Records of hydrobionts and terrestrial molluscs of the Mykolaivs'ka Oblast' and adjacent areas of the Odes'ka Oblast' of Ukraine

Study Extent

In this region, there have been almost no ongoing monitoring studies of aquatic invertebrates in recent decades. In this connection, gaps in information on endemic relict fauna of the Ponto-Caspian complex, alien species, biodiversity of estuaries, unique rheophilic communities of Southern Bug rapids and cold springs have been formed.

Sampling

During the reporting period, a number of expedition trips were made to Mykolaivs'ka Oblast' of Ukraine and adjacent areas of the Odes'ka Oblast' of Ukraine. We used the most favorable period for catching most of the taxonomic groups collected in these studies, from early April to late October.
Material on terrestrial mollusks was collected in two important protected areas: the Yelanets Steppe Nature Reserve and Buzk's Gard National Nature Park. Most other finds were made along the banks of the Southern Bug and Berezanka rivers, the Black Sea and estuaries, as an auxiliary effort to collect hydrobionts. Marine surveys cover aquatic invertebrates of marine shallows on the coast between the mouths of the Tiligulsky and Berezansky estuaries, the seaward edge of Kinburn Spit and in Yahorlyk Bay, as well as amphibiotic species from the adjacent supralittoral zone and marches Most of the finds in the dataset represent freshwater and euryhaline invertebrates collected in most of the significant inland water bodies of Mykolaivska Oblast' of Ukraine: Dnieper-Bug, Tiligul and Berezanka estuaries; the Southern Bug River, its tributaries (Ingul, Sinyukha, Bolshaya Korabelnaya, Arbuzinka, Savranka, Mertvovod) and numerous cold springs, the Berezanka River; salt lakes of the Black Sea coasts and estuaries; temporary water bodies; artificial water bodies (reservoirs, ponds and quarries). In the Odes'ka Oblast' of Ukraine, hydrobionts were collected in the bed of the Southern Bug, its tributary the Savranka River and springs, in the area adjacent to the Mykolaivska Oblast'. The few plant records relate to species that form the aquatic habitats in which the hydrobionts were sampled. Terrestrial mollusks were collected by hand or by sieving soil samples through a laboratory sieve 1 mm mesh size. It was used both manual sampling (including nocturnal sampling with baiting by light) and sampling with quadrate frame (followed by sieving through a laboratory sieve 1 mm mesh size) for amphibiotic supralittoral invertebrates. For studies in the sea and estuaries, sampling with benthic frames (followed by sieving through a system of hydrobiological sieves), manual sampling or dragging with kick-net (ISO 7828) was used. Also lifetime observations without removal from nature during snorkeling were used. Benthic macroinvertebrates in different inland waters were sampled mostly by kick-net (ISO 7828), which was dragged along the shore so as to cover a variety of habitats (followed by sieving through a system of hydrobiological sieves). Supplementary to this standard sampling method, also were used additional macroinvertebrate benthos sampling techniques where appropriate/necessary, such as snorkeling with hand sampling, especially for stones, flooded wood, and other large objects. Surber sampler (followed by sieving through a system of hydrobiological sieves) was also additionally used in cold springs. Collected samples were immediately preserved in 70% ethanol in the field (individual specimens were fixed in 96% alcohol for subsequent molecular studies), and later in the laboratory, samples were sorted and macroinvertebrate taxa counted and identified. Large and easily identifiable species were in many cases recorded lifetime without removal from nature. Identification was carried out in the field directly during expedition trips, or fixed specimens were delivered to the laboratory of the Institute of Marine Biology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Generally accepted handbooks and taxonomic keys were used for the majority of well-known species. Original primary descriptions, work with museum collections and author's taxonomic studies were used to identify non-native species absent in the regional literature.

Quality Control

The authors of the dataset are fully responsible for the quality of data provided in it: accuracy of identification, georeferencing etc.

Method steps

1. Conducting field work during scientific expeditions.
2. Laboratory studies and identification (except for species identified in the field).
3. Georeferencing.
4. Organizing of the dataset according to the Darwin Core standards.

The dataset consists of records of mainly invertebrates (molluscs) and some other organisms associated with their typical habitats.

1. Animalia
   rank: kingdom
2. Plantae
   rank: kingdom
3. Arthropoda
   rank: phylum
4. Annelida
   rank: phylum
5. Chordata
   rank: phylum
6. Tracheophyta
   rank: phylum
7. Mollusca
   rank: phylum
8. Ctenophora
   rank: phylum
9. Cnidaria
   rank: phylum
10. Porifera
    rank: phylum
11. Gastropoda
    rank: class
12. Bivalvia
    rank: class
13. Anthozoa
    rank: class
14. Branchiopoda
    rank: class
15. Arachnida
    rank: class
16. Clitellata
    rank: class
17. Hydrozoa
    rank: class
18. Insecta
    rank: class
19. Liliopsida
    rank: class
20. Demospongiae
    rank: class
21. Malacostraca
    rank: class
22. Maxillopoda
    rank: class
23. Polychaeta
    rank: class
24. Tentaculata
    rank: class
25. Magnoliopsida
    rank: class

The dataset represents records of species made in the Mykolaivska Oblast' of Ukraine and adjacent areas of the Odes'ka Oblast' of Ukraine.