| Abstract |
An estimation of sedimentation rate of suspended matter was done in beaver (Castor fiber) ponds and oxbows of the River Khoper valley (State Nature Reserve «Privolzhskaya Lesostep'», Penza region, Russia). In beaver ponds the sedimentation rate varied from 7.33 g/m2 per day to 71.81 g/m2 per day, in oxbows – from 7.83 g/m2 per day to 10.69 g/m2 per day. The share of the mineral part was different in different water bodies. In beaver ponds organic matter formed 39.93–56.12%, in oxbows – 77.11–81.29%. The organic percentage showed that long existence and stability of oxbows lead to a higher biodiversity and biomass of flora and fauna. The rate values could depend on some factors that beavers influence on. We used six parameters for the estimations of the beaver impact: location of water body, abundance of animals, building activities, area of flooded valley, digging activities, input of woody material. Mainly, their building activities and area of flooded valleys increased sedimentations and decreased the share of organic matter. Also, we suggest that amounts of suspended matter could depend on vegetation (woody or grasslands), age of beaver settlements, and other zoogenic activities. Beaver ponds could accumulate less volume of sediments, because they are situated on small rivers and have less size and watershed area than oxbows, and existed not so long as natural water bodies. The chemical composition of sediment was studied with the X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. The chemical compound of suspended matter was connected with the composition of watershed. So, maximum concentrations were observed for iron, silicon and calcium. Some concentrations indicated anthropogenic fertilisation (phosphorus, chlorine, potassium) and technogenic pollution (zinc, copper, lead, arsenic). Our results suggest a possible beaver impact on concentrations of phosphorus (inflow from burrows) and zinc (input with branches and twigs). The study confirms the importance of beaver ponds for accumulation of pollutants and ecosystem purification. |
| References |
Bashinskiy I.V., Senckevich V.A., Stoyko T.G., Katsman E.A., Korkina S.A., Osipov V.V. 2019. Forest-steppe oxbows in limnophase – abiotic features and biodiversity. Limnologica 74: 14–22. DOI: 10.1016/j.limno.2018.10.005
Bashinskiy I.V., Osipov V.V. 2018. Distribution and dynamic of Castor fiber (Castoridae, Mammalia) population in forest-steppe rivers: a case of the State Nature Reserve Privolzhskaya Lesostep', Penza region, European Russia. Nature Conservation Research 3(Suppl.2): 110–115. DOI: 10.24189/ncr.2018.068
Brekken A., Steinnes E. 2004. Seasonal concentrations of cadmium and zinc in native pasture plants: consequences for grazing animals. Science of the Total Environment 326(1–3): 181–195. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2003.11.023
Belobrov V.P., Voronin A.Y. Baratsev P.E., Kuznetsov A.Y. 2012. Soils and elements of soil cover of Ostrovtsovksaya Lesostep. Proceedings of the State Nature Reserve «Privolzhskaya Lesostep'» 2: 17–30. [In Russian]
Burns D.A., McDonnell J.J. 1998. Effects of a beaver pond on runoff processes: comparison of two headwater catchments. Journal of Hydrology 205(3–4): 248–264. DOI: 10.1016/S0022-1694(98)00081-X
Butler D.R., Malanson G.P. 1995. Sedimentation rates and patterns in beaver ponds in a mountain environment. Geomorphology 13(1): 255–269. DOI: 10.1016/0169-555X(95)00031-Y
Butler D.R., Malanson G.P. 2005. The geomorphic influences of beaver dams and failures of beaver dams. Geomorphology 71(1): 48–60. DOI: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2004.08.016
Catalán N., Herrero Ortega S., Gröntoft H., Hilmarsson T.G., Bertilsson S., Wu P., Levanoni O., Bishop K., Bravo A.G. 2016. Effects of beaver impoundments on dissolved organic matter quality and biodegradability in boreal riverine systems. Hydrobiologia 793(1): 135–148. DOI: 10.1007/s10750-016-2766-y
Dalbeck L., Lüscher B., Ohlhof D. 2007. Beaver ponds as habitat of amphibian communities in a central European highland. Amphibia-Reptilia 28(4): 493–501. DOI: 10.1163/156853807782152561
