Contents of Proceedings of the Zoological Institute

One of the mass migratory routes of birds in Europe is the White Sea-Baltic migration route, which runs through the eastern Baltic area. In order to study bird migration by ringing, Vogelwarte Rossitten, the world’s first ornithological station, was founded on the Curonian Spit, the work of which was continued by the Rybachy Biological Station of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The 3,214,217 birds of 202 species were ringed here during 1956–2020, and 10,165 reports of distant ring recoveries from 99 bird species were received. The paper provides a brief overview of these results. The main attention is paid to the following topics: a) the effectiveness of ringing in different bird species, including a decrease in the proportion of ring recoveries, b) the geographical distribution of migrants with an example of migration connectivity between geographical areas in different seasons, c) the possibilities of studying population dynamics based on annual trapping data, as well as d) various aspects of the demographic study of populations based on the results of ringing. Throughout the entire White Sea-Baltic migration route, the well-known interactive Eurasian-African Bird Migration Atlas (2022) includes the results of ringing from Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus and Poland. However, for reasons unrelated to science, our aforementioned results were not included in this atlas. The article has been written in order to familiarize the international ornithological community with the results of bird ringing at the Rybachy Biological Station.

For the first time, the results of the study of collections from the 1950s excavations and new palaeontological material from the multilayered Early Palaeolithic site of Kostenki 17 are presented. The fauna includes 15 species of mammals, including widespread species with a Holarctic range, representatives of deciduous and mixed forests, and migrants from arid areas – steppes, semi-deserts.

The cadastre of records of the European Pond Turtle Emys orbicularis (Linnaues, 1758) in Kazakhstan has been updated. Some old records that had inaccurate geographic locations and/or inaccurate dating have been clarified. New information for the Or’, Ilek, Uil and Emba river basins confirmed the data on the turtle’s habitation here that were almost half a century or a century old. Additional locations of E. orbicularis encounters in the north of the Turgai Table Plain outline the northeastern limits of the species’ distribution in Kazakhstan. The turtle was found on the right tributaries of the Irgiz River, which dry up noticeably in the summer. Single encounters were recorded in the coastal zone of the Kazakhstan sector of the Caspian Sea with water salinity up to 12–13‰. According to scattered data from the 1990–2020s, the occurrence of the pond turtles in Western Kazakhstan varies from 1–3 to 9–10 individuals per kilometer. The breeding season from mating to egg laying takes place from the third decade of April to June inclusive, and the hatching of the young occurs in August. Regulation of river flows, water intake and pollution, grazing, poaching nets, construction of bridges, dams, and roads accompanied by the death of turtles and habitat disturbance, limit the stability of E. orbicularis populations in Kazakhstan.

Sensory system of the notothenioid fishes of the family Bovichtidae was studied for the first time, and the topography of seismosensory canals was described for species of the genus Bovichtus Valenciennes in Cuvier et Valenciennes, 1832: B. diacanthus Carmichael, 1810, B. psychrolutes Günther, 1861, B. angustifrons Regan, 1913 and B. oculus Hardy, 1988, as well as for representatives of two other genera of the family – Cottoperca Steindachner, 1875 and Halaphritis Last, Balushkin et Hutchins, 2002, inhabiting notal waters of the Southern Hemisphere. The topography of canals between the studied genera and species of the family Bovichtidae were compared and their diagnostic features and differences were defined. Particular attention is paid to the structure of the bones through which the canals pass, namely: bony elements of the periorbital ring, shoulder girdle (posttemporale and supratemporale), neurocranium (parietale, supraoccipitale, extrascapulare laterale and nasale) and peripheral structures (tubules and pores) of both different species and genera. For the genus Bovichtus the following direction of evolutionary transformations is revealed in B. diacanthus – B. veneris – B. psychrolutes – B. oculus: reduction of peripheral structures on the head, reduction of bony roof on the most part of occipital commissure and elongated form of segments with notch for tubule from lateral. Neotenic characters were found in B. oculus, which was earlier reduced to synonymy with B. psychrolutes – main pores in the preopercle-mandibular canal, long stretch of supraorbital canal in nasale and less development of cutaneous structures of sensory canals of the head. The functional significance of the detected transformations is presumably related to the place and depth of fish habitat and the way of searching for food.

