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RESPONDENT
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Mikhail Soloviev
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SITE NAME
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Bludnaya River mouth, Taimyr, Russia
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| Contact details
(phone/fax//e-mail//address): |
| (495)9394424 // mikhail-soloviev@yandex.ru // Dept. of Vertebrate Zoology, Biological Faculty, Moscow State University, 119992 Moscow, Russia
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PROJECT DETAILS |
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Project name:
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Wader Monitoring Project at Taimyr
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Start of survey:
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End
of survey: |
Team
size: |
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2.06
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6.08
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3
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WEATHER
CONDITIONS
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Weather conditions: |
| Phenologically 1999 was the earliest among 6 study seasons with rapid development of snowmelt, resulting in 50% coverage on 3 June and complete loss of snow by 6 June. Flood in 1999 was also the earliest in 5 years (no flood occurred in 1997) and low, expanding at only about a half of the floodplain territory. Snowstorm on 8-9 June was early enough to have little influence on bird distribution and breeding schedule. Summer season was also the most wet among study seasons, but not cold and not particularly windy which made environmental conditions generally quite favourable for bird reproduction.
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| Season temperature: |
average
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| Date of 50%
snow-cover: |
3.06
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| Date of ice-break on
rivers: |
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| Date of final loss of
snow: |
6.06
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BIOTIC
CONDITIONS
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| Rodents abundance evaluation: |
average
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Breeding conditions:
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Arctic foxes were less common than in 1998, but did not differ in abundance from other years. Records of foxes were more frequent in early June during the peak of lemming numbers. The den with juveniles close to the main study plot remained active at least until the end of July.
Spring peak of lemming numbers allowed breeding of rodent specialised avian predators such as Pomorine Skuas and Short-eared Owl. Long-tailed and Pomorine Skuas successfully produced chicks.
Early season phenology resulted in the highest numbers of Pectoral Sandpipers for the period of observations, while the total bird density on the main study plot was the next after 1995, when numbers of Red Phalaropes and Little Stints were higher.
Nest success in waders was very high in 1999 (80.6%), due to low predation by Arctic Foxes. Although stage of the lemming cycle in 1999 could not be positively identified as a peak, reproductive performance of birds was typical for a 'good' lemming year.
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Rodent dynamics:
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| Lemming numbers increased in comparison with two previous seasons according to visual evaluation, although not reaching the maximum of 1996. As usual for the site, Siberian Lemmings prevailed in number, with only 10.1% of identified animals belonging to Collared Lemmings. A pronounced peak of lemming records occurred in June and earlier than in other years, while in July lemmings became as rare as in some of seasons with rodent depression.
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Rodent species recorded:
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| Latin | Abundance |
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| Lemmus sibiricus | common |
| Dicrostonyx torquatus | rare |
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Summary
of fauna studies: |
| The studies carried out from 1994 to 1999 were focused on relating wader numbers and breeding success to environmental conditions. These studies have shown that abiotic conditions on a season's start had controlled to substantial extent the wader breeding numbers, in particular these of nomadic species. Nest success of all species was primarily determined by abundance of lemmings as alternative prey for mammalian predators, in agreement with prey-switching hypothesis. Additionally research of habitat selection by tundra waders was carried out.
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