Fig.1: Expedition members before diving in the Gulf of Tonkin. From left to right: Grebelny S.D., Do Huu Quyet, Nguyen Thai Tu, Savinkin O.V., Zvonareva S.S., Deart Yu.V., Antokhina T.I. The expedition of the Joint Russian-Vietnamese Tropical Center with the participation of the staff of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IEE RAS) and the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ZIN RAS) to the north and central part of Vietnam, the main objective of which was to study the composition, distribution and condition of corals and related organisms, has been successfully completed. The expedition took place in three areas: in the north of Vietnam, in the Gulf of Tonkin near the islands of Van Don and Me, and in the central part of Vietnam near the island of Son Tra and the Son Tra Peninsula in the waters of Da Nang. The research was carried out underwater using lightweight diving equipment at depths from 1 to 30 m in difficult conditions of low transparency and strong currents. A total of 23 points were surveyed and about 170 dives were performed. During the dives, data was collected on the species composition and distribution of corals, other large invertebrates and specialized cryptofauna (symbionts). Fig.2: Scleractinian corals of isle Vandon. A - Pectinia cf. lactuca, B, C - Plesiastrea versipora, D - Psammocora profundacella, E - Pseudosiderastrea tayamai, F - Lobophyllia sp. The fauna of northern Vietnam turned out to be especially interesting. It differs significantly from central and southern Vietnam in its lower diversity and abundance of scleractinian corals. In total, about 30 species were noted, while more than 200 species were described in Nha Trang Bay alone. In addition, they do not form reefs here, and the coverage at most of the studied points does not exceed 5%. This is due to the specific habitat conditions in the Gulf of Tonkin - large temperature fluctuations during the year, low transparency, shallow depths, eutrophication and desalination. Particularly extreme environmental conditions were noted in the area of ​​Van Don Island, where there was strong silting and water transparency rarely exceeded 20 - 50 cm. Unexpectedly, it turned out that octocorals react to "bad" conditions differently: their diversity and abundance increase from south to north. Moreover, the fauna of alcyonarians and their symbionts is especially diverse here. Fig.3: Symbionts of octocorals are ovulid gastropods. A – Phenaovolva rosea, B – Phenacovolva barberi, C – Phenacovolva lahinaensis, D – Crenavolva traillii, E – Cuspivolva cuspis, F – Aclyvolva lanceolate. An interesting feature of the Gulf of Tonkin is the shift of mesophotic zone species to shallow depths. We found dense clusters of octocorals (gorgonian corals) at a depth of only 5-8 meters, while in central Vietnam they are found in the depth range of 15 to 50 meters. A similar situation is with black corals: in the north they form clusters at depths of 12-17 meters, and in the south, in Nha Trang Bay, they are found at depths of less than 25 meters and do not form clusters. The shift of hard-bottom fauna to shallower depths is probably explained by the low transparency and shallowness of the bay. Fig.4: Loading equipment onto a ship at the port on Vandon Island. Photo: Antokhina T.I. Despite the low diversity of the fauna of the Gulf of Tonkin, some species rare in central Vietnam reach and flourish in the north. These are some species of corals (Plesiastrea versipora and Pseudosiderastrea tayamai), gorgonians (Dichotella), sea anemones (Isactinia citrina), starfish Anthenea aspera and holothurians (Cercodemas anceps), which is probably due to the high productivity of this water area. The results obtained significantly change the understanding of the diversity and structure of settlements of marine invertebrates in the extreme conditions of the shallow water zone of the Gulf of Tonkin.

On November 19-20, the International Scientific and Practical Conference "AGRONOMY-2024" was held in Moscow at the Russian State Agrarian University - K.A. Timiryazev Moscow State Agroengineering University (RSAU-MSHA). The event was held as part of the program for the creation and development of a world-class Scientific Center "Agrotechnologies of the Future" with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation. Leading scientists from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, and the People's Republic of China took part in the conference. Senior researcher of the Laboratory of Phytoparasitology N.N. Butorina presented a report "Live collection of sedentary nematodes of the Laboratory of Phytoparasitology of the Central Clinical Hospital of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS (IEE RAS): the purpose of creation and rules for maintenance." The conference program can be found at the link.

