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RESPONDENT
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Mikhail Golovatin
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SITE NAME
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Polar Urals, Russia
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| Contact
details (phone/fax//e-mail//address): |
| (34992)5-69-10(off.)/5-71-85(fax) // golovatin@ipae.uran.ru // Inst. of Plant and Animal Ecology, 8 Marta St, 202, Ekaterinburg, 620144, Russia |
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PROJECT DETAILS
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Project name:
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Biological resources of Polar Urals |
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Start of survey:
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End
of survey:
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Team
size:
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27.06 |
26.07 |
4 |
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WEATHER CONDITIONS
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| Season
phenology: |
average |
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Weather conditions: |
| Spring was average in timing, summer was relatively warm with average precipitation. Air temperatures dropped to +4-7øC during study period, and strong wind was common. Apart of a single hailstorm with 70-80 mm of precipitaion no extremal weather events were observed. August had been warm and dry, but rains became regular in September, and snowcover established on 5 Spetember in the mountains. |
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| Date of 50%
snow-cover: |
1-10.06 |
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| Date of ice-break
on rivers: |
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| Date of final loss
of snow: |
1-10.07 |
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BIOTIC CONDITIONS
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| Rodents abundance evaluation: |
low |
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Breeding conditions:
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Northern Harriers and Merlins nested at a density 0.03 pair/km2 in the main plot, but were more common in the forested river valleys to the north of the study area (1.7 pair/10 km of valley). Solitary nests of Golden Eagle and Rough-legged Buzzard were not occupied in 2003. Two Brown Bearsand two nesting pairs of Common Crows inhabited the study area. Owls, skuas, wolves, Arctic and Red foxes were not seen. Predation pressure on birds was probably average.
Successful nesting was recorded in Black-throated Diver, ducks (Common Goldeneye, Pintail, Teal, European Wigeon, Red-breasted Merganser), Willow and Hazel grouse, Rock Ptarmigan, Common Gull and passerines. Wader density was low in this upland area. Nesting was successful in Dotterel, European Golden Plover, Wood and Common sandpipers, Wimbrel, while alarming birds were also observed in Ringed Plover, Terek Sandpiper, Ruff, Bar-tailed Godwit and Greenshank. |
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Rodent dynamics:
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| Numbers of rodents decreased in winter and were low in summer. Total catching effort in 13 habitats was 1325 trap/nights, and it yielded average total density of rodents 0.45 vole per 100 trap/nights, including 0.23 in Grey-sided Vole, 0.15 in Middendorff's Vole, 0.08 in Short-tailed Vole. Northern Red-backed and Tundra voles and Northern Pika were also observed. Vole numbers (Grey-sided, Northern Red-backed, Narrow-skulled and Middendorff's) started to grow in September according to catches conducted in the Sob' River valley.
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Rodent species recorded:
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| Latin | Abundance |
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| Microtus oeconomus | rare |
| Microtus agrestis | rare |
| Clethrionomys rufocannus | rare |
| Clethrionomys rutilus | rare |
| Microtus middendorffi | rare |
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Summary
of fauna studies: |
| Birds were counted on 34 km2 of alpine and subalpine habitats using mapping. Transect counts (on foot, from boat and all-terraine vehicle) and faunistic observations were carried out on territories adjacent to the main plot. |
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