Expedition on board RV “G. Titov” from June 24 to 29, 2020

The expedition within the framework of the programs “Comprehensive Study of Evolutionary Processes in Benthic Organisms under Abrupt Changes of Ecosystem of Lake Baikal” and “Large-Scale Changes in the Ecology and Biodiversity of the Communities in the Coastal Zone of Lake Baikal ...” was carried out from June 24 to 29, 2020, along the eastern and western coasts of the central and southern basins of Lake Baikal.

The aim of the expedition was to study species composition, trophic preferences and distribution of nematodes, gastropods, bryozoans, and cottoid fish in Lake Baikal.

During the expedition, 22 stations were investigated in the littoral and coastal-sor zones of Lake Baikal at depths from 0 to 45 m, and samples of macro- and meiozoobenhos were collected.

At the Turka Bank, rare mollusk species of the family Baicaliidae were collected, which are valuable material for further morphological and genetic analysis.

In the littoral zone of Lake Baikal, bryozoans were collected, which were assigned to the genus Hislopia by the form of the colony and the appearance of the zooids. In the coastal-sor zone, bryozoans of the genus Plumatella were collected. The exception was the Posolsk Sor, where members of both bryozoan genera were found.

In the Posolsk sor and the backwater of the Turka River, hydras were collected, which, according to the preliminary morphological analysis, were assigned to Hydra oligactis, H. oxycnida and H. circumcincta.