A. N. Stroganov, E. A. Kriksunov, N. V. Zuykova, N. V. Mukhina, V. A. Burmensky, A. V. Semenova, A. M. Shadrin - Biological features of the Kildin Cod, Gadus morhua kildinensis Derjugin, 1920 (Gadidae)

BIOLOGIYA MORYA, 2015, Vol. 41, No. 6, pp. 395-402

Biological features of the Kildin Cod, Gadus morhua kildinensis Derjugin, 1920 (Gadidae)

¹Biological Faculty, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow 119899;
²N.M. Knipovich Polar Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography, Murmansk 183038

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The morphological and biological characteristics of the unique isolated population of Kildin cod inhabiting the relic Lake Mogilnoye (Kildin Island, Barents Sea) is studied by using a complex of methods. This subpolar meromictic marine lake was formed more than 1000 years ago by a filtering pebble-stone bar that separated the lagoon from the Kildin Strait. The current status of the lake has been assessed. The analysis of properties of the Lake Mogilnoye ecosystem, including assessment of this body of water and the role and features of various groups of organisms, have been performed for the first time by using a balance model of the ECOPATH type.

Key words: Kildin cod, Gadus morhua kildinensis, Lake Mogilnoye, Barents Sea, morphological and biological characteristics, ecological modelling.