Figure 1. A group of woolly rhinoceroses depicted on the wall of the Chauvet Cave, France (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:16_PanneauDesLions(CentreGauche)Rhinoc%C3%A9rosEnFuite.jpg; Credit: Claude Valette). One of the unique pieces of evidence that allows us to judge the appearance of fossil animals of the late Pleistocene are their rock paintings left on the walls of caves by Paleolithic artists (Figure 1). In some cases, these images provide information about the length of the fur and its color, the presence or absence of some exterior details (for example, the mane of cave lions), and convey scenes of tournament fights among large ungulates and hunting scenes of predators through the millennia. However, rock paintings certainly cannot be considered photorealistic evidence, they often violate body proportions, do not depict the well-known fur coat in fossils, and simplify various anatomical details. One of the topics of discussion related to the appearance of representatives of the mammoth fauna, which has caused controversy among researchers and paleontology enthusiasts for many years, is related to numerous images of woolly rhinoceroses (Coelodonta antiquitatis) with a large hump in the neck and withers area (Figure 1). Finds of mummies of these rhinoceroses contradicted the existence of this anatomical feature. Both mummies, found at the beginning of the last century in bitumen-ozokerite deposits near the village of Starunya (Ukraine), did not have humps. The rhinoceros mummy found in the lower reaches of the Kolyma River had damaged neck and withers area, but the general outline of the body did not show even a hint of a large hump. Everything indicated that the rock paintings were just artistic exaggerations. Figure 2. Mummy of the Abyi rhinoceros. (a, в) right-side view; (б) left-side view. However, in 2020, a new mummy of C. antiquitatis was discovered on the banks of the Tirekhtyakh River (Yakutia), which was named the Abyi Rhinoceros (Figure 2). The carcass belonged to a 4-4.5-year-old teenager who had lain in the permafrost for over 32 thousand years, and the most unexpected detail of the find was that there was a clearly visible hump in the neck and withers of the rhinoceros. In a joint article published in Quaternary Science Reviews, Ruslan Belyaev and Nadezhda Kryukova, employees of the Laboratory of Ecology, Physiology and Functional Morphology of Higher Vertebrates at the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IPEE RAS), together with colleagues from Yakutia under the supervision of Gennady Boeskorov (IGABM SB RAS), studied the anatomical features of the mummy found. But before we move on to discussing the new find, it is worth answering the question: do modern rhinos have humps? Of the five species that have survived to this day, we have only one example of a rhino with a hump – the African white rhinoceros. The hump in this species is located in the neck and front part of the withers, and is traditionally called the “nuchal hump” in scientific literature. Structurally, the hump of the white rhinoceros consists of three parts: thickened skin (reaching 5 cm), a thin layer of fat (about 3 cm), and hypertrophied nuchal ligament and dorsal muscles of the neck, which form the bulk of the hump. Are the humps of the woolly rhinoceros similar to those of its modern relative? Figure 3. Mummy of the Abyi rhinoceros (a, б) and histology of adipose tissue (в, к). (в-e) adipose tissue from the hump; (ж-к) subcutaneous fat. The hump of the woolly rhinoceros and its African relative is located almost identically: it occupies the space between the back of the head and the tops of the shoulder blades (Figure 2, 3). The thickness of the skin in the studied juvenile exceeds 1 cm, but the main volume of the hump is formed by fatty tissue. The size of the fat deposits reaches about 40 cm in length, 13 cm in height and 14 cm in width. Considering that the fatty tissue is strongly dehydrated, the hump dimensions during life should have been larger. The thickness of the subcutaneous fat in the studied rhinoceros reached 1-1.5 cm in the neck and back, and 1.5-3 cm in the chest. The results of the histological study suggest that the fat filling the hump is most likely white, not brown (Figure 3). It is interesting to note that, in addition to the woolly rhinoceros, a fatty hump was previously discovered in another largest representative of the mammoth fauna - the woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius). As in the case of rhinoceroses, modern elephants do not have a fatty hump, as well as other large fat deposits confined to any specific part of the body. What was the functional load of these structures in the largest representatives of the fauna of the Ice Age? To answer this question, it is necessary to first note that one of two main types of fat could accumulate in the hump: brown or white. White fat performs a number of functions in the body, but first of all, it is responsible for the reserve of nutrients in the form of fat droplets. Brown fat contains a huge number of mitochondria, which allows it to implement its key function - thermogenesis (heat production). Brown fat is present in large quantities in newborn mammals. Among large mammals living in extremely cold environments, brown fat is present in large quantities in newborn musk oxen and plays a key role in survival during long and very cold winters. An adaptation similar to that of musk oxen was probably also characteristic of woolly mammoths. Histological analysis of fat deposits in the baby mammoth Lyuba (aged about one month) showed that it was brown fat deposits in the hump. However, our data for the juvenile woolly rhinoceros show that its hump was probably filled with white fat. This may indicate both differences in the functional significance of the humps in mammoths and rhinoceroses, and the degeneration of fat tissue from brown to white with age. This phenomenon is well known for modern mammals, but has not been studied at all for representatives of the mammoth fauna. In addition to the first discovery of a hump in a woolly rhinoceros, the study raised many new questions. Was the