are for grasses. However light brown grounds weak durability towards errosion and suffer biolysis from cattle re-grassing. Natural vegetation in those regions are mostly performed by sage-brush and cereal groups. Considerable place at the inshore zone are busy with cane thickets with their length up to several kilometres along Volga's delta and inshore zone of Kalmikiya. Withing Caspian-side region of Russia there are deltas of Volga, Terek and Sulak, posessed with rich natural resources (land, water, biological) and maintained actively by wide range of farms (agricultural, fish, water transport etc.). Being within prairie, semidesert and desert zones, those rivers deltas due to fresh waters get ozone and become original oasises against the background of rather poor landscapes of environment. Caspian deltas are especially rich and inhabited. It has considerably big population density and a lot of inhabited localities (Kizlyar, Sulak). The landscape of each delta changes from farming activity. This impacts either undirect way of channel withdraw or silt, or direct one – ensuing from human interference into the delta regime (water deviding, landslips, shipping branch expantion, channels construction in Volga delta; failure and lining of bed, channels construction in Terek delta; bed decrease in Sulak delta). Volga, Terek and Sulak estuaries play an exceptional role in ecology balance in Caspian Sea. Those estuaries are the regions of spawning and graziery of valuable fish species, place of birds wintering. Therefore possible disbalance in morphology, regime and estuaries landscape may have an influence on ecological conditions of whole sea, including its fish resources. Biological variaty of coasts is considered within water section till line connecting beginning of deltas, e.g. within territories which hydrology regime is mostly determined by current changes in Caspian level. Modern coast has vegetation of subarid and arid holms, including uliginous meadows of deltas and fluxes, cereal and galofit meadows in river holmes, sage-brush and sod cereal steppes in Kuma basin, and, finally, seaside littoral vegetation. Formation of miscellaneous forms of landscapes is very important at rapid changeability of environment conditions, demanding appropriate adaptation of species. Furthermore, both landscape and species associative variety is determined in may ways by these particular external dynamic factors. All geological history of Caspian bottom demonstrates high dynamics of landscapes. Caspian area of water had repeatedly changed, which naturally led to the huge reformations of landscapes and ecosystems. Together with it, as per estimations, oscillation frequency of Caspian Sea does not exceed 3-4 metres. It may be supposed, that these oscilliations considerably determines nature and most important characteristics of biological and landscape variety in region. They lead to the deep reformations in coastal zone, in changes of allotment conditions of various species of nesting birds, graziery area, salinity oscillation, and impact of dirt waters to adjoining territories etc. Therefore, landscape and ecosystem of Caspian Sea may be considered as appropriate to periodical, deep reformations without considerable loss of biological and landscape diversity. Modern landscapes of Caspian bottom are formed with effect of sea level oscillation, dominant streams, winds, fresh waters coming from river channels, and determined by runway structure of sea itself. Shoal water bays and other shoal waters are frequently overgrown with canes. Wind blowings provide waters mixture and bottom transformation on the wide shoal waters area. These phenomena leading to notable change in coastal line, have big influence on biological diversity of coastal zone. Ice regime in north part and floating ice distribution has considerable impact on the landscape of Caspian area of water. Structure of land landscapes is genetically connected with ones of water, and may be scrutinized as their natural continuation. Abrasive, abrasive-accumulative, accumulative-beach, accumulative-lagoon, blowign dry and delta types of coastal landscapes are appreciable. Humidity regime is the leading factor of differentiation. Fragments of coastal landscapes are expressed well in form of dry terraces or hillocks, connected with past coastal line. Climate of region determines diffusion of continental deserts and real deserts of temperate latitude. Last 25 years gradual growth of precipitation is observed, which leads as per preliminary information, to the increase role of prairie plant species. Flora of Russian coast of Caspian Sea includes 2665 species, referring to 784 descriptions, and 145 kinds. Biotops of Caspian coasts are differed on humidity and ground salinity. In connection with that each species is characterised by essential ecological adaptation. Separate landscape regions differ on flouristic richness. Upon preliminary counts, the biggest number of species – 1432 or 54% of flora – was found on the territory which includes sea-side of Kalmikiya and coast of Dagestan. This may be explained with that great deal of pre-mountain regions of Caucasus influencing to the big landscape diversity, and that there is important geographic mark there – zonal border of deserts and steppes. Good deal of species – 820 ones or 31% of flora is marked in Volga delta and adjoining regions, delta of Samur has 251 species or 9% of flora. Flux and pre-flux variants of vegetative formations are spread widely with large line on the coast of Kizlyar bay. Flux and pre-flux uliginous meadows, located along base sea coasts occupies big areas (up to 80 000 hectares). They are annually flooded for 2-4 months, in low areas they are flooded all the year round. Modomonant fitocenoses formate there in form of cane. Waterlogged and salted gounds are distributed in a different pitch in deltas of Terek and Sulak. Uliginous grounds of fluxes make basic area in combination with meadowy and firth salt-marshes. Silt-uliginous plain fitocenoses are formed in shape of cane brushwoods, reed-mace and other moisture requiring plants. Pre-flux meadows is occupied with less moisture requiring cereals:Calamagrostis (reed grass), quitch, Cynodon, foxtail, east fescue, some annuals: Polypogon, Bromus. On the salted areas keelless, salt-marshed aster, Tartar Lactuca (Lettuce), salt-marshed sage-brush grow. Firth meadows are very medley, they include both cane Calamagrostis, cane-keelless, cane and mixed planted meadow associations and salt-marshed vegetation. The base