#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. Senior researcher at the Taimyr Nature Reserves Dmitry Dobrynin spoke about studying the Purinsky reserve to create special maps of natural complexes that are inhabited by certain species of animals.
Often, due to global changes, the habitats of tundra animals change radically.
“Now it is important to monitor these particular processes, because they are very widespread in the tundra of lowland Taimyr”, the scientist noted.
Previously, the seasonally thawed layer was shallow from year to year, which allowed soils and soils to thaw and freeze annually without internal disturbances. With the advent of global changes, the depth of the seasonally thawed layer began to increase.
Currently, local populations of Siberian and ungulate lemmings are undergoing changes in the tundra of the Purinsky nature reserve. The reduction in the number of wild reindeer in these places, in addition to anthropogenic pressure, may also depend on the destruction of its food habitats. A lot of moisture forms in the soils. Its main sources are snow cover and rainfall.
There is more rain in the tundra of Taimyr, especially intense. In July 2023 alone, seven prolonged intense downpours were recorded on the territory of the Purinsky nature reserve, with the water level rising by 30 centimeters after one of them in nearby reservoirs.
Due to moisture, not only typical spotted tundra landscapes are formed, but also unique, previously unseen forms – patchy craters. During the formation of a crater spot, in the first three to five years, a layer of turf rises in the form of a large hummock.
Subsequently, with intensive rainfall into the soil, the hummock takes on the shape of a pedestal and bursts. These crater spots create tundra ecosystems with completely new conditions that begin to change the structure of plant communities. It is likely that emergence of new species or new forms of vegetation cover organization should be expected in these areas in the near future.
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Text: Angelika Stepanova, Photo: Olga Zaderyaka, Nikolay Shchipko and Taimyr Nature Reserves