hump seasonal in rhinos? Could fatty tissue accumulate during the warm season and be completely consumed during the cold season? Was there a transition from a hump filled with brown fat and responsible for thermogenesis in young rhinos to a hump filled with white fat and responsible for nutrient storage in adults? Could the white fatty tissue in the hump turn brown with the onset of autumn and winter cold? New finds and new studies will undoubtedly allow us to answer these questions and fill in the gaps in our understanding of the anatomy, physiology and lifestyle of the largest representatives of the mammoth fauna. Article published by: Gennady G. Boeskorov, Marina V. Shchelchkova, Albert V. Protopopov, Nadezhda V. Kryukova & Ruslan I. Belyaev (2024) Reshaping a woolly rhinoceros: Discovery of a fat hump on its back. Quaternary Science Reviews, Volume 345, 109013. Related materials: Innovation world news: "It happened: Russian scientists found a hump on a woolly rhinoceros" Yakutia news feed: "Ancient rhinoceros from Yakutia stored fat in its back hump" Science.rf: "Ancient rhinoceros from Yakutia stored fat in its back hump"

Fig. 1. Appearance of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss. Photo source: https://www.wildtrout.org/content/rainbow-trout An international team of authors from Kazakhstan, Russia and the Czech Republic with the participation of B.A. Levin, an employee of the Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring of NPP Regions and Bioindication of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IEE RAS), and G.K. Khasengazieva, his postgraduate student from the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, studied the current state of rainbow trout populations in the southern water bodies of Kazakhstan. Fig. 2. Map of the current distribution of rainbow trout populations in the Balkhash basin. The asterisk marks the places where trout were first released. Red circles mark places where trout populations are currently found, yellow circles mark places where trout have not been found (the figure is taken from the article under discussion). Rainbow trout is one of the most popular aquaculture species, introduced into natural water bodies intentionally or accidentally all over the world. In Central Asia, several attempts were made to acclimatize rainbow trout to live in local water bodies of the former Soviet republics. However, naturalization of trout occurred only in Kazakhstan, namely in the Lake Balkhash basin. It is characteristic that the Balkhash basin was populated by two forms - the wild form of rainbow trout from Kamchatka and an aquaculture breed from fish farms in Central Europe. The authors studied the distribution, abundance, age, growth, nutrition, color pattern and analyzed the composition of the local fauna and the relationship of the alien species with local native species. The study showed that rainbow trout occupies various habitats in the Ili River basin: mountain lakes, fast mountain rivers and lowland rivers with a slow current and warm water (up to +27 °C). Rainbow trout from European fish farms dominate the mountain lake Middle Kolsay, while wild trout from Kamchatka occupy the small river Ulken Kokpak. Both forms occur together in the Chilik River. Fig. 3. Water bodies inhabited by rainbow trout O. mykiss. A – Ulken Kokpak River, Б – Lower Kolsay Lake, B – Masak Creek, Г – Kapchagay Reservoir on the Ili River (the figure is taken from the article under discussion). Unlike other regions, the distribution of rainbow trout in the Balkhash basin remained virtually unchanged after introduction. Wide intrapopulation variability in size, growth rate, and age at sexual maturity was revealed, apparently as a result of adaptation to the new environment and intrapopulation competition. In particular, the growth rate decreased, but lifespan, oddly enough, increased compared to those of the initially introduced fish. Intrapopulation variability in growth pattern and sexual maturity was also noted. Differences in skin coloration patterns were revealed between highland (cold-water) and lowland (warm-water) populations. The feeding habits of naturalized trout are insectivorous with a predominance of insect imagoes in the food bolus, indicating that it occupies its own niche in local fish communities. The largest population of rainbow trout is recorded in Lake Lower Kolsay, where it has led to a decline in the numbers of native fish species, while in other places no negative impact on local fish communities has been recorded. The article was published in the journal Animals: Alien Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss in the Balkhash Basin (Kazakhstan, Central Asia): 50 Years of Naturalization, Animals 2024, 14(20), 3013. Related materials: RAS: "Over half a century, rainbow trout has successfully naturalized in the waters of Central Asia"

Fig. 1. Instrumentation base of the Electron Microscopy Cabinet: A – installation for drying biological samples; Б – device for spraying conductive coating; В – scanning electron microscope. On November 21, a practical lesson was held at the IEE RAS, based at the Electron Microscopy Room, as part of the Competition for schoolchildren of specialized classes, under the guidance of Anna Neretina, PhD in Biology, research fellow at the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The children became familiar with the devices used to prepare microscopic hydrobionts for examination using scanning electron microscopy methods, and the principles of their operation (Fig. 1). Fig. 2. Triops cancriformis larvae of different ages. The excursionists were especially delighted by the larvae of the summer shieldfish (Triops cancriformis), hatched from dormant eggs by Denis Polyakov, a 4th-year student of the Department of Invertebrate Zoology at Lomonosov Moscow State University (Fig. 2). The beauty and unpretentiousness of shieldfish to cultivation conditions contributed to the fact that this group is very popular not only with biologists and professional aquarists, but also with children. The participants of the lesson were among the first to see what the larvae of Triops cancriformis look like.