consists of cereals: quitch, Cydonod, fescue, Agrostis are frequent, Bromus, gigantic subtropical plant Erianthus, lesser high Imperata. From leguminous plants there are malt, blue lucerne, trefoil, melilot, pea coals etc. At present time formidable part of lowlands of Terek and Sulak woods is cut and area of openings is maintained for agricultural needs. Interchange of the rest wood areas with areas of openings makes effect of forest-steppe, with seldom supplement of wild fruits. Southerly to Makhachkala city there is a narrow line of See-side lowland between Caspian mountains and border of Azerbaijan, which permormed as plain territory, obscurely raising from sea to pre-mountains. Delta of Samur with adjoining lowland till Derbent aisle is an accumulative plain. Due to arid climate, lack of atmospheric condensation, salted clayey ground Pre-mountain lowland has growing shrubby, semi- shrubby, sage-brush and saltwort, saltwort and semi-shrubby networks with supplemental saline vegetation. Wood vegetation of Samur delta is performed by coastal (holm) woods developing along the channels on the constantly flooded areas and has features of tugay woods, and in the inter-river zones – on over-holm not flooded terraces and inter-river areas. In Samur delta inter-river and coastal woods are tightly interlaced both ecologically and genetically. Area is mostly occupied with hornbeam oakery. Samur delta and surroundings has range of valuable species growing, booked into various Red-books and needed a care. Northwest and northern coast of Caspian Sea is characterised with relatively high pitch of richness of fauna of invertebrates. There are 3 species of amphibians, 38 species of reptilians, about 260 species of birds, 74 of mammals. The region is relatively rich endemically (more than 60 species and forms are nowhere just there), but the main feature of fauna is its complexity. Caspian Sea coast is one of the most important way of birds migration, nesting how on Caspian coast and European part of country, Siberia and Kazakhstan; considerable part of birds continue staying for winter (mostly in southern regions of Caspian coast). Amphibian fauna of area is small and counts only 3 widely known species (lacustrine frog, red paunch frog, and green toad). Lacustrine frog and red paunch frog within whole life are connected with water including coastal Biotops of Caspian Sea, as green toad able to use salted waters for spawning exist at desert conditions. Regional gerpetofauna is miscellaneous and performed as xerofoil species planted in desert and semi-desert Biotops out of coastal canes and flooded zone. Common number of species is 38: 4 turtles, 16 species of lizards and 18 of snakes. There are 4 species among them tightly connected with water, coastal and delta Biotops (10.5%): uliginous terrapin, caspian terrapin, water and grass snakes. Red Book includes 8 species of reptiles (21%) from existing in region. The majority of infrequent species (7) exists in Dagestan zone. East Caucasian species of Mediterranean terrapin and western boa are on the verge of disappearance. Approximate list of ornithofauna species of region includes 255 representatives of 18 orders. Considering in-flies the common number of species may be increased. For example, in 1919 delta of Volga on the territory of Astrakhan preserve it was marked 260 bird species, including 84 nesting ones (approx. 32%). Amongst nesting birds (146 species, 57%) water-uliginous complex is widely performed (127 species, 87%): toadstools, various oar-leg, herons and bitterns, flamingos, Anserinae, sandpipers rails, seamewes etc. 110 species (43%) are only occurred during the flight: 50% of crane shaped and falcon shaped, big number of dottrel shaped and sparrow shaped. During wintering there are 12 species there from the whole group of ornithofauna and 17 ones of settled (about 29 species, or 11.3%). In smooth winters there is extended list of wintering birds due to few waterfowls. Presently the number of wadersy birds and cormorants in Volga delta makes up to 35 000 against approx. 57 000 at the period dated end of 1970^th – 1^st half of 1980^th. Together with that, cormorant is dominant in the network of colonial birds (76.3%). List of scarce and disappearing bird species runs to 45 species, or 17.6% of ornithofauna. Dagestan and Astrakhan ornithofauna is especially rich with scarce species. Amongst these 45 species 24 ones (53%) are tightly connected with seacoast and use it for feed and/or nesting. Fleecy pelican population is in the worst conditions, its strength is not more than 300 species. in common the area runs up 74 species of mammals referred to 7 orders: 5 species of insectivorous, 11 cheiropteras, 18 predators, 1 of perissodactyls, 32 of rodents and 2 species of hare shaped ones. Amongst mammals existing on north and Northwest Caspian coast there are species mostly prefer prairie, semi-desert and desert Biotops. Numerous (background) species are the representatives of rodent orders, hare shaped and rapacious. The most specific ones are hare-tolais, jerboas, sand-eels, from rapacious – wolf and corsac fox (Vulpes cosras), and from ungulate – saiga. Northwest coast is also populated with species gravitating to prairie and semi-desert landscapes, but there is a domination of prairie and wood-prairie species (saiga, prairie polecat, stony-civet, badger). Number of mammals including traded ones is tightly connected with inshore line of brushwood and cane brushwood. Wild boar, red deer, cane cat, otter, European mink, racoon, acclimatised species of ondatra and water vole etc. Saiga is characterised by regular season moving. In Kalmikiya it is expressed as nomadizing within 300-500 metres. Last years there were not any significant displacements. Main group is practically annually on the southerly to Astrakhan-Elista track. 18 mammal species are considered as scarce and disappearing. They include 11 ones on Dagestan area. Natural conditions of Caspian Sea adjoining areas formed the variety of landscapes, characterised with highly granulating and mosaic natural complexes. Therefore, only on separate occasions effective way to preserve protection wanting Biotops it creation of traditional national parks, and as the most acceptable way it is considered creation of the new highly protected natural areas. In combination with preserves those territories or their parts will get important purport for vegetation protection, and will become a sort of shelter for animals.		SECTION 1 SECTION 2 SECTION 3 SECTION 4 SECTION 5 SECTION 6