Dauvalter V.A. 2002. The factors of formation of chemical composition of lake sediments. Murmansk: Publisher of MGTU. 75 p. [In Russian]
Dauvalter V.A. 2006. Study of physical and chemical compound of bottom sediments for assessment of ecological conditions of water bodies. Murmansk: Publisher of MGTU. 84 p. [In Russian]
Dmitrieva V.A., Davydova N.S. 2016. Small artificial reservoirs of the Voronezh region (hydrology, hydrochemistry, geoecology, register of ponds). Voronezh: Publisher of he Voronezh State University. 214 p. [In Russian]
Ecke F., Levanoni O., Audet J., Carlson P., Eklöf K., Hartman G., McKie B., Ledesma J., Segersten J., Truchy A., Futter M. 2017. Meta-analysis of environmental effects of beaver in relation to artificial dams. Environmental Research Letters 12(11): 113002. DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/aa8979
Gatti R.C., Callaghan T.V., Rozhkova-Timina I., Dudko A., Lim A., Vorobyev S.N., Kirpotin S.N., Pokrovsky O.S. 2018. The role of Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) in the storage, emission and deposition of carbon in lakes and rivers of the River Ob flood plain, western Siberia. Science of the Total Environment 644: 1371–1379. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.07.042
Giriat D., Gorczyca E., Sobucki M. 2016. Beaver ponds' impact on fluvial processes (Beskid Niski Mts., SE Poland). Science of Total Environment 544: 339–353. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.11.103
Gladkikh K.A. 2005. Ecological and economic role of artificial reservoirs of the southern forest-steppe of the Central Black Earth Region. PhD Thesis. Voronezh. 156 p. [In Russian]
Gorshkov D. 2003. Is it possible to use beaver building activity to reduce lake sedimentation? Lutra 46(2): 189–196.
Grigoriev N.A. 2009. Chemical element distribution in the upper continental crust. Ekaterinburg: Ural Branch of RAS. 383 p. [In Russian]
Halley D., Rosell F., Saveljev A. 2012. Population and distribution of Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber). Baltic Forestry 18(1): 168–175.
Ivanov A.I., Ilyin V.Yu., Dudkin E.A. 2016a. Wetlands of Penza region. Penza: RIO PGSKHA. 208 p. [In Russian]
Ivanov D.V., Osmelkin E.V., Ziganshin I.I. 2016b. Preindustrial background levels of heavy metals in water sediments of the Chuvash Republic. In: Chemistry and engineer ecology: Proceedings of the XVI international conference in honor of the 15th anniversary of realization of Charter of the Earth in Tatarstan Republic. Kazan: Foliant. P. 150–153. [In Russian]
Izmailova A.V., Drabkova V.G. 2016. Limnological research problems in the Russian Federation in light of increasing anthropogenic impact on water resources. In: Lake ecosystems: biological processes, anthropogenic transformation, water quality: proceedings of the V International Scientific Conference (12–17 September 2016, Minsk – Naroch). Minsk: Publishing centre of BSU. P. 75–77. [In Russian]
Klimenko D.E., Eponchintseva D.N. 2015. Experimental hydrological studies of processes of failure of beaver dams and pond draining. Biology Bulletin 42(10): 882–890. DOI: 10.1134/S1062359015100064
Krylov A.V. 2005. Zooplankton of small lowland rivers. Moscow: Nauka. 263 p. [In Russian]
Kuznetsov M.S., Kashtanov A.N. 2011. Distribution of soil erosion (map and explanatory note). In: National Atlas of Soils of the Russian Federation. Moscow: Astrel. P. 268–269. [In Russian]
Law A., McLean F., Willby N.J. 2016. Habitat engineering by beaver benefits aquatic biodiversity and ecosystem processes in agricultural streams. Freshwater Biology 61(4): 486–499. DOI: 10.1111/fwb.12721
Lazar J.G., Addy K., Gold A.J., Groffman P.M., McKinney R.A., Kellogg D.Q. 2015. Beaver Ponds: Resurgent Nitrogen Sinks for Rural Watersheds in the Northeastern United States. Journal of Environmental Quality 44(5): 1684–1693. DOI: 10.2134/jeq2014.12.0540
Moldovanov A.I. 1978. Silting of ponds and reservoirs in steppe regions. Leningrad: Hydrometeoizdat. 128 p. [In Russian]
Naiman R.J., Johnston C.A., Kelley J.C. 1988. Alteration of North American streams by beaver. BioScience 38(1): 753–762. DOI: 10.2307/1310784
