Data on the biodiversity of macrophyte communities and associated aquatic organisms in lakes of the Vologda Region (North-Western Russia): algae and invertebrates

Study Extent

A list of records of macrophytes and macrophyte inhabitants (invertebrates and microalgae) in lakes of the Vologda Region is presented. By macrophytes, we understood macroscopic plants, regardless of their taxonomic position and ecological characteristics. Macrophytes include vascular plants, mosses, liverworts, and large multicellular algae (Papchenkov et al., 2003). We determined the flora of lakes as aquatic species and species directly related to the aquatic environment (helophytes, plants of the water’s edge, amphibious plants, hygrophytes, plants of drying sandbanks).

Sampling

Field studies were carried out from June to October, mainly during the greatest development of macrophytes (July and August). The composition of the flora of lakes was established during route field studies. We studied all accessible microhabitats in the lakes and their coastal parts, including those differing in current velocity, sediments, depths, and macrophyte canopy development. When investigating small lakes, from 0.05 to 0.1 square km, a route was made by walking around a lake or going around by boat along the entire coastline. In larger lakes, floristic studies were conducted at several model sites, located mainly in highly developed macrophyte communities. For hydrobiological studies, sampling was performed at model sites only.

Quality Control

The data was collected and identified by scientists from the Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters Russian Academy of Sciences and the Vologda Branch of the Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography. The accuracy of the determination of some samples was confirmed by systematics from the Institute of Biology of Komi Scientific Centre of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Biology of Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russian Federation), and University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn (Poland).

Method steps

1. Research problem formulation.
2. Logistic issues resolution, including the choice of routes, water objects, time and duration of work.
3. Field stage: obtaining samples and other original materials on the diversity of macrophytes, aquatic algae, and invertebrates. (a) Macrophytes. In the field, pictures of plants and floristic lists were made, some species were collected in a herbarium; several hydrochemical parameters (water temperature, total dissolved solids, pH, and electrical conductivity) were measured using portable devices (Philippov et al., 2017). (b) Algae. Samples were taken with a 1-liter Patalas bathometer from three layers of the water column in macrophyte communities. For microalgae sedimentation, water samples were treated with Lugol's iodine solution for 10–14 days to obtain the final volume of 25 ml (Kuzmin, 1975). (c) Aquatic invertebrates. The study of invertebrates in macrophyte communities was conducted by preparing washed-off samples from plants (Mitropolskiy and Mordukhai-Boltovskoi, 1975b) and by sampling sediments in the same communities (Mitropolskiy and Mordukhai-Boltovskoi, 1975a). Sediment sampling was carried out from a boat by a three-time lifting of a GR-91 rod bottom-grab (sampling area 0.007 m2) or a one-time lifting of the Petersen dredge (sampling area 0.025 m2). At each sampling site, sediment samples were washed straight away through a sieve with a 250 μm mesh. After that, sediment samples were placed in plastic containers and preserved in 40% formaldehyde solution. Zoophytos samples collection was slightly different from one macrophyte communities to the others. Submerged aquatic plants and aquatic plants with floating leaves were removed from the water, placed in a nylon sieve, and washed out of all macroinvertebrates. In a sieve (250 µm mesh), all macroinvertebrates were separated from the plant substrate by rinsing and mechanical separation; then plants were dried from moisture and weighed. In helophytes and hygrohelophytes, a part of plants submerged in water was used for analysis. The underwater part was first placed in a nylon sieve and washed, then weighed. Semi-aquatic plants (including those from floating mats) were taken from plots of 25 × 25 cm; when sampling vascular plants, the entire overground part of a plant was cut off, when sampling mosses, the whole moss clumps were taken and placed in a sieve. After washing off, samples of invertebrates (sometimes with fragments of macrophytes) were placed in plastic containers and fixed with 40% formaldehyde solution. Aquatic mosses were placed in plastic containers without rinsing with water and fixed with 40% formaldehyde solution.
4. Data collection: analysis of samples not identified in the field or verification of the identification data by the experts. (a) Macrophytes. The keys by Tsvelev (2000), Ignatov and Ignatova (2003, 2004), and Lisitsyna et al. (2009) were used in the study. Herbarium materials were transferred for processing to the Herbarium of the Mire Research Group of Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters Russian Academy of Sciences (MIRE). (b) Algae. Sedimented phytoplankton for qualitative and quantitative analysis was examined in a Nageotte counting chamber (0.01 cm3) using a Mikmed-6 microscope (LOMO, Russia) at ×640 magnification. The biomass of microalgae was calculated using direct counts of the volumes equated to geometric figures of cells. The specific weight of algae was conditionally taken equal to one (Kuzmin, 1975). For damaged cells which were not used for the biomass count, a value of 1 was assigned. Taxonomic identification was made to the closest possible low-rang taxon using all keys and summaries available: Kiselev, 1954; Ettl, 1978; Komárek and Fott, 1983; Starmach, 1985; Krammer and Lange-Bertalot, 1986, 1988, 1991a, 1991b; Komárek and Anagnostidis, 1998, 2005; Palamar-Mordvintseva, 2003; Vetrova, 2004; Coesel and Meesters, 2007; Komárek, 2013, etc. (c) Aquatic invertebrates. All specimens were identified with an MBS-10 stereoscopic microscope and a Mikmed-6 microscope (LOMO, Russia) using all keys and summaries available: Kutikova and Starobogatov, 1977; Tsalolikhin, 1994, 2001, 2016; Narchuk et al., 1997; Narchuk and Tumanov, 2000, etc. Specimens of each species were dried with filter paper and weighed using Shimadzu AUX-120 scales (Japan) with 0.0001 g accuracy. Moss mats were cleared of all invertebrates, dried on filter paper and weighed. Quantity and biomass counts of sediment-associated invertebrates were made by 1 square meter (g / sq m). In washed-off samples, quantity and biomass counts were made by 1 kg of macrophyte wet weight (g / kg).
5. (5) Records list compilation. The dataset fields’ names were chosen according to Darwin Core (Wieczorek et al., 2012) and include the following: «occurrenceID», «basisOfRecord», «scientificName», «acceptedNameUsage», «eventID», «eventDate», «taxonRank», «kingdom», «phylum», «class», «order», «family», «genus», «taxonomicStatus», «taxonRemarks», «habitat», «samplingProtocol», «sampleSizeValue», «sampleSizeUnit», «individualCount», «organismQuantity», «organismQuantityType», «decimalLatitude», «decimalLongitude», «geodeticDatum», «coordinateUncertaintyInMeters», «coordinatePrecision», «countryCode», «country», «stateProvince», «county», «locality», «year», «month», «day», «recordedBy», «identifiedBy», «dateIdentified», «associatedReferences», «language». Georeferencing was made using a GPS navigator or Google maps. For macrophytes, coordinates accuracy was maintained in a 30–250 m range, rarely greater; for other groups of aquatic organisms, 50 m. Coordinates were determined to the fourth digit. In all cases, the WGS-84 coordinate system was used.