The Ethiopian Highlands are a vast mountain range with interchanging altitudinal zones, which makes this territory a promising testing ground for alternative speciation models. The researchers from the Mammal Microevolution Laboratory of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IEE RAS) have been the first to verify an ecological (gradient) speciation model for three shrew species (Crocidura thalia, C. glassi, and C. afeworkbekelei) interchanging in adjacent altitudinal zones of the Bale Mountains. A combination of molecular phylogenetic analyses and geometric morphometric methods was used for this study. The original material for this study was the museum collection of three shrew species (C. thalia, C. glassi, and C. afeworkbekelei), collected in 1995 from the entire southern slope of the Bale Mountains. Molecular genetic data showed a high degree of similarity between the three studied species and the absence of reciprocal monophyly for each of them. Significant differences were shown in both the size and shape of the skull and lower jaw between the forest and highland forms, although without a pronounced hiatus. The most variable areas of the skull and lower jaw were identified, the analysis of which suggests the adaptation of white-toothed shrews inhabiting different altitude zones to different types of food. The absence of morphological hiatus and reciprocal monophyly between the studied forms did not allow us to confirm their species status. The authors believe that the white-toothed shrews C. afeworkbekelei and C. thalia should be considered as different ecotypes of the same species, and the names of these taxa should be reduced to junior synonyms of C. glassi. Fig.3: Differences between the forms of the skull and lower jaw in forms living at the extreme points of the altitudinal gradient. The highland form is marked in red, the forest form in blue Nevertheless, the results of the present study suggest intensive processes of adaptation to different habitat conditions along a significant altitudinal gradient. In general, the obtained results demonstrate the correspondence of the revealed patterns of genetic and morphological variability to the predictions of the gradient speciation model. This is the first case confirming this speciation mode for three mammal forms inhabiting three adjacent altitudinal belts of a single mountain range. The three studied ecotypes of C. glassi are apparently at the initial stage of this process, which is characterized by the absence of morphological hiatus and genetic differentiation between diverging forms. The work was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Science Foundation (project No. 23-74-01098). The work was published in the journal Mammalian Biology: Zemlemerova E.D., Martynov A.A. Sycheva V.B., Lavrenchenko L.A., 2024. The usage of historical DNA and geometric morphometric approach for detecting the ecological diversification along a remarkable altitudinal gradient. Mammalian Biology, 104, 529–538.

90 years ago, on October 5, 1934, at a meeting of the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences, the Laboratory of Evolutionary Morphology at the USSR Academy of Sciences, organized by Academician Alexei Nikolaevich Severtsov, was transformed into the Institute of Animal Evolution. This date, the 5th of October of 1934, marks the birthday of the modern A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of RAS and the beginning of its history. Congratulations to all staff of the Institute on the Anniversary! We wish you many years of fruitful work and groundbreaking discoveries! May your legacy continue to inspire future generations of scientists! The 90th anniversary celebrations will take place on November 28.