Birds play a crucial role in ecosystems and are among the key targets for biomonitoring. However, traditional methods face limitations, particularly when monitoring small, secretive, migratory species or those in hard-to-reach places. Challenges related to managing field observations, adverse weather conditions, and variations in observer expertise can distort data or even render analysis impossible. Environmental DNA (eDNA) is a non-invasive, cost-effective, and high-throughput tool for biodiversity assessment that has been gaining popularity in bird monitoring. While its most notable successes are in ichthyofaunal studies, eDNA analysis has recently gained traction in ornithology. However, targeted eDNA studies on birds remain relatively rare due to insufficient methodological testing. As of early 2025, available data suggest that eDNA has significant potential for studying bird biodiversity and ecology. eDNA-based methods have proven effective in detecting a wide range of avian species, including waterfowl, near-water birds, and even species not directly associated with aquatic environments, such as pollinators. This article provides an overview of eDNA applications for bird detection across various ecosystems, from tropical forests to polar regions. It examines eDNA use in both aquatic and terrestrial environments, with a focus on species detection and biodiversity assessment. Particular attention is given to eDNA metabarcoding as the most promising approach for enhancing the efficiency of bird biomonitoring studies.

Increased biosynthesis of catalase, an antioxidant enzyme, is considered in literature as a component of physiological mechanism that enhances survival of mosquitoes under stressful conditions. Recently, using extracts of male mosquitoes Aedes (Aedes) geminus Peus and Culex territans Walker, it was shown that, in teneral and less than 1-day old adults, there is an elevated activity of catalase; in further days, the catalase activity is decreased to plateau. In present study, the hypothesis of the same pattern was tested in two species of subgenus Ochlerotatus of genus Aedes. Activity of catalase was measured in homogenates of immature and mature males of A. (O.) communis (de Geer) and A. (O.) cantans (Meigen) and the age-related differences in the specific activity of the enzyme, analogous to those observed earlier, were revealed: in teneral and less than 1-day old adults, the activity of catalase is significantly higher than in adults of 3–4 to 8–10 days of age. Elevated activity of catalase in teneral and less than 1-day old males suggests an important role of this enzyme during and/or immediately after metamorphosis. Increased catalase activity may reflect an activated antioxidant capacity in stressful period of development, in which the insect is highly vulnerable. It is also suggested that there is a link between the elevation of the activity of this enzyme and the increased biosynthesis of melanin which is accompanied by hydrogen peroxide production. Subsequent decrease of catalase activity possibly reflects low stress, the completion of many developmental steps and the maturation of the insect. Revealed changes in catalase activity associated with post-emergence age may be inductively considered a common physiological trait of mosquitoes.

The ocean quahog Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1776) is widespread in the North Atlantic and the adjacent polar waters, including the White Sea. It has been the focus of extensive research due to its commercial value and extreme longevity. However, little is known about its trophic behavior apart from several laboratory experiments using cultured algae. In this study, clams (average shell length 23.4 ± 1.89 mm, wet weight 3.15 ± 0.85 g) were fed with plankton freshly collected from the White Sea coast. In the course of a 4-h experiment, Arctica cleared a wide spectrum of particles, ranging from picoplanktonic cyanobacteria (<2 µm) and nano-cryptophytes to diatom chains (>250 µm in length). The clearance rates measured on different plankton species ranged from 0.53 l h^–1 to 4.27 l h^–1. In mass-specific terms, the maximum Arctica clearance rates (6.02 l h^–1 g^–1 wet tissue weight) corresponded to those published earlier for intertidal mussels such as Mytilus edulis Linnaeus, 1758. The estimated prey selectivity increased non-linearly with particle size, but the clams also discriminated between prey of similar size and taxonomy. In addition to their preferred diatom phytoplankton, the clams also cleared heterotrophic dinoflagellates and other microconsumers. Based on the Arctica ingestion rates, its ration equaled ~1% of its tissue carbon per day and corresponded to an estimated growth rate of 0.003 d^–1.

A new species of liparid fish from the genus Osteodiscus Stein, 1978 is described. The genus is primarily distinguished from Careproctus Krøyer, 1862 in the reduction of soft tissues of the pelvic disk. Three specimens of Osteodiscus lindbergi sp. nov. were caught during the international expedition SokhoBio (“Sea of Okhotsk Biodiversity Studies”, 2015) in the Kuril Basin of the Sea of Okhotsk at an abyssal depth of 3306–3348 m. The new species differs from four other congeners in the number of vertebrae (53) and rays in the dorsal (51) and anal (42) fins, a notched pectoral fin with a moderately elongated lower lobe (that is 67–76% of the length of upper pectoral-lobe), a horizontal mouth, and lack of prickles on the skin. Color of head and body brown, peritoneum black. This abyssobenthal species is presumably endemic to the deep-sea Kuril Basin.