This dataset provides current data on vascular plants, cryptogams, microalgae, and aquatic invertebrates in lakes of the Vologda Region. The list contains records on Animalia (5 phyla, 7 classes, 22 orders, 64 families), Bacteria (1 phylum, 1 class, 4 orders, 11 families), Chromista (4 phyla, 7 classes, 28 orders, 40 families), Plantae (6 phyla, 15 classes, 48 orders, 81 families), and Protozoa (1 phylum, 1 class, 1 order, 2 families) species. Overall, the dataset comprises 837 taxa, including 711 lower-rank taxa (species, subspecies, varieties, forms).

1. Animalia
   rank: kingdom
2. Bacteria
   rank: kingdom
3. Chromista
   rank: kingdom
4. Plantae
   rank: kingdom
5. Protozoa
   rank: kingdom

1. Annelida
   rank: phylum
2. Arthropoda
   rank: phylum
3. Bigyra
   rank: phylum
4. Bryophyta
   rank: phylum
5. Charophyta
   rank: phylum
6. Chlorophyta
   rank: phylum
7. Cnidaria
   rank: phylum
8. Cryptophyta
   rank: phylum
9. Cyanobacteria
   rank: phylum
10. Euglenozoa
    rank: phylum
11. Marchantiophyta
    rank: phylum
12. Mollusca
    rank: phylum
13. Myzozoa
    rank: phylum
14. Ochrophyta
    rank: phylum
15. Platyhelminthes
    rank: phylum
16. Rhodophyta
    rank: phylum
17. Tracheophyta
    rank: phylum