In the Moscow Region, scientists from the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IEE RAS), the S.I. Vavilov Institute of the History of Natural Science and Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Zoological Museum of Moscow State University have discovered a new pest of a dangerous invasive plant – Heracleum sosnowskyi, which has spread widely across Russia. This weed is resistant to insect damage, since the leaves, stems, and roots of Heracleum sosnowskyi are saturated with furanocoumarins, which weaken the vital activity of leaf-eating phytophages. The larvae of the sciarid mosquito Bradysia impatiens (Diptera, Sciaridae) lived in the root of the hogweed, where they formed clusters of 15-30 individuals. In total, more than 100 larvae were found. The larvae gnawed out the core of the root. This led to root rot, growth retardation of young leaves, chlorosis and wilting of the plant. The sciarid Bradysia impatiens is known as a polyphagous pest that destroys plants in greenhouses. This species damages more than 25 plant species, as well as champignons and other mushroom crops. The pest has now spread worldwide, so it is not possible to reliably determine its native range. The question of whether an invasive plant is damaged by an invasive insect species or a native insect species remains open. The mass development of B. impatiens larvae in the root of Sosnowsky's hogweed is a unique event, indicating that as the naturalization period of an invasive plant in a new territory increases, its resource is gradually developed by phytophagous insects. The work was published in the Russian Journal of Biological Invasions. Related materials: Научная Россия: "В Московской области обнаружен вредитель, уничтожающий неуязвимый сорянк - борщевик Сосновского" НИА Наука: "В Московской области обнаружен вредитель, уничтожающий неуязвимый сорняк – борщевик Сосновского" АгроXXI: "Истребителя корней борщевика Сосновского нашли российские ученые в природе" ЭкоТуризмЭксперт: "Нашлась управа на борщевик: личинки комарика грызут корни сорняка и губят его" ГлавАгроном: "Ученые обнаружили нового вредителя, уничтожающего борщевик Сосновского" РАН: "Найден новый вредитель, уничтожающий корни борщевика Сосновского" Пикабу: "Комарик поможет, комарик спасёт⁠⁠" Чехов Вид: "Неожиданного союзника в борьбе с борщевиком нашли учёные в Подмосковье" Газета.ру: "В Подмосковье обнаружен новый вредитель, поедающий борщевик" Экология России: "Огуречный комарик может уничтожать борщевик" СитиФермер: "У борщевика Сосновского появился новый естественный враг" Ока.ФМ: "Учёные нашли то, что уничтожит борщевик Сосновского на корню" АгроТайм: "В РФ нашли вредителя, который уничтожит весь борщевик Сосновского"

Fig.1: Director of the Dagestan FRC RAS, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences A.K. Murtazaev, Director of the PIBR DFRC RAS ​​N.I. Rabazanov, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences V.V. Rozhnov and Minister of Natural Resources of Dagestan M.Kh. Rabadanov at the opening of the conference. The international scientific conference "Caspian Seal: an indicator of the state of the Caspian ecosystem", which took place on November 12-14, 2024 in Makhachkala, at the Caspian Institute of Biological Resources of the Dagestan Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was organized by the Theriological Society named after Academician V.E. Sokolov of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Scientific Council of the Russian Academy of Sciences on the Problems of Ecology of Biological Systems, the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Caspian Institute of Biological Resources of the Dagestan Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the State Research Center of the Russian Federation, the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, and was dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the Russian Academy of Sciences. A total of approximately 100 people took part in the conference in person and online. Representatives of more than 20 scientific organizations of the Caspian states - Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Iran, as well as the United Kingdom, noted the high relevance of the conference, during which 49 reports were heard, current scientific data on the state of the Caspian seal and the Caspian ecosystem were discussed, and promising areas of research were outlined. Although, as noted by the conference participants, the total number of Caspian seals in recent years has been quite stable and fluctuates from 274 thousand individuals (2012) to 305 thousand individuals (2024), which indicates a high adaptive potential of the species, ensuring its successful reproduction in a wide range of changes in habitat conditions, the fate of this species, endemic to the Caspian, listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation and protected in other Caspian countries, raises serious concerns. The key role in the deterioration of the Caspian seal's living conditions, including the efficiency of its reproduction, the survival rate of offspring and the availability of food, belongs to the decrease in the level of the Caspian Sea and changes in the ice conditions in the Northern Caspian. The conference was opened by Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Magomedov M.-R.D. (PIBR DFRC RAS) with a report on the history of comprehensive scientific research of the Caspian Sea, which is currently clearly insufficient. Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Rozhnov V.V. (IEE RAS) spoke in detail about the structure of the joint Russian-Kazakh "Program for the Study of the Caspian Seal of the Northern Caspian (2019-2023)" and the results of work on it, noting the inadequacy in general, as well as the disunity of scientific research of the Caspian states on the biology of the seal and the factors determining its condition and the state of the ecosystem of the Caspian Sea. To remedy the situation, it was proposed to create a common interactive platform for exchanging information on the Caspian seal and the state of the Caspian ecosystem, providing access to publications on these issues, and to publish a unified methodology for collecting material on the Caspian seal and relevant protocols for obtaining comparable data on the state of its population in waters of different jurisdictions. The conference participants supported the proposal to organize systematic scientific research based on interstate and intersectoral integration and cooperation of the Caspian countries. Fig.2: The speaker is the chief researcher of the PIBR DFRC RAS, Corresponding Member of the RAS M.-R.D. Magomedov. Deputy Director for Science of the Russian State Scientific Center of Marine Biology and Fisheries VNIRO V.A. Bizikov, V.V. Kuznetsov and S.V. Shipulin (Volga-Caspian Branch of VNIRO – KaspNIRKh), I.V. Sokolova (Astrakhan State Nature Reserve), V.A. Skolsky and F.V. Klimov (KAPE LLP, Kazakhstan) and M.T. Baimukanov (Institute of Hydrobiology and Ecology, Kazakhstan), T.M. Eybatov (Natural History Museum of the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan), S.B. Mammedov (Khazar State Nature Reserve, Turkmenistan), Amir Shirazi (Caspian Seal Conservation and Rescue Team, Iran) and Rasoul Hagjoo (Tarbiat Modares University, Iran) presented reports on the status of the Caspian seal in the areas of responsibility of all five Caspian states and ongoing research. Solovieva M.A. (IEE RAS) summarized data on the distribution, migrations and numbers of the Caspian seal to identify its key habitats, their seasonal changes and general trends, and Pilipenko G.Yu. (Lomonosov Moscow State University) spoke about the latest studies of the seal using satellite transmitters: animal migrations and their choice of habitats, showed data on the distribution of the seal in the Kazakh waters. The conference participants discussed the features of the use of the waters by seals, their habitats, including breeding and feeding areas and methods for census numbers. Fig.3: Report by V.A. Bizikov (State Scientific Center of the Russian Federation, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution “VNIRO”) from a large team of specialists from various organizations on the possible causes of death of swimming seals washed ashore. Many reports were devoted to the welfare of the Caspian seal and the health of individual specimens in the context of its use as an indicator species for assessing the state of the entire Caspian ecosystem. Issues of seal virology were considered (Alekseev A.Yu., FRC FTM), which did not confirm the previously expressed point of view on bird flu as the cause of their mass death. Microbiological studies (Kuznetsova T.A., IEE RAS) showed the possibility of using the microbiome structure of different mucous membranes of the Caspian seal as one of the parameters of the health of these animals. Much attention was paid to the presence of heavy metals in the tissues of both the seal itself (Udodenko Yu.G., IBIW RAS) and some fish (Zaitsev V.F., ASTU), and especially the risks of mercury presence in the body of pinnipeds (Komov V.T., TBVW RAS), as well as persistent organic pollutants (Kudryavtseva A.D., IPEE RAS). Suvorova I.V. (Moskvarium Oceanography and Marine Biology Center) made reports on urate nephrolithiasis detected for the first time in the Caspian seal, as well as on pulmonary helminthiases in seals. The discussion was prompted by the reports of Shibanova P.Yu. (IEE RAS) on determining the level of infertility of Caspian seals and Khatsayeva R.M. (IEE RAS) on determining the age of the Caspian seal. Detailed reports on genetic studies of the Caspian seal, allowing comparison of this species with other closely related seal species, analysis of their origin and the state of their immune system, were made by I.G. Meshchersky and S.I. Meshchersky (IEE RAS). A serious and not fully studied problem is the appearance of the so-called "water bears", when in the autumn-winter period a greater or lesser number of Caspian seals that died in the open sea are thrown onto the shore of the Caspian Sea. Reports on this topic from a large team of specialists from different organizations were presented by Bizikov V.A. (VNIRO) and Chunkov M.M. (PIBR DFRC RAS). In them, they covered the regularity of such emissions, the sex and age composition and condition of the dead individuals, and also voiced the possible reasons that led to the death of the seals, among which the most substantiated is the hypothesis of the death of animals as a result of asphyxia during the natural release of toxic gases in the autumn period, when seals migrate from the southern part of the Caspian to the north. Taking into account the current data on the possible influence of the fluidodynamic activity of the Caspian Sea (a detailed report on this phenomenon was given by V.A. Putans from the Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences) on the health and condition of the Caspian seal population, the