Биоресурсный сектор Дальнего Востока России

The Russian Far East (RFE) is an important hotspot of biodiversity whose insect fauna remains understudied, particularly its Microlepidoptera. Here we explore the diversity of leaf-mining micromoths of the family Gracillariidae, their distribution and host plant associations in RFE using a combination of field observations and sampling, DNA barcoding, morphological analysis and literature review. We collected 91 gracillariid specimens (45 larvae, 9 pupae and 37 adults) in 12 localities across RFE and identified 34 species using a combination of DNA barcoding and morphology. We provide a genetic library of 57 DNA barcodes belonging to 37 Barcode Index Numbers (BINs), including four BINs that could potentially represent species new to science. Leaf mines and leaf shelters are described and illustrated for 32 studied species, male or female genitalia as well as forewing patterns of adults are shown, especially for those species identified based on morphology. Three species, Micrurapteryx caraganella (Hering), Callisto insperatella (Nickerl), and Phyllonorycter junoniella (Zeller) are newly recorded from RFE. Five species previously known from some regions of RFE, were found for the first time in Amurskaya Oblast: Phyllonorycter populifoliella (Treitschke), Primorskii Krai: Ph. sorbicola Kumata and Sahkalin Island: Caloptilia heringi Kumata, Ph. ermani (Kumata) and Ph. ulmifoliella (Hübner). Eight gracillariid-plant associations are novel to science: Caloptilia gloriosa Kumata on Acer pseudosieboldianum, Cameraria niphonica Kumata on A. caudatum subsp. ukurundense, Parornix ermolaevi Kuznetzov on Corylus sieboldiana, Phyllonorycter ermani (Kumata) on Betula platyphylla, Ph. nipponicella (Issiki) on Quercus mongolica, Ph. orientalis (Kumata) and Ph. pseudojezoniella Noreika on Acer saccharum, Ph. sorbicola on Prunus maakii. For the first time we documented the "green island" phenotype on Phyllonorycter cavella (Zeller) mines on Betula platyphylla. Two pestiferous species have been recorded during our surveys: Micrurapteryx caraganella on ornamental Caragana arborescens in urban plantations in Amurskaya Oblast, and the lime leafminer Phyllonorycter issikii (Kumata), a species known to be native to RFE and invasive elsewhere in Russia and in European countries. A revised checklist of RFE gracillariids has been compiled. It accounts for 135 species among which 17 species (13%) are only known to occur in RFE. The gracillariid fauna of RFE is more similar to the Japanese fauna (49%), than to the fauna of the rest of Russia (i.e European part and Siberia) (32%).

The paper summarizes information on chromosome numbers (CNs) of the Grass species (Poaceae) in the flora of Russian Federation, obtained on the original material, most part - from the Russian Far East (RFE). In some species the CNs are known in Russia or in the world only from RFE, in some – from one locality or few, or from one subregion of RFE. The grass species in RFE often occur in mountain regions and near seacoasts; some species are endemics, some were studied near the limits of their geographical distribution areas. The diversity of CNs, the special features of the CNs distribution in some grass groups are discussed. The alien species are abundant in RFE, and their CNs are also involved in the study. For karyologically polymorphous species further studies are needed.

All members of the genus Lathrolestes Förster (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) from Russian Far East are reviewed. Twelve new species of Lathrolestes are described from Russian Far East: L. anularius sp. nov., L. cruentocaudus sp. nov., L. fumipennis sp. nov., L. kasparyani sp. nov., L. kerzhneri sp. nov., L. levaya sp. nov., L. nigronitens sp. nov., L. palatynus sp. nov., L. pubescens sp. nov., L. sachalinensis sp. nov., L. sparsus sp. nov., L. tolstoyi sp. nov. An illustrated key to Russian Far East species is provided.

New species of the genus <i> Anurida </i> (Collembola, Neanuridae) from the Far East of Russia

Four new species of Pseudacteon are described from Primorskii krai and a key to the species of the region provided.

The content of certain chemical elements including rare-earth and radioactive ones in the ash of poplar leaves is investigated in order to establish the natural and technogeneous geochemical specialization of diverse urban systems with a developed transport–industrial infrastructure. Such methods of investigation as the biogeochemical indication method, instrumental neutron activation analysis, and statistical treatment of analytical data are used. Contents of 28 chemical elements in representative samplings of ash of leaves at the territory of ten cities of Kazakhstan, Southern Siberia, and Far East of Russia are determined. Geochemical associations of chemical elements for cities with various industrial specializations are established. It is proven that the ash of poplar leaves is an objective biogeochemical indicator of acting industrial specialization of urban systems. Numerical indices of accumulation levels of certain chemical elements can be used with the goal to norm the urbanized territories with different anthropogenic load.

