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 Project leaders:
Dr.
Anna Ajrapetyantz,
Dr. Igor M. Fokin
It
is a curious fact that, in the history of the study
of fauna, we often find that rare species from far-flung
places are often better known than less exotic fauna.
This strange phenomenon is lagerly due to naturalists'
desire to investigate remote areas, suchas the tropical
nature of Africa and Latin America, while ignoring wildlife
closer large scientific areas.
The
territory of the Leningrad region is an example of this.
The area has long been ignored by naturalists, not only
because they were drawn to other continents, but also
because of its inhospitable terrain of woods and bogs.
As a result, the fauna in the region is perhaps the
least known in the whole European part of Russia.
To
evaluate the current condition of animal life in this
region, we should look at the great changes of local
fauna composition and landscape diversity thet have
taken place during the last three centuries.
According
to brief istorical documents concerning royal game,
many large animals inhabitated the surroundings of St.Petersburg,
many of whichare today either rare or extinct. For example,in
the middle of the 18th century near Saar Miza (today
Tzarskoe Selo) there were so many brown bears (Ursus
arctos) tat local peasants were given a prize by the
authorities for each bear they killed. Reindeer (Rangifer
tarandus) were common at the time, and they even came
into the gardens of Tzarskoe Selo, attracted by the
vegetation there.
This was when the protection
of some species began. For example, there was a special
Tzar decree prohibiting hare hunting in a 100-mile radius
of Petersburg and Peterghoff. But unfortunately our
knowledge of animals that lived in woods, meadows and
bogs of Petrsburg govern is very poor, based on short
articles in general reviews on Russian fauna, and some
game magazines.
It was not until the 1960s that
zoologists from Leningrad University promoted the study
of the fauna of Leningrad region. As a result, the list
of 71 terrestrial mammals was completed for the area.
Other data on bionomics and the biology of rare and
threatened species were gathered. At present time,
more than 30 years later, many of those native landscapes
have been changed. Many mammals, once considered common
and numerous, have become rare and endangered. Other
species, on the other hand, have penetrated the new
habitats and expanded their ranges.
It is therefore
of vital importance to activate fauna research in the
area. This means revising the local list of rare and
protected mammal species, estimating the value of various
landscapes for biodiversity conservation in the area,
and rehabilitating mammals in danger of extinction.
It is worth mentioning that the Leningrad region,
although situated within the forest zone, is nonetheless
characterised by great landscape diversity and complexity.
The vegetation of the area is the richest and most varied
in the whole of the North-west Russia. The mix of taiga
and broad-leaved forest patches causes the same henomena
in the fauna of mammals
In general, the local
mammalian fauna has the south-taiga character. Nevertheless,
the animals from mixed and broad-leaved forests, and
also those from north-eastern taiga are recorded here.
The mixture of various faunal elements are most pronounced
in the south and south-west where in the same biotope
one can find animals characteristic for quite different
zones.
Foe example, flying squirrels (Pteromys
volans), inhabitants of eastern taiga, co-exist with
garden dormice (Eliomys quercinus), common for broad-leaved
forests of South and Central Europe. Some broad-leaved
forest inhabiting animals penetrate the area from the
south, such as European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus),
European hares (Lepus europaeus), garden dormice (Eliomys
quercinus), yellow-necked mice (Apodemus flavicollis),
various bats (Chiroptera), wild boar (Sus scrofa) and
roe deer (Capreolus capreolus).
Ruddy vole (Clethrionomys
rutilus) and wolverine (Gulo gulo), however, come from
the north and east. A short time ago a Polar fox (Alopex
lagopus) was recorded here at the time of its long
migrations. It is also possible to find reindeer (rangifer
tarandus) at the extreme east of the area.
Some
animals are widely distributed throughout the whole
territory. These include species such as shrews (Sorex
spp.), mountain hares (Lepus timidus), red squirrel
(Sciurus vulgaris), flying squirrels (Eliomys quercinus),
bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus), wolves (Canis
lupus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), brown bear (Ursus arctos),
marten (Martes martes), otter (Lutra lutra), badger
(Meles meles), european and American minks, small mustelids,
lynx (Lynx lynx) and elk (Alces alces).
Woods
cover 45 per cent of the Leningrad region, with bogs
and meadows making up 17 and 10 per cent respectively.