conference participants supported the need to conduct a series of complex expeditions with the participation of geologists and zoologists for a detailed study of this phenomenon. Important issues from the point of view of the conditions of existence of the Caspian seal are the dynamics of the Caspian Sea level and the state of its biota. Yanina T.A. (MSU), Malinin V.N. (RSHMU) and Frolov A.V. (IVP RAS) analyzed changes in the Caspian Sea level in the past, in the modern period and made a forecast for the future. And Ushivtsev V.B. (SSC RAS), employees of the Volga-Caspian branch of VNIRO spoke about the state of aquatic biological resources and their changes in the Caspian Sea. Balagurov A.A. (OOO NPF RAIMET) made an interesting report on regular monitoring of oil pollution of the Caspian Sea from space, and Platonov N.G. (IEE RAS) - on the ice phenology of the Caspian. Litvinov K.V. (Astrakhan State Nature Reserve) spoke about significant changes that are occurring in the Volga River delta and affecting all levels of the Caspian ecosystem, and the director of the PIBR DFRC RAS ​​N.I. Rabazanov conducted an ecological assessment of the state of the natural environment of the western coast of the Middle Caspian from the point of view of its impact on the ecosystem of the Caspian Sea. Simon Goodman (University of Leeds, UK) in his report assessed the potential impact of climate change on seals, and Filippova A.V. (Wildlife Conservation Center) spoke about the experience of using artificial floating platforms for seal breeding on Lake Saimaa in Finland and the possibility of installing them in the Caspian for breeding Caspian seals. At the end of the conference, a general discussion of the reports was held. The scientific community confirmed the need for further research and joint efforts of all five Caspian states to preserve the Caspian seal, a unique species, and its habitat. In order to improve the coordination of the Caspian states, increase the efficiency of response to environmental disasters and strengthen international cooperation within the framework of sustainable development of the region, a proposal was made to establish an interstate scientific center for the reception and processing of remote sensing and natural resource management data; synchronization and standardization of data received from satellites of national and international programs, including open data from Copernicus, Sentinel and others; scientific and practical cooperation aimed at developing innovative technologies for monitoring and responding to environmental challenges; increasing transparency and accessibility of data for all stakeholders, including the scientific community, government agencies and public organizations. Fig.4: Discussion of reports The conference participants paid great attention to the need to develop international cooperation among the Caspian countries in conducting scientific research and preserving the animal world and biodiversity of the Caspian Sea, joint monitoring of the Caspian seal population following the example of Russian-Kazakh cooperation, as well as submitting this issue for consideration by the Intergovernmental Commission for the Conservation, Rational Use of Aquatic Biological Resources of the Caspian Sea and Management of their Joint Stocks. It was recommended to continue joint aerial surveys to assess the number and distribution of the Caspian seal following the example of Russia and Kazakhstan, and it was proposed that other Caspian countries join such work on a mutually beneficial basis. It was also proposed to appeal to the Commission for the Conservation, Rational Use of Aquatic Biological Resources of the Caspian Sea and Management of their Joint Stocks with a proposal to establish a Scientific Committee under it to ensure the activities of the Working Groups on Science and Aquaculture, and to regulate economic activity in the Caspian Sea. Fig.5: On break In closing the conference, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Magomedov M.-R.D. (PIBR DFRC RAS) spoke about the research of the Caspian region during the first academic expeditions in the south of Russia and about Academician of the Imperial Academy of Sciences Samuil-Gottlieb Gmelin, who was captured and died during one of the expeditions. The grave of this remarkable researcher is still preserved in the village of Kayakend and the participants of the International Scientific Conference specially visited this village to lay a wreath and flowers at the grave of Samuil-Gottlieb Gmelin, one of whose relatives first described the Caspian seal. Fig.6: Presentation about the research of the Caspian region during the first academic expeditions in the south of Russia and about the academician of the Imperial Academy of Sciences Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin. Fig.4: At the grave of the academician of the Imperial Academy of Sciences Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin in the village of Kayakend. The participants of the International Scientific Conference are grateful to the Caspian Institute of Biological Resources of the Dagestan Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences for organizing and successfully holding the International Scientific Conference “Caspian Seal: An Indicator of the State of the Caspian Ecosystem”, as well as to the Moskvarium Center for Oceanography and Marine Biology, the Gadzhi Makhachev Foundation and Derbent Golden Sands LLC for financial support of its holding.

