Scientific publications

The study focused on Lake Imandra – the largest body of water in the Murmansk Region.Situated in a heavily industrialized area, the lake experiences anthropogenic pressures, including thermal degradation and nutrient pollution. Furthermore, it receives significant amounts of municipal wastewater from large settlements within its catchment area. Increased nutrient levels in the aquatic environment can lead to eutrophication of the lake during its anthropogenic transformation. The aim of the study was to assess the ecological state of the Molochnaya Bay area of Lake Imandra using a number of zoobenthos community parameters, and to compare these data with the results of previous studies. Analysis of the characteristics of the benthic community in the juvenile trout rearing area revealed a dominance of the Oligochaeta + Chironomidae complex, which accounts for over 90% of the sample biomass and abundance. The current state of the bay’s macrozoobenthos community was studied using commonly accepted methods. The Shannon-Weaver species diversity index (H) for the studied reservoir ranged from 1.14 to 1.42, averaging 1.32 ± 0.16, indicating a low species abundance of benthic organisms and an established structure of dominant taxa. In terms of zoobenthos quantities, the studied area is classified as α-mesotrophic, and its saprobity index is β-mesosaprobic. These results can serve as a basis for integrated environmental monitoring of water bodies with active trout farming in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.