1. Arachnida
   rank: class
2. Bacillariophyceae
   rank: class
3. Bivalvia
   rank: class
4. Bryopsida
   rank: class
5. Charophyceae
   rank: class
6. Chlorophyceae
   rank: class
7. Chrysophyceae
   rank: class
8. Clitellata
   rank: class
9. Cryptophyceae
   rank: class
10. Cyanobacteriia
    rank: class
11. Dinophyceae
    rank: class
12. Euglenoidea
    rank: class
13. Eustigmatophyceae
    rank: class
14. Florideophyceae
    rank: class
15. Gastropoda
    rank: class
16. Hydrozoa
    rank: class
17. Insecta
    rank: class
18. Jungermanniopsida
    rank: class
19. Klebsormidiophyceae
    rank: class
20. Liliopsida
    rank: class
21. Lycopodiopsida
    rank: class
22. Magnoliopsida
    rank: class
23. Malacostraca
    rank: class
24. Marchantiopsida
    rank: class
25. Phaeophyceae
    rank: class
26. Polypodiopsida
    rank: class
27. Sphagnopsida
    rank: class
28. Trebouxiophyceae
    rank: class
29. Ulvophyceae
    rank: class
30. Xanthophyceae
    rank: class
31. Zygnematophyceae
    rank: class

1. Achnanthales
   rank: order
2. Alismatales
   rank: order
3. Amphipoda
   rank: order
4. Anthoathecata
   rank: order
5. Apiales
   rank: order
6. Architaenioglossa
   rank: order
7. Arhynchobdellida
   rank: order
8. Asparagales
   rank: order
9. Asterales
   rank: order
10. Aulacoseirales
    rank: order
11. Bacillariales
    rank: order
12. Batrachospermales
    rank: order
13. Boraginales
    rank: order
14. Brassicales
    rank: order
15. Bryales
    rank: order
16. Caryophyllales
    rank: order
17. Celastrales
    rank: order
18. Ceratophyllales
    rank: order
19. Chaetocerotales
    rank: order
20. Charales
    rank: order
21. Chlamydomonadales
    rank: order
22. Chlorellales
    rank: order
23. Chromulinales
    rank: order
24. Coleoptera
    rank: order
25. Cornales
    rank: order
26. Crassiclitellata
    rank: order
27. Cryptomonadales
    rank: order
28. Cyanobacteriales
    rank: order
29. Cymbellales
    rank: order
30. Dipsacales
    rank: order
31. Diptera
    rank: order
32. Enchytraeidae
    rank: order
33. Ephemeroptera
    rank: order
34. Equisetales
    rank: order
35. Ericales
    rank: order
36. Euglenida
    rank: order
37. Eunotiales
    rank: order
38. Eustigmatales
    rank: order
39. Fabales
    rank: order
40. Fagales
    rank: order
41. Fissidentales
    rank: order
42. Fossombroniales
    rank: order
43. Fragilariales
    rank: order
44. Gentianales
    rank: order
45. Gonyaulacales
    rank: order
46. Gymnodiniales
    rank: order
47. Haplotaxida
    rank: order
48. Hemiptera
    rank: order
49. Hypnales
    rank: order
50. Isobryales
    rank: order
51. Isoetales
    rank: order
52. Isopoda
    rank: order
53. Jungermanniales
    rank: order
54. Klebsormidiales
    rank: order
55. Lamiales
    rank: order
56. Lepidoptera
    rank: order
57. Leptolyngbyales
    rank: order
58. Leucodontales
    rank: order
59. Littorinimorpha
    rank: order
60. Lumbriculida
    rank: order
61. Malpighiales
    rank: order
62. Marchantiales
    rank: order
63. Mastogloiales
    rank: order
64. Megaloptera
    rank: order
65. Melosirales
    rank: order
66. Mischococcales
    rank: order
67. Myida
    rank: order
68. Myrtales
    rank: order
69. Naviculales
    rank: order
70. Nymphaeales
    rank: order
71. Ochromonadales
    rank: order
72. Odonata
    rank: order
73. Oocystales
    rank: order
74. Pallaviciniales
    rank: order
75. Peridiniales
    rank: order
76. Phaeothamniales
    rank: order
77. Poales
    rank: order
78. Polypodiales
    rank: order
79. Pseudanabaenales
    rank: order
80. Pyrenomonadales
    rank: order
81. Ranunculales
    rank: order
82. Rhizosoleniales
    rank: order
83. Rhopalodiales
    rank: order
84. Rhynchobdellida
    rank: order
85. Rosales
    rank: order
86. Saxifragales
    rank: order
87. Solanales
    rank: order
88. Sphaeropleales
    rank: order
89. Sphagnales
    rank: order
90. Surirellales
    rank: order
91. Synechococcales
    rank: order
92. Synurales
    rank: order
93. Tabellariales
    rank: order
94. Thalassiophysales
    rank: order
95. Thalassiosirales
    rank: order
96. Trebouxiales
    rank: order
97. Tribonematales
    rank: order
98. Trichoptera
    rank: order
99. Tricladida
    rank: order
100. Trombidiformes
     rank: order
101. Ulotrichales
     rank: order
102. Volvocales
     rank: order
103. Zygnematales
     rank: order