Fig. 1. Yellow steppe lemming (Eolagurus luteus) in the Moscow Zoo. Inbreeding is inevitable among animals in captivity. Its negative consequence is inbreeding depression, which manifests itself at the genetic and phenotypic levels. It is expressed in an increase in offspring mortality, a decrease in their fertility, growth and development rates, and a deterioration in immunity. In theoretical and practical terms, it is important to study the effect of inbreeding on the viability and reproductive performance of animals, particularly rodents. It is necessary to obtain accurate information on the gradual increase in the degree of inbreeding in artificial colonies of mammals and the accompanying changes in the above parameters, as well as to determine the level of inbreeding upon reaching which signs of inbreeding depression begin to appear. The yellow steppe lemming (Eolagurus luteus) is a rodent of the Arvicolinae subfamily of the Cricetidae family, inhabiting the deserts and semi-deserts of Eastern Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Northwestern China. The modern range of the lemming is highly fragmented. Its sharp reduction occurred in the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene due to climate change. Even before the mid-19th century, the species was common in the territory of modern Kazakhstan, but later became extinct in most of the territory, surviving only in the eastern part of the Zaysan Basin. Currently, the species is listed in the Red Book of the Republic of Kazakhstan. We assumed that the decline in numbers led to inbreeding, and therefore the lemmings surviving in the Zaysan Basin are inbred. Our small team decided that the special importance of studying the reproduction of yellow steppe lemmings in captivity is due to the fact that this is a rare species whose range has been steadily shrinking since the Pleistocene. And in order to understand how inbreeding can affect the future fate of this species, in artificial conditions it is necessary to estimate how the life expectancy of individuals will change, how many pairs of lemmings will reproduce and how many will not, whether the number of born and surviving young in a colony originating from only a few individuals will decrease with long-term inbreeding. Fig. 2. Changes in inbreeding coefficients of yellow lemmings from the Moscow Zoo colony depending on the breeding generation. The colony of yellow lemmings we studied was kept at the Moscow Zoo from 2017 to 2021 and originated from 10 individuals (5 females and 5 males), which in turn were the first-generation offspring obtained from 7 unrelated animals (3 females and 4 males) captured in the Zaysan Basin. Of the 10 founders of the colony, 5 animals (4 females and 1 male) were descended from the same mother. That is, the degree of inbreeding of individuals in each subsequent generation increased. We conducted a precise assessment of the effect of inbreeding on the lifespan and reproductive performance of lemmings by calculating the inbreeding coefficients of individuals. The animals belonged to the second to tenth breeding generations. The inbreeding coefficient (the probability of the presence of two homologous alleles of a gene that are identical in origin) was calculated for 177 individuals and varied from 0 to 0.29. The maximum values ​​(0.25-0.29) were recorded for individuals of the seventh to tenth generation. We also measured the lifespan (in days) of 61 animals and used information on reproduction or its absence in 45 pairs. For each pair that produced offspring, the total number of litters, offspring born and surviving to 30 days (the age of sexual maturity) was calculated. We found that the lifespan of the lemmings in the colony significantly decreased against the background of a progressive increase in their inbreeding coefficients. Statistical analysis also confirmed the negative impact of inbreeding on the main reproductive parameters, which depend primarily on the degree of inbreeding of females. In particular, the inbreeding coefficients of females that produced 10 or more (up to 23) broods varied from 0 to 0.14, and those of females that did not have offspring varied from 0.14 to 0.29. The negative impact of this factor increases if, in parallel with females, the degree of inbreeding of breeding males increases. In the colony, signs of inbreeding depression began to appear with an increase in the inbreeding coefficients of offspring to approximately 0.2 (starting from the sixth generation). Fig. 3. Decrease in the lifespan of yellow lemmings as their inbreeding coefficients increase. The study revealed the relative resistance of yellow lemmings to inbreeding depression in conditions where the artificial population is formed from only 7 animals. The yellow lemming in the Zaisan Basin is characterized by sharp fluctuations in numbers from mass reproduction to almost complete extinction due to unfavorable weather conditions. Apparently, the negative effect of inbreeding can neutralize the high reproductive potential. It can be assumed that in nature this allows this species to quickly restore its numbers after a period of decline. The results obtained can be used in developing a breeding program for this protected species in captivity. V.V. Streltsov, O.G. Ilchenko, E.V. Kotenkova The following article was published based on the results of the study: V.V. Streltsov, O.G. Ilchenko, E.V. Kotenkova “Long-term effect of inbreeding in the yellow steppe lemming (Eolagurus luteus) captive colony” // Current Zoology, 2024