Research Article |
Corresponding author: Julia S. Nefedieva ( j.nefedieva@mail.ru ) Academic editor: Ivan H. Tuf
© 2015 Julia S. Nefedieva, Pavel S. Nefediev, Miroslava B. Sakhnevich, Yuri V. Dyachkov.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Nefedieva JS, Nefediev PS, Sakhnevich MB, Dyachkov YV (2015) Distribution of millipedes along an altitudinal gradient in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Altai Mts, Russia (Diplopoda). In: Tuf IH, Tajovský K (Eds) Proceedings of the 16th International Congress of Myriapodology, Olomouc, Czech Republic. ZooKeys 510: 141-161. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.510.8855
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The distribution of millipedes along an altitudinal gradient in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Altai, Russia based on new samples from the Kyga Profile sites, as well as on partly published and freshly revised material (
Millipedes, Diplopoda, altitudinal gradient, Lake Teletskoye, Altai, Siberia
This paper continues ecological researches on the Altai millipede fauna in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Russian Altai (
Since 1998 the Altai State Nature Biosphere Reserve and a buffer zone around Lake Teletskoye are inscribed as one of three separate areas of UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site under the name of «Golden Mountains of Altai». Lake Teletskoye, being the deepest and the largest body of freshwater in southwest Siberia, exerts a great warming influence on local climate, in its southern part especially. Situated at a height of 435 m above sea level, the lake lies between the mountain ridges of Altyntu and Korbu, and the Chulyshman river highlands in the south.
The aim of our present paper is to explore the distribution of millipedes along an altitudinal gradient in the south of the Teletskoye Lake in the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile.
Material was collected by the first and the second authors of this article in August 2005 using hand sampling from the litter and standard technique of soil sampling (
The Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile was laid in 1959–1961 in the territory of watershed of the Kyga and Bayas rivers in the south of the Teletskoye Lake near the cordon of Chiri, Ulagan District, Republic of Altai, Siberia, Russia. The profile encompasses 22 numbered sites at different altitudes, and comprising relic Pinus sibirica forests from the Tertiary period. Its length is about 12 km, and its altitude ranges from 443 to 2267 m a.s.l. It is begun at the mouth of the Kyga river and ends on the top of the Malaya Koliushta mountain. The vertical vegetation zonation here is characterized by the presence of forest and high-mountain belts. There are widespread dark coniferous forests with Betula pendula and Populus tremula, also called as chern taiga, and sparse growths of P. sibirica in the former belt, whereas alpine meadows do not occur almost at all in the latter. Above the timberline at a height of 2100 m above sea level, all hilltops are occupied by shrub, moss-lichen and rocky tundras.
All sites we collected are listed and described below according to the following standard: site number (bold): GPS (WGS84) position, altitude, habitat, sampling date, sampling methods.
1: 51°20'47,3"N, 87°51'14,2"E, 443 m a.s.l., Pinus sylvestris and Betula pendula forest with Larix sibirica, Abies sibirica and P. sibirica, 12.08.2005, soil sampling.
2: 51°20'29,3"N, 87°51'40,0"E, 494 m a.s.l., A. sibirica and P. sibirica forest with ferns, 12.08.2005, soil sampling.
4: 51°19'53,3"N, 87°51'78,0"E, 675 m a.s.l., A. sibirica forest with P. sibirica and B. pendula, 18.08.2005, soil sampling.
5: 51°19'28,5"N, 87°52'4,8"E, 853 m a.s.l., A. sibirica forest with P. sibirica, Populus tremula and B. pendula, 18.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
6: 51°19'31,6"N, 87°52'16,1"E, 942 m a.s.l., P. tremula forest with A. sibirica and P. sibirica, 18.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
7: 51°19'31,2"N, 87°52'21,1"E, 960 m a.s.l., A. sibirica, P. sibirica and P. tremula forest, 18.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
8: 51°19'30,4"N, 87°52'50,0"E, 1100 m a.s.l., P. sibirica forest with A. sibirica, 17.08.2005, soil sampling.
