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Zabolotsky peat bog is a unique biospheric and cultural-historical archive located in the north of the Moscow Region on the territory of the Dubna River lowland. Despite the advances in studying the Zabolotsky region, the question of reconstruction of the primitive population habitat remains unresolved. Until recently, it has been believed that in the Late Valdai period, the Dubna River lowland was covered by the waters of an extensive glacierdammed Tver paleolake, drained only at the turn of the Pleistocene and Holocene. It was assumed that the lake's existence prevented the settlement of the territory, whereas after its drainage, the shallow residual water pools were actively exploited in the economic activities of the primitive population. However, paleogeographic and archaeological materials have been accumulated during the last two decades that questioned the existence of large dammed lakes in the Upper Volga basin in the Late Valdai time. This paper presents the results of three years (2018–2020) of research, allowing revision of the ideas about the Quaternary geology and development of the geomorphic conditions of this area. A program of research, comprising topographic and geodetic surveys, drilling using a portable boring rig, lithologic description of the core, radiocarbon (AMS) dating, paleo-soil studies, biological analysis of organic macrofossils, and ground-penetrating radar, has been carried out aimed at reconstruction of the paleogeographic setting and landscape development. Drilling data were used to build the profile across the left bank of the Dubna River floodplain with extension to the low terrace. The lithofacial analysis of samples and AMS dating allowed identifying three generations of ancient riverbeds, the deepest of which (with the bottom at 12 m below the water edge) is more than 30 thousand years old. The biological residues from the dark-coloured loams directly below the peat bottom belong almost exclusively to higher plants, both arboraceous and wetland, which may have been brought in by the floodwaters. The ground-penetrating radar profiles clearly show the boundaries of three electromagnetically homogeneous sedimental layers — the peat, silted peat, and loam. The paleogeographic data, in conjunction with the geophysical profiling data, indicate the existence of a copious waterway in the lowland (the ancient Dubna River) no later than 15,000–16,000 years ago which formed a floodplain with large features of fluvial paleorelief available for settlement. These data agree well with the new serial AMS-dates for the resin from the grooves of the bone and horn artifacts, which permit extension of the time of the initial development of the Zabolotsky peat bog by the bearers of the Resseta Culture to 15,500 years ago. The conclusions drawn have major significance for the development of an evidence-based chronology of the events and dynamics of the settlement strategy of the population during the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene. The new data not only are consistent with the system of global paleoecologic events and history of the development of the outwash plain zone in Eastern Europe, but also provide the basis for refinement, and, possibly, revision of a range of current concepts.

Research on urban ecosystem services (ES) covers many regions globally, yet significant gaps remain in several areas, including Russia. Furthermore, the number of publications on Russian ES is still very low, and most of them focus on ES assessment on the national level which results in an incomplete understanding of ES provision in Russian cities. To fill this gap, 197 publications on urban ES have been systematically reviewed. Those mostly included research on urban ES in Russia as well as in other cities of the world that represented case studies within international collaborations of Russian scientists with other partners. The paper presents the main aspects of the ES concept adoption and operationalizing in the Russian scientific discourse, by providing an overview of the current research on the relationships between humans and urban ecosystems. Spatially, the majority of studies focused on large cities; herewith field surveys, statistical analysis, expert evaluations, and mapping were often used as the main research methods. Four key challenge areas have been revealed: anthropogenic pressure on soils and vegetation, urban green spaces (UGS) and their quantity and quality for ES provision, the value of ES assessment for urban planning, and payments for ES. To address these challenges, future research should focus on the role of urban ES for city resilience and sustainability, ecosystem disservices, rural-urban interactions, broader testing and validation of ES mapping and assessment as well as better integration of ES in economic, regulatory and compensation mechanisms., Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. Ethical approval: Not applicable., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The limited access to urban green spaces during the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the human-nature interaction in cities and human well-being. Number of visitors to green areas, initially declined due to imposed restrictions, was restored after they were lifted as established by several studies across the globe However, little is still known about changes in behavior and preferences of park visitors in the post-COVID time. In this study, we investigated spatial-temporal patterns of recreational activities in the three urban parks in Moscow (Russia) prior, during and after the COVID-19 lockdown (in 2019 and 2020). The selected parks represent two different types: a centrally located park with much infrastructure and open landscapes (Gorky Park) and parks located at the outskirts of the city center with a more forested landscape and little infrastructure (Timiryazevski and Sokolniki parks). Recreational activities were identified based on the analysis of social media photos using machine-learning algorithms. As expected, park closures during lockdown resulted in overall decrease in the number of taken photos. After the parks were re-opened, however, the number of photos did not grow immediately. The number of photos only restored after almost three months, and the visiting peak shifted to autumn. Differences between parks were related to the type of the park and its landscape structure. The lowest decrease in the number of photos was observed for the Timiryazevsky park - a semi-natural green area, while the centrally located Gorky Park was the most affected, likely due to the strictest control measures. In comparison to 2019, photos in 2020 were more evenly distributed across the area in all the three parks. Besides, 'natural' areas became the main attractors for the visitors - photos under 'nature observation' category became the most popular. Spatial distribution of the recreational activities in post-lockdown period was characterized by larger distances between photos, likely corresponding to the social distancing. COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the value of green areas for citizens, but also changed their recreational preferences and overall behavior in parks. The observed shift from high density of visitors around entertainments and attractions in 2019 to a more homogeneous and less dense distribution along the natural zones in 2020 reveals a new pattern in visitors behavior and preference, which shall be considered in spatial planning of the parks. Increasing availability of natural green areas and their integration in urban green infrastructures can become the most relevant policy to consider the crucial role of urban nature as a source of resilience in turbulent times., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)