A new material on the genera Steirodon Serville, 1831, Cnemidophyllum Rehn, 1917, Emsleyfolium Cadena-Castaсeda et al., 2016 and Stilpnochlora Stål, 1873 from the subtribe Steirodontina (Steirodontini) as well as on the genera Separatula Gorochov, 2018 and Anaulacomera Stål, 1873, belonging to the subtribe Anaulacomerina (Phaneropterini), is considered. Some subgenera of these genera and their diagnostic characters are briefly discussed. The following new taxa (13) are described: Steirodon (Steirodon) superbum sp. nov. from Peru; S. (Peucestes) para sp. nov. from Brazil; S. (P.) dentatum woronovi subsp. nov. from Colombia; S. (Posidippus) minor sp. nov. from French Guiana; S. (Frontinus) planifemur sp. nov. from Peru; Cnemidophyllum (Peucestophyllum) granti peruanum subsp. nov. from Peru; C. (Peucestoides) bituberculatum sp. nov. from Peru; Emsleyfolium unilobatum sp. nov. from Peru; E. cusco sp. nov. from Peru; Stilpnochlora jalisco sp. nov. from Mexico; S. marginella latistriata subsp. nov. from Surinam; Separatula symmetrica sp. nov. from Peru; S. falcata tenuis subsp. nov. from Peru. Steirodon validum Stål, 1874 and S. (Posidippum) parastahli Piza, 1979 are returned in the subgenera Steirodon and Posidippus Brunner-Wattenwyl, 1878, respectively (but the latter species as a possible synonym of S. stahli Brunner-Wattenwyl, 1878); the generic names Phyllolophus Rehn, 1944 and Steirodonopis Scudder, 1875 are returned in synonyms of the subgenera Steirodon and Frontinus Stål, 1873, also respectively. For the homonymic name Posidippus validus Saussure et Pictet, 1898, the new name S. (Posidippus) major nom. nov. is established, and S. (P.) dentiferoides Emsley, 1970, syn. nov. is synonymized with S. (P.) stahli. For Steirodon (Frontinus) irregulariterdentatum (Brunner-Wattenwyl, 1891), the neotype is designated, and this species is redescribed; Posidippus rarospinulosus Brunner-Wattenwyl, 1891 is transferred to Steirodon (Frontinus), and P. tricenarius Piza, 1974 is treated as a separate species in the same subgenus but not as a synonym of S. (F.) rufolineatum Emsley, 1970. Cnemidophyllum (Cnemidophyllum) tani Cadena-Castaсeda, 2016 is transferred to the subgenus Peucestophyllum Emsley, 1970 of the same genus. For A. (Munticercora) sclerogenitalis woronovi Gorochov, 2021, the male cerci are firstly described.

Valdayskiy National Park is one of the largest protected natural areas in the European part of Russia. On the territory of this national park there are about 200 lakes, one of which is Lake Valdayskoe. The study of its zooplankton community started more than 100 years ago and was repeatedly carried out. The presence of a long series studies provides a rare opportunity to trace changes in the zooplankton community of this unique reservoir. Pelagic zooplankton (Rotifera, Cladocera and Copepoda) of this lake was studied in summers of 1999 and 2020. 39 invertebrate taxa were revealed. The majority of the zooplankton community was typical for the temperate zone of European Russia. The water quality in the lake during the study period can be estimated as oligosaprobic (clean). In areas of the lake located near settlements, an increase in the abundance and biomass of zooplankton, a decrease in the number of indicator species of oligosaprobic waters, and an increase in the proportion of copepods with morphopathology were observed. In general, in 1999 and 2020 zooplankton abundance has declined and biomass has increased compared to the 1970s.

Hysterosphaerius sexpunctatus Melichar, 1906, the type species of the monotypical genus Hysterosphaerius Melichar, 1906, is redescribed based on new materials from Singapore along with male genitalia structures described and illustrated for the first time. Relationships of the genus Hysterosphaerius within the tribe Hemisphaeriini Melichar (Issinae) are discussed.

This paper continues a series of articles concerning the molecular genetic analysis of widespread helminths – cestodes of the genus Mesocestoides Vaillant, 1863, parasitising (at the metacestode stage) small mammals. In this study, we examine the genetic diversity of Mesocestoides spp. from micromammals of the Russian Far East using the cytb gene as an example. Polymorphism of the nucleotide sequence of the cytochrome b gene and the amino acid sequence of the encoded polypeptide was detected for the first time in Mesocestoides spp. parasitising hosts of different genera and species inhabiting this region. Two species of Mesocestoides spp. were identified that were not related to the genetically confirmed species of the genus. One of them was found only in Micromys minutus (Pallas, 1771), obtained near Georgievka village in Khabarovsk Territory. The second species is represented by nine individuals from geographically distant locations, in which two genetic sublines and 11 nucleotide differences in the cytb gene sequence were found. Molecular diversity indices show a high level of polymorphism in the nucleotide sequence of this gene in the gene pool of the studied species of Mesocestoides. In addition, the presence of three isoforms of the cytochrome b polypeptide was established. Analysis of amino acid substitutions in these polypeptide isoforms and the polypeptide from the M. minutus sample also indicates that the latter belongs to a separate species.

In the above-referenced article, Figure 2 was erroneously omitted from the final published version, although all in-text references to this figure were retained in the text. The omitted figure and its complete caption are provided below. The Editorial Board of the journal sincerely apologizes to the authors and readers for this publication error.