In May 2025, a short-term expedition of the staff of the Laboratory for the Study of Ecological Functions of Soils of the IEE RAS took place in the Utrish State Nature Reserve. During the expedition, the staff collected soil samples in cracks on the slope of the southern exposure, where high humidity and abundant leaf litter create ideal conditions for soil fauna. As part of a comprehensive study of soil inhabitants this year, the researchers paid special attention to enchytraeids - small annelids that are extremely important for the proper functioning of the ecosystem, but to date have not been sufficiently studied.
Having delivered the collected soil to a laboratory in Moscow, the scientists extracted enchytraeids from it, which they then examined under a microscope. As the head of the working group, Maxim Degtyarev, a candidate of biological sciences, reported: “As a result of the work, four species of enchytraeids were discovered that had not previously been recorded in the territory of the Reserve, and one of these species is new to science and will soon be described. The results of the research showed that the enchytraeid fauna of the Utrish Reserve, containing at least 19 species, not only represents a local version of the Caucasian fauna, but also has unique, distinctive features.”
Acting Director of the Utrish State Nature Reserve Roman Podkopaev emphasized that the discovery of new species of enchytraeids on the territory of the reserve, including one previously unknown to science, confirms the uniqueness of its biodiversity. The results of the expedition not only expand knowledge about the soil fauna of the Caucasus, but also demonstrate that the Utrish Nature Reserve is a key territory for scientific discoveries.