Woodlands are more important for mammals, as
they use bogs and meadows largely as feeding areas.
It
should be noted that some types of wood are more appropriate
for mammals' habitat than others. Most species, including
rare and protected ones, prefer the climax coniferous-mixed
forests, and those with a high proportion of broad-leaved
trees, such as oak, lime or maple, mixed with various
berry
bushes.
Of
the coniferous forests, spruce mixed with aspen, birch,
alder and sorb are prefered by mammals. This landscape
os highly attractive because of the shelter it gives
and these forests are the real storehouses of biodiversity.
Natural
shelters are formed for a variety of mammals by linked
crowns and wreathed branches of trees, hollow aspens
and birches, logs and old stumps, heaps of brushwood
and missy stones.
The ground in these woods is
covered by a thik layer of forest litter and moss, full
of insects and other invertabrates. Spruce seeds are
the main food for red squirrel and voles. These small
animals are, in tern, prey for predatory mammals. In
lean years plentiful berries and mushrooms make up to
some degree for a for a shortage of seeds.
Finally,
the microclimatic conditions of forest habitats are
so suited
to
mammals that they live here all year round, and from
season to season. The spruce-mixed forests are inhabitated
by practically all local insect-eating mammals. Red
squirrel, flying squirrel, northern birch mouse (Sicista
betulina), short-tailed, bank and ruddy voles (Mycrotus
agrestis, Clethrionomys glareolus & C. rutilus),
field and yellow-necked mice (Apodemus sylvaticus &
A. flavicollis), garden dormice (at the south and south-west
of the area) are common here.
A few small predators,
such as ermine stoats (Mustella erminea), polecats (Mustela
putorius) and martens (Martes martes) are quite common
too. An abundance of ant-hills and lots of berries attract
broun bears who make their dens in such kinds if woods,
especially in the thickets of young spruces. Badgers
and red foxesbuild their earths here in the uphills.
Otter and mink are common near streams and forest rivers.
In the outskirts of the woods mountain hare is common.
Elks and wild boars are found in the woods in winter.
Unfortunately
these woods with their rich mammal fauna have been badly
damaged by logging. It seems that cutting small patches
in woods does them no harm - on the contrary, it may
help the whole of forest life. Small clearings are rapidly
overgrown by broad-leaved, berry-rich undergrowth, and
soon become a fine food source for many animals.
Elk
can also keep out of danger in bushy clearings, as well
as cropping young aspens and other undergrowth all year
round. Wild boars, bears and badgers also find clearings
attrctive, and they search for roots, insects and their
larvae there. Bearsalso enjoy the raspberry bushes that
are common in this sort of terrain.
Many rare
animals make their homes in the broad-leaved forests.
In the Leningrad region forests with oak and lime occupy
rather small territories, and are restricted to the
areas oround the rivers Volkhov, Luga, Oredezh, Ragusha.
Broad-leaved
formations usually have bogs and meadows, that is why
landscape mosaic causes mammalian biotope diversity.
When compared with conifreous and mixed forest, oak
woods are by far the richest food source for mammals.
Their hollow trees shelter the garden dormouse, yellow-necked
mouse, red squirrel and bats - all much more abundant
here, too.
Predators, such as polecats, martens,
ermine, badgers, red fox and racoon are common, with
brown bear, mountain hare and boar also characteristic
of these woods. The hedgehog is common throughout the
Leningrad region, but they are recorded more often in
broad-leaved forests than elsewhere. Roe deer were often
found before the 1940s, but are no longer, but the nesting
black stork and grey herron have recently been recorded
in the River Volkhov holm.
The species composition
of oakwoods is thus very rich, but animal lifr in broad-leaved
forest is very vulnurable. as these forests tend to
be isolated in other landscapes, other woods or meadows,
they need to be carefully protected and even light
logging activity could tip some endangered species of
the region into extinction.
Secondary small-leaved
forests, moss and grass bogs, dry meadows and agro-landscapes
occupy a considerable amount of the Leningrad region.
Various mammalian species inhabit these open landscapes.
But such teriocomplexes possess much less species diversity
in comparison to those associated with forest landscapes.
The strength of particular animals in open landscapes,
as compared with woods, show the same pattern.
Finally
we must
stress that current diversity and sustainability of
mammalian fauna of the Leningrad region are entirely
dependent upon conservation of climax coniferous-mixed
and broad-leaved forests.
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