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The article analyzes a set of medicinal-plant species in arid and semiarid biomes of Russia. The species diversity of medicinal plants in general, as well as those used to treat diseases of various classes, is determined. A statistical analysis of the relationships between the number of species of medicinal plants in regional biomes and climatic indices is carried out; the corresponding thematic schematic maps are constructed and analyzed. It is shown that the number of medicinal-plant species is related to the total biome species number. This, in turn, is determined by the geographic location, which determines the average annual temperature and precipitation in the regions. The closest established relationship was between the number of medicinal-plant species and the average annual air temperatures. A relatively high relationship was found between the species number and the average annual precipitation. In the analysis of the relationship between the number of medicinal-plant species used to treat certain classes of diseases and the climatic factors, the picture turned out to be similar.

An ecological and geographical analysis of the distribution of poisonous plants in the regional biomes of Russia and the effect of arid conditions on it are presented. On the territory of Russia, 82 of the most toxic species of vascular plants (belonging to 34 families) were identified; of them, 55 were poisonous species of the genus Aconitum. Cartographic analysis demonstrated that the smallest number of poisonous plant species (excluding species of the genus Aconitum) is confined to the plain biomes of the forest-tundra and tundra, and the largest number of such species grows in lowland steppe biomes. In the lowland desert biome and in some mountain biomes, the number of poisonous plant species is also significant but is slightly lower than in the steppe biomes. The maximal number of species of the genus Aconitum was detected in the mountainous Far Eastern biomes. Correlation analysis of the relationship between the number of plant species and climatic factors revealed the maximal correlation between the total number of poisonous plant species (excluding species of the genus Aconitum) with the average annual air temperature.

This chapter provides a brief characterization of the groups of animal hosts and vectors that carry natural focal disease from the perspective of their roles in the formation and function of natural foci. The distribution of the most important epidemiologically significant mammals, birds and fish, as well as bloodsucking insects and ticks is examined and illustrated with a series of maps. The maps were compiled based on materials collected by the authors and are the result of