8a: 51°19'23,6"N, 87°53'2,1"E, 1191 m a.s.l., P. sibirica forest with A. sibirica, 17.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
9: 51°19'07,5"N, 87°53'15,0"E, 1414 m a.s.l., P. sibirica forest with A. sibirica, 17.08.2005, soil sampling.
10: 51°18'58,5"N, 87°53'33,3"E, 1468 m a.s.l., P. sibirica forest with A. sibirica, 17.08.2005, soil sampling.
10a: 51°18'43,7"N, 87°54'23,7"E, 1699 m a.s.l., sparse growths of P. sibirica with B. pendula and A. sibirica, 16.08.2005, soil sampling.
11: 51°18'41,3"N, 87°55'34,7"E, 1736 m a.s.l., old fire-site, B. rotundifolia and Salix glauca bushes with P. sibirica and A. sibirica sparse growths, 16.08.2005, soil sampling.
12: 51°18'27,8"N, 87°54'57,4"E, 1847 m a.s.l., old fire-site, B. rotundifolia and S. glauca bushes with P. sibirica and A. sibirica sparse growths, 16.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
13: 51°18'09,4"N, 87°55'43"E, 1861 m a.s.l., subalpine P. sibirica forest, 14.08.2005, hand sampling.
13a: 51°18'24,1"N, 87°55'06,9"E, 1877 m a.s.l., subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica, 16.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
14: 51°18'23,0"N, 87°55'22,1"E, 1903 m a.s.l., subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica, 14.08.2005, soil sampling.
15: 51°18'24,5"N, 87°55'31,0"E, 1962 m a.s.l., subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica with A. sibirica, 14.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling under stones.
16: 51°18'33,6"N, 87°55'32,9"E, 2028 m a.s.l., subgoltsy sparse growths of P. sibirica with B. rotundifolia and S. glauca bushes, 15.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling.
18: 51°18'30,0"N, 87°56'10,7"E, 2194 m a.s.l., B. rotundifolia and S. glauca mountain tundra with Dryas and lichens, 15.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling under stones.
19: 51°18'30,5"N, 87°56'21,7"E, 2267 m a.s.l., summit of Malaya Koliushta Mt., B. rotundifolia and S. glauca rocky mountain tundra with Dryas, Festuca and lichens, 15.08.2005, soil sampling and hand sampling under stones.
Also we collected some material from two additional sampling sites (not included to official list of profile’s sites):
A: 51°20'16,8"N, 87°51'47,6"E, about 500 m a.s.l., Duschekia fruticosa forest on the bank of the river Bayas, 12.08.2005, hand sampling.
B: 51°18'05,4"N, 87°55'48,3"E, about 1900 m a.s.l., P. sibirica sparse growths, 14.08.2005, hand sampling.
The cluster analysis was performed using Statistica 10 (
The material treated herein has been deposited mainly in the collection of the Altai State University, Barnaul, Russia (ASU), and partly shared also with the collection of the Institute of Biology and Soil Science, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok, Russia (IBSS), as indicated in the text. The species names include the literature references concerning Asian Russia only.
Julus ghilarovi Gulička, 1963: 521, 520: figs.
Julus ghilarovi –
Julus ghilarovi ghilarovi –
1 male, 7 females, 10 juv. (ASU), site 1; 1 male, 4 females, 3 juv. (ASU), site A; 1 female (IBSS), site 4; 5 males, 12 females, 4 juv. (ASU), site 5; 4 males, 6 females, 5 juv. (ASU), site 6; 1 female, 3 juv. (ASU), site 7; 3 juv. (ASU), site 8; 1 male, 1 female (IBSS), 3 males, 8 females, 11 juv. (ASU), site 19.
This species appears to be widespread in the south of Siberia, Russia: Novosibirsk Area, Kemerovo Area, Altai Province, Republic of Altai, Republic of Khakassia, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province. It is very likely it also occurs in the adjacent part of the Republic of Tyva.