The discovery of genetically distinct hantaviruses (family Hantaviridae) in multiple species of shrews, moles and bats has revealed a complex evolutionary history involving cross-species transmission. Seewis virus (SWSV) is widely distributed throughout the geographic ranges of its soricid hosts, including the Eurasian common shrew (Sorex araneus), tundra shrew (Sorex tundrensis) and Siberian large-toothed shrew (Sorex daphaenodon), suggesting host sharing. In addition, genetic variants of SWSV, previously named Artybash virus (ARTV) and Amga virus, have been detected in the Laxmann’s shrew (Sorex caecutiens). Here, we describe the geographic distribution and phylogeny of SWSV and Altai virus (ALTV) in Asian Russia. The complete genomic sequence analysis showed that ALTV, also harbored by the Eurasian common shrew, is a new hantavirus species, distantly related to SWSV. Moreover, Lena River virus (LENV) appears to be a distinct hantavirus species, harbored by Laxmann’s shrews and flat-skulled shrews (Sorex roboratus) in Eastern Siberia and far-eastern Russia. Another ALTV-related virus, which is more closely related to Camp Ripley virus from the United States, has been identified in the Eurasian least shrew (Sorex minutissimus) from far-eastern Russia. Two highly divergent viruses, ALTV and SWSV co-circulate among common shrews in Western Siberia, while LENV and the ARTV variant of SWSV co-circulate among Laxmann’s shrews in Eastern Siberia and far-eastern Russia. ALTV and ALTV-related viruses appear to belong to the Mobatvirus genus, while SWSV is a member of the Orthohantavirus genus. These findings suggest that ALTV and ALTV-related hantaviruses might have emerged from ancient cross-species transmission with subsequent diversification within Sorex shrews in Eurasia.

FIGURES 1–6. Adult male of Corynoneura carriana kadalinka. 1–2, hypopygium in dorsal view; 3, antenna; 4–6, ultimate flagellomere. L—"lock". Scale bars: Figs. 1–2—20 µm; Fig. 3—100 µm; Figs. 4–6 –50 µm.

China’s Strategy in the Russian Far East: Problems and Prospects

Book Review: The Museum at the End of the World: Encounters in the Russian Far East

The Float Method of Building HES in the Russian Far East

Books reviewed: Bassin, Mark, Imperial Visions: Nationalist Imagination and Geographical Expansion in the Russian Far East, 1840 – 1865 Shortridge, James R., Our Town on the Plains: J. J. Pennell's Photographs of Junction City, Kansas, 1893 – 1922 Jakle, John A. and Sculle, Keith A., Fast Food: Roadside Restaurants in the Automobile Age Boeschenstein, Walter, Historic American Towns along the Atlantic Coast McKee, Jesse O., Ethnicity in Contemporary America: A Geographical Appraisal Luciuk, Lubomyr Y., Searching for Place: Ukrainian Displaced Persons, Ottawa, and the Migration of Memory Hausladen, Gary, Places for Dead Bodies Phillips, Richard, Watt, Diane and Shuttleton, David, De-Centering Sexualities: Politics and Representations beyond the Metropolis Goldin, Liliana R., Identities on the Move, Transnational Processes in North America and the Caribbean Basin McDonald, David A., On Borders: Perspectives on International Migration in Southern Africa Fox, Roddy and Rowntree, Kate, The Geography of South Africa in a Changing World Takeuchi, Keiichi, Modern Japanese Geography: An Intellectual History Amery, Hussein A., and Wolf, Aaron T., Water in the Middle East: A Geography of Peace Karl, Thomas R., Nicholls, Neville and Ghazi, Anver, Weather and Climate Extremes: Changes, Variations, and a Perspective from the Insurance Industry Pittman, Blair, Texas Caves

China’s international position as a net creditor nation provides it with foreign exchange that it has invested in Asian and African countries. One example is China's investment in the Russian Far East (RFE). Thousands of Chinese agricultural workers have migrated to the RFE in recent decades. They are often welcomed by Russian farmers who face a labor shortage and by local residents who can buy cheap vegetables from them, but there are others who resent their presence in the region as competitors. Our study is the first empirical study of this relationship. Our results demonstrate economic benefits to the Russian households. There are, however, some negative repercussions of Chinese farmers in the RFE, and the governments of both China and Russia need to manage the situation wisely.

The Latin diagnoses and descriptions of three new species of Xanthophyta (Chlorellidiopsis mirabilis Kost., Ilsteria pseudotetracoccus Kost., Gloeobotrys mandzurica Kost.) found in the brown mountain forest soil of the Tumannaya knoll of the Lazovsky Reserve (Primorsky Region, Russian Far East) are presented.

Developing Russia's Far East and Siberia