Naiman R.J., Pinay G., Johnston C.A., Pastor J. 1994. Beaver Influences on the Long-Term Biogeochemical Characteristics of Boreal Forest Drainage Networks. Ecology 75(4): 905–921. DOI: 10.2307/1939415
Olson D.M., Dinerstein E., Wikramanayake E.D., Burgess N.D., Powell G.V.N., Underwood E.C., D'Amico J.A., Itoua I., Strand H.E., Morrison J.C., Loucks C.J., Allnutt T.F., Ricketts T.H., Kura Y., Lamoreux J.F., Wettengel W.W., Hedao P., Kassem K.R. 2001. Terrestrial ecoregions of the world: a new map of life on Earth. Bioscience 51(11): 933–938. DOI: 10.1641/0006-3568(2001)051[0933:TEOTWA]2.0.CO;2
Osipov V.V., Bashinskiy I.V., Podshivalina V.N. 2018. Influence of the activity of the Eurasian Beaver Castor fiber (Castoridae, Mammalia) on the ecosystem biodiversity of small rivers in the forest–steppe zone. Biology Bulletin 45(10): 23–32. DOI: 10.1134/S1062359018100205
Prytkova M.Y. 1979. Small reservoirs of the forest-steppe and steppe zones of the USSR. Sedimentation. Leningrad: Nauka. 172 p. [In Russian]
Prytkova M.Y. 1982. Geographical patterns of sedimentation in small reservoirs. Dr.Sc. Thesis. Leningrad. 477 p. [In Russian]
Puttock A., Graham H.A., Cunliffe A.M., Elliott M., Brazier R.E. 2017. Eurasian beaver activity increases water storage, attenuates flow and mitigates diffuse pollution from intensively-managed grasslands. Science of the Total Environment 576: 430–443. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.10.122
Puttock A., Graham H.A., Carless D., Brazier R.E. 2018. Sediment and nutrient storage in a beaver engineered wetland. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 43(11): 2358–2370. DOI: 10.1002/esp.4398
Rosell F., Bozser O., Collen P., Parker H. 2005. Ecological impact of beavers Castor fiber and Castor canadensis and their ability to modify ecosystems. Mammal Review 35(3–4): 248–276. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2907.2005.00067.x
Rozhkova-Timina I.O. 2018. Influence of beavers activity on floodplain water-bodies of middle reaches of the Ob river. In: Research, conservation and restoration of natural landscapes: Proceedings of the VIII national scientific conference with international participation. Volgograd. P. 99–104. [In Russian]
Shumakov A.N. 2007. Silting of ponds and reservoirs as elements of erosion-channel systems in the agricultural landscapes of the Central Black Earth Region. PhD Thesis. Kursk. 217 p. [In Russian]
Stefan J., Klein A. 2004. Hydrogeomorphic effects of beaver dams on floodplain morphology: avulsion processes and sediment fluxes in upland valley floors (Spessart, Germany). Quaternaire 15(1–2): 219–231.
Strakhov N.M. 1993. Sediment formation in modern water-bodies. Moscow: Nauka. 392 p. [In Russian]
Subetto D.A., Prytkova M.Y. 2016. Bottom sediments of different water bodies. Study methods. Petrozavodsk: Karelian Research Centre of the RAS. 89 p. [In Russian]
Threshold limit value (TLV) of Chemicals in the Water of Water Bodies of Household and Cultural-Household Water Use: Hygienic Standards. GN 2.1.5.1315-03. Moscow: Russian register of potentially hazardous chemical and biological substances of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 2003. 154 p. [In Russian]
Threshold limit value (TLV) of chemicals in the soil: Hygienic standards. Moscow: Federal Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology of Rospotrebnadzor, 2006. 15 p. [In Russian]
de Visscher M., Nyssen J., Pontzeele J., Billi P., Frankl A. 2014. Spatio-temporal sedimentation patterns in beaver ponds along the Chevral river, Ardennes, Belgium. Hydrological Processes 28(4): 1602–1615. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.9702
Zavyalov N.A. 2014. Beavers (Castor fiber and Castor canadensis), the founders of habitats and phytophages. Biology Bulletin Reviews 4(2): 157–180. DOI: 10.1134/S207908641402008X
Zavyalov N.A., Krylov A.V., Bobrov A.A., Ivanov V.K., Dgebuadze Yu.Yu. 2005. Impact of the European beaver on small river ecosystems. Moscow: Nauka. 186 p. [In Russian]
Zheleznova O.S., Chernykh N.A., Tobratov S.A. 2017. Zinc and cadmium in tree species of forest ecosystems: patterns of translocation, accumulation and barrier mechanisms. RUDN Journal of Ecology and Life Safety 25(2): 253–270. [In Russian] |