High ecological plasticity of this species allows it to inhabit different habitats like small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests, herbaceous and alpine meadows, and montane moss-stony tundras. In the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile the animal prefers forest litter in low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests up to about 1200 m a.s.l., and also recorded in rocky mountain tundra on the summit of Malaya Koliushta Mt. at 2267 m a.s.l. It is very likely that the species is displaced from subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica by the congener of Julus insolitus. The numbers range from 0.5 to 18 ind./m2.
Julus ghilarovi brachydactylusnon –
Julus insolitus Mikhaljova, 2009b: 66–67, 64: figs.
Julus insolitus –
4 males, 5 females, 4 juv. (ASU), site 9; 4 males, 1 female (IBSS), 6 males, 9 females, 10 juv. (ASU), site 10; 2 males, 6 females, 17 juv. (ASU), site 10a; 7 males, 17 females, 25 juv. (ASU), site 11; 20 males, 9 females, 49 juv., 1 fragm. (ASU), site 12; 1 male, 1 female, 1 juv. (ASU), site 13; 2 males, 4 females, 7 juv. (ASU), site 13a; 3 males, 8 females, 10 juv. (ASU), site 14; 1 female, 2 juv. (ASU), site 15; 14 males, 15 females, 22 juv. (ASU), site B; 10 males, 12 females, 15 juv. (ASU), site 16; 2 females, 6 juv. (ASU), site 18.
The species appears to be spread only in the south of Siberia, Russia: Republic of Altai.
This species has been described by
Julus amurensis Gerstfeldt, 1859: 271.
Julus amurensis –
Pacifiiulus imbricatus Mikhaljova, 1982: 211, 212: figs.
Pacifiiulus imbricatus –
Pacifiiulus amurensis –
1 male (IBSS), site 9; 3 males (ASU), site 16; 1 male (ASU), site 18.
This species is characterized by disjunctive area. The first distribution area is in the south of Siberia (Republic of Altai, Republic of Khakassia, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province, Republic of Tyva) and the second one spreads in the Russian Far East (Maritime Province, southern part of Khabarovsk Province, Amur Area, Jewish Autonomous Area) and North-Eastern China.
This species is characterized by euryoky, dwelling in Siberia in herbaceous meadows, small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests, and subalpine meadows and montane tundras, up to 2500 m a.s.l. (
Cylindroiulus (Sibiriulus) altaicus
Sibiriulus altaicus –
(specimens published by
The species is known only in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Republic of Altai, its terra typica.
In the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile this species dwells in low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests, and also subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica, with the maximum altitude registered is about 1903 m a.s.l.
Isobates sibiricus Gulička, 1963: 522: figs.
Isobates (Orinisobates) sibiricus –
Orinisobates sibiricus –
1 male (ASU), site 1; 1 female (ASU), site 8a.
The species appears to be quite widespread in the south of Siberia, Russia: Kemerovo Area, Republic of Khakassia, Altai Province, Republic of Altai, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province, Republic of Tyva, Chita Area. Also it has been recorded in Eastern Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
The species inhabits forest litter of small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests, under bark of logs and trees, and in mosses and mushrooms. The maximum altitude registered is about 1700 m a.s.l. (
Material examined. 1 juv. (ASU), site 2; 2 females, 1 juv. (ASU), site 9; 1 female, 2 juv. (ASU), site 10.
Remarks. It is very likely these females and juveniles appear to belong to S. altaicus or P. amurensis.
Diplomaragna bakurovi Shear, 1990: 22, 23: figs.
Diplomaragna bakurovi –
Altajosoma bakurovi –
(specimen published by
The species is known to occur in the south of Siberia, Russia: Tomsk, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo areas, Krasnoyarsk Province and Republic of Altai.
This species dwells in various forest habitats like small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests, and also mesophytous meadow and mountain tundra, with the maximum altitude registered is about 2500 m a.s.l (
Craspedosoma deplanatum Stuxberg, 1876a: 34, figs.