Vologda Region is situated in the north-western part of Russia within the northern part of the East European Plain. The length of the region from the North to the South is 350 km (N 58°29', N 61°35'), from West to East – 700 km (E 34°43', E 47°09'). The area of the Vologda Region is 145.7 square km. The region is located on the border of the southern and middle taiga subzones. The ground surface heights vary from 33 to 304 m sea level; therefore, the morphological complexes of lowlands, medium-altitude plains, and low elevations can be found in the region (Vorobyev, 2007). The hydrographic network of the region is very diverse. About 20 thousand watercourses flow in the region, belonging to three basins of global flow: the White Sea (70% of basin area), the Baltic Sea (8%), and the Caspian Sea (22%) (Filenko, 1966). Several water reservoirs were built in the Vologda Region; Rybinsk Reservoir and Sheksna Reservoir are the largest and well-known (Vorobyev, 2007). The region is significantly paludified; more than 17% of the area is covered with mires of various types (Filonenko and Philippov, 2013). There are over five thousand lakes in the Vologda Region, most located in its western part. In the north-western districts of the region, the total area of lakes in a district ranges from 3% to 10% of the district’s area; to the east and southeast of the border of the last glaciation, the indices do not exceed 2%, and in some eastern districts of the region, it is only a fraction of a percent. The total area of lakes in the region is 4.3 thousand square km or about 3% of the region’s territory. A relatively small number of lakes (only 25) with a water surface of more than 10 square km comprise 84% of the total area of lakes. Lakes of glacial-tectonic origin (Lakes Onega, Beloe, Vozhe, and Kubenskoe) make up this group of lakes. The absolute majority of lakes are small (water surface area less than 0.1 square km). Lakes with a water surface area of 0.01 to 0.1 square km account for 5.5% of the total area of lakes in the region. The group of small lakes includes forest drainless lakes, floodplain oxbow lakes, intra-mire lakes, and karst lakes (Antipov, 1981). The main reason for such a distribution of lakes across the region is the time since the glaciation. The north-western areas of the region, later freed from the glacier, retained the features of young relief with numerous inter-hill and inter-ridge depressions, which were filled with glacial waters. As the glacier retreated, thaw waters formed periglacial and postglacial reservoirs in the depressions. Following a decrease in the water level and vegetation development in water bodies, some of them turned into vast paludified lowlands (for example, the Mologo-Sheksninskaya lowland). Other water bodies have significantly decreased in size but remained in the lowlands in the form of vestigial shallow lakes (Vorobyev, 1973). Most of the lakes in the region are shallow. Relict water bodies of glacial-lake plains have small depths (for example, the average depth of Lake Vozhe is 1.8 m, Lake Kubenskoe 2.5 m). The deepest lakes are located in moraine-hilly landscapes: Lake Sodoshnoe (40 m), Lake Ferapontovskoe (27 m), Lake Siverskoe (26 m), and Lake Svyatoe (25 m). A thermal regime with distinct direct temperature stratification in summer and reverse stratification in winter is observed only in the deepest lakes. These lakes are characterized by the highest values of the heat budget (5–7 kcal / sq cm), and the temperature of the bottom water layer is below 10 °С in summer. Lakes with unclear and unstable stratification, a bottom temperature above 10–15 °C, and a lower heat budget are much more common. The beginning of lake ice-covering usually falls in the first decade of November. As a rule, the opening occurs in the first decade of May. The lakes are covered in ice for 160–175 days on average, usually longer than rivers (Filenko, 1966; Antipov, 1981; Vorobyev, 2007). All the lakes in the Vologda Region are freshwater lakes with TDS values within the zonal norm, of bicarbonate-calcium composition as a rule. Mostly, lake waters are neutral or slightly alkaline (pH 6.9–7.5), favorable for aquatic organisms (Vorobyev and Korobeynikova, 1981). On the other hand, intra-mire lakes have a wide pH range, more often slightly acidic or acidic (pH 4.2–6.5) (Komov and Stepanova, 1994; Philippov and Yurchenko, 2020). Lakes in the Vologda Region have a different degree, character, and intensity of macrophyte covering, closely related to landscape and limnological conditions (Vorobyev, 1977; Sadokov and Philippov, 2017).