Home – Home – Jornals – Contemporary Problems of Ecology 2021 number 1

The features of the composition and structure of soil microarthropod communities formed on ash dumps of combined heat and power (CHP) plants at the initial stages of their self-restoration under conditions of varying degrees of conservation were studied. The investigation was carried out in 2017 in Novosibirsk (55°00′ с. ш., 83°04′ в. д.) at the ash dump of CHPP no.5 consisting of two sections - non-reclaimed (S 1) and reclaimed by covering ash and slag with potentially fertile soil (S2). A plot in a birch forest adjacent to the ash dump was used as a control. The collection of material was carried out in the ash dump zones of different degrees of moisture (three plots in both S1 and S2) and in the control (in total, 7 plots). Microarthropod communities included mites (Mesostigmata, Oribatida, Prostigmata) and springtails (Collembola). The microarthropod abundance on the territory of both sections of the ash dump was significantly lower than in the control, while no significant differences were found between the ash dump sections. The influence of reclamation was revealed only for the mites. The representatives of Oribatida appeared to be the most sensitive. There were no significant differences in the proportion of the different groups in the community on S1. On S2 and under control, Oribatida took the lead. Using the example of Oribatida and Mesostigmata model groups, it was shown that the mite communities formed at the ash dump were species-poor and consisted of widely distributed species with a high degree of dominance of some of them. Oribatida appeared to be a good bioindicator for assessing the soil state while restoration succession at ash dumps of CHP plants.