Craspedosoma deplanatum –
Altajosoma pinetorum Gulička, 1972: 37: figs.
Altajosoma pinetorum –
Diplomaragna deplanata –
Diplomaragna pinetorum –
Altajosoma deplanatum –
2 females (ASU), site 14.
(specimens published by
The species appears to be quite widespread in the south of Siberia, Russia: Tomsk, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo areas, Republic of Altai and Republic of Khakassia, and originally described from between the city of Achinsk (Krasnoyarsk Province) and the city of Mariinsk (Kemerovo Area).
This species lives mainly in various forest habitats like small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests, forest- and shrub tundra, and also mesophytous meadow. The maximum altitude registered is about 2080 m a.s.l (
Altajosoma katunicum Mikhaljova, 2000: 161–162, 162: figs.
Altajosoma katunicum –
(specimens published by
This species in known to occur only in the Republic of Altai, Russia.
This species originally described from the Katunskii Mt. Range, Central Altai at 1600–2200 m a.s.l. (
Diplomaragna kemerovo Shear, 1990: 21, 20: figs.
Diplomaragna kemerovo –
Altajosoma kemerovo –
4 females (ASU), site 7; 1 juv. (ASU), site 8; 7 juv. (ASU), site 13a; 1 female, 3 juv. (ASU), site 16.
(specimens published by
This species appears to be spread in the south of Siberia, Russia: Kemerovo and Novosibirsk areas, Republic of Altai, Republic of Khakassia, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province.
The species dwells in different forest habitats like small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests. In the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile it is very rare (0.5–5 ind./m2), mainly collected in low- and mid-mountain chern taiga at 853–1100 m a.s.l., but also found in subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica and subgoltsy sparse growths of P. sibirica with B. rotundifolia and S. glauca bushes, with the maximum altitude registered is about 2028 m a.s.l.
Shearia teletskaya Mikhaljova, 2000: 167–168, 167: figs.
Shearia teletskaya –
1 juv. (ASU), site 16.
(specimens published by
The species is known to occur only in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Republic of Altai, Russia.
This species inhabits dark coniferous taiga forests at 1350–1750 m a.s.l. and the subalpine belt (= goltsy) at 1750–2000 m a.s.l. (
Material examined. 1 female (ASU), site A; 1 female, 1 juv. (ASU), site 5; 5 juv. (ASU), site 8a; 4 juv. (ASU), site 9; 1 female, 14 juv. (ASU), site 10; 5 juv. (ASU), site 10a; 1 female, 9 juv. (ASU), site 11; 1 female, 1 fragm. (ASU), site 13; 1 female, 1 juv. (ASU), site 18; 1 female, 1 juv. (ASU), site 19.
Remarks. The above specimens appear to belong to some species of Altajosoma or S. teletskaya.
Ghilarovia kygae Gulička, 1972: 39, 40: figs.
Ghilarovia kygae –
18 males, 16 females (ASU), site 1; 9 males, 6 females (ASU), site 2; 2 males, 1 female (ASU), site A; 3 males, 9 females, 2 juv. (ASU), site 4; 24 males, 18 females, 2 juv. (ASU), site 5; 15 males, 15 females, 2 juv. (ASU), site 6; 21 males, 15 females, 1 juv., 1 fragm. (ASU), site 7; 5 males, 3 females (ASU), site 8; 6 males, 6 females, 14 juv. (ASU), site 8a; 2 females, 1 juv. (ASU), site 9; 2 males (ASU), site 10a; 3 males, 3 females (ASU), site 11; 3 males, 1 female, 8 juv. (ASU), site 12; 3 males, 1 female (ASU), site 12; 6 males, 8 females (ASU), site 13; 2 males, 5 females (ASU), site 13a; 5 males, 16 females (ASU), site 14; 1 male, 1 female, 1 fragm. (ASU), site 15; 2 males, 8 females (ASU), site B; 1 male (ASU), site 16.
The species is known to occur in the Republic of Altai, Siberia, Russia only.
This species prefers to live in mixed and dark coniferous forests, and also known from subalpine habitats like golsty, with the maximum altitude registered is about 2000 m a.s.l. (
(syn. Altajellidae Mikhaljova & Golovatch, 2001)
(syn. Altajella Gulička, 1972)
Altajella pallida (Gulička, 1972) syn.
Altajella pallida Gulička, 1972: 42, 43: figs.
Altajella pallida –
Kirkayakus pallidus –
1 male (ASU), site 8; 1 female (ASU), site 9.
This species is an endemic in the south of Lake Teletskoye, Republic of Altai, Siberia, Russia.
The species lives in dark coniferous forests up to 1350 m a.s.l. (
Teleckophoron montanum Gulička, 1972: 41: figs.
Teleckophoron montanum –
3 males, 1 female, 4 juv. (ASU), site 8; 1 female, 3 juv. (ASU), site 8a.
The area of this species appears to encompass the Republic of Altai and the southern part of the Krasnoyarsk Province, both Siberia, Russia.
This species inhabits dark coniferous forests and montane tundras. The maximum altitude registered is about 1000 m a.s.l. (
Polydesmus clavatipes Stuxberg, 1876a: 34, figs.
Polydesmus clavatipes –
Schizoturanius clavatipes –
4 males, 2 females, 4 juv. (ASU), site 1; 2 males, 2 females, 3 juv. (ASU), site 2; 2 males, 1 female, 1 juv. (ASU), site 4; 4 males, 2 females, 1 juv. (ASU), site 5; 2 males, 1 females (ASU), site 6; 6 males, 2 females, 11 juv. (ASU), site 7; 1 male, 1 female (ASU), site 8a; 1 female (ASU), site 9; 7 juv. (ASU), site 14; 3 juv. (ASU), site B.
This species appears to be quite widespread in the south of Siberia, Russia: Tomsk, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo areas, Altai Province, Republic of Altai, Republic of Khakassia, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province.
Being highly euryoecic, the species populates various forest habitats (small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous forests), and also meadows and glades. In the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile the species prefers low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests, where its numbers range from 0.5 to 10 ind./m2, but also collected from subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica at about 1903 m a.s.l.
Polydesmus tabescens Stuxberg, 1876a: 35, figs.
Polydesmus tabescens –
Turanodesmus salairicus Gulička, 1963: 523, 522: figs;
Schizoturanius salairicus –
Schizoturanius tabescens –
3 juv. (ASU), site 2; 2 females, 2 juv., 1 fragm. (ASU), site 4; 4 juv. (ASU), site 5; 17 juv. (ASU), site 7; 2 females, 1 juv. (ASU), site 8a; 1 female (ASU), site 9; 2 females (ASU), site B.
Being rather widespread, the species is known to occur in the south of Siberia, Russia: Tomsk, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo areas, Altai Province, Republic of Altai, Republic of Khakassia, southern part of Krasnoyarsk Province.
This species lives in different forests like small-leaved, mixed and dark coniferous ones, and also populates meadows. In the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile the animal prefers low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests, where its numbers range from 0.5 to 8 ind./m2, but also collected from subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica at about 1900 m a.s.l.
The millipede diversity in the south of Lake Teletskoye is estimated to be at least 15 species and subspecies from 10 genera, 6 families and three orders: Julus ghilarovi ghilarovi Gulička, 1963, J. insolitus Mikhaljova, 2009, Orinisobates sibiricus (Gulička, 1963), Pacifiiulus amurensis (Gertsfeldt, 1859), Sibiriulus altaicus (Gulička, 1972), Ghilarovia kygae Gulička, 1972, Kirkayakus pallidus (Gulička, 1972) (synonym of Altajella pallida Gulička, 1972), Teleckophoron montanum Gulička, 1972, Altajosoma bakurovi bakurovi (Shear, 1990), A. deplanatum (Stuxberg, 1876), A. katunicum Mikhaljova, 2000, A. kemerovo (Shear, 1990), Shearia teletskaya Mikhaljova, 2000, Schizoturanius clavatipes (Stuxberg, 1876) and S. tabescens (Stuxberg, 1876).
The bulk of species diversity is confined both to low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests and high-mountain shrub tundras with Betula rotundifolia and Salix glauca, achieving from 5 to 9 species, whereas subalpine sparse growths of Pinus sibirica are characterized by the lowest millipede diversity, with 3 the most widespread species (Table
Millipede abundance (ind./m2) and hand sampling (+) in the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile sites investigated.
Species | Sites | |||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | A | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8a | 9 | 10 | 10a | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13a | B | 14 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 19 | |
Julida | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. g. ghilarovi | 18 | + | 0.5 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||||||||||||||
J. insolitus | 6.5 | 15 | 50 | 98 | 20 | + | 13 | + | 14 | 3 | 15.5 | 4 | ||||||||||
S. altaicus | 1 | 2.5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0.5 | 1 | |||||||||||||||
O. sibiricus | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
P. amurensis | 0.5 | 1.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||||||||||||
Julidae gen. sp. | 1 | 1.5 | 1.5 | |||||||||||||||||||
Chordeumatida | ||||||||||||||||||||||
A. b. bakurovi | + | |||||||||||||||||||||
A. deplanatum | + | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||
A. katunicum | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
A. kemerovo | + | 1.5 | 0.5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | |||||||||||||||
S. teletskaya | 3 | + | + | |||||||||||||||||||
Diplomaragnidae gen. sp. | + | 4 | 2 | 7.5 | 10 | 20 | + | 1 | 2 | |||||||||||||
G. kygae | 34 | 15 | + | 7 | 16.5 | 14.5 | 14.5 | 8 | 22 | 1.5 | 4 | 12 | 2 | + | 4 | + | 14 | 2 | 0.5 | |||
K. pallidus | 1 | 0.5 | ||||||||||||||||||||
T. montanum | 8 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Polydesmida | ||||||||||||||||||||||
S. clavatipes | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1.5 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 0.5 | + | 4.5 | ||||||||||||
S. tabescens | 3 | 2.5 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 0.5 | + | |||||||||||||||
Total abundance | 65 | 26 | - | 14.5 | 24.5 | 21 | 37.5 | 23 | 36 | 14 | 24 | 64 | 130 | 25 | - | 22 | - | 39.5 | 5 | 20 | 5.5 | 8 |
Numbers of species | 6 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
The numbers of diplopods range from 14.5 to 65 ind./m² in subzones of low- and mid-mountain chern taiga forests, and from 5.5 to 8 ind./m² in high-mountain shrub tundras (Table
Clustering of investigated sites in the Kyga Biogeocenosis Profile on species diversity allows to grouping at least two obvious sets of sites (Figure
The very interesting situation is observed with two congeners of Julus as regards to altitude distribution, showing competitive relationships to each other. Thus, J. g. ghilarovi is mainly recorded in low-mountain and in the beginning of mid-mountain chern taiga forests, while it almost disappears in subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica, but it emerges again in rocky mountain tundra on the top of the investigated biogeocenosis profile. At the same time, J. insolitus populates mainly subalpine sparse growths of P. sibirica and lifts up to shrub mountain tundra at 2194 m a.s.l. Taking into account that J. insolitus is very abundant here, we assume it wins the competition and displaces J. g. ghilarovi from subalpine P. sibirica sparse growths. The record of female specimens of J. insolitus is the first one in this species.
Both members of Kirkayakidae, K. pallidus and T. montanum, are reported in chern mid-mountain taiga at the highest altitudes for the first time. Also this is the first record of the female specimen in the former species.
We are thankful to D.A. Demidko (Krasnoyarsk, Russia) and V.S. Bogdanov (Chiri, Russia) for their great help with the organization of the collecting trip in Altai for the first and second authors. Special thanks are also addressed to anonymous reviewers and section editor for comments.