Diversity of aquatic animals in water bodies Opechen' (Dnipro floodplain, Ukraine)
Abstract
M. Prychepa*, N. Hrynevych, Yu. Kovalenko, O. Vodianitskyi, M. Svitelskyi, O. Khomiak, N. Prysiazhniuk, O. Ishchuk, A. Sliusarenko, J. Kunovskii, O. Mihalskiy, L. Heiko, A. Trofymchuk, B. Gutyj* and N. Levkivska*
The species composition of vertebrate aquatic animals living in urban lakes of the Opechen' system is considered. These lakes were formed due to the transformation of the Pochayna River and are currently experiencing significant anthropogenic pressure, which affects the diversity of aquatic and primary animals. Lakes with the most unfavorable ecological conditions are characterized by a low species diversity of fish, especially in lake Luhovе; 13 species were found. The highest species diversity was found in the lakes of the lower cascade, Kyrylivsʹke, and Yordansʹke, in which there were 27 and 25 species, respectively. Active transformation and fragmentation of biotopes significantly influenced the presence of other classes of aquatic animals, including amphibians, birds, and mammals. So, the reservoir of the Opechen' system is poor in the species composition of amphibians; there are only one species here, a marsh frog. Birds are represented by 28 species, of which 8 are nesting and five wintering; the rest are recorded during seasonal and forage migrations. The population of aquatic animals of the Opechen' system reflects the consequences of a significant anthropogenic transformation of the river with its subsequent irrational use. This is manifested in the destruction of coastal macrophytes adjacent to lakes, deforestation of floodplain forests, water pollution by discharging untreated wastewater. At the same time, ten species of animals are included in the lists of the Berne Convention, 13 species are included in the Bonn Convention, and one species in the IUCN in the Opechen' system, which indicates the importance of the cascade of the Opechen' system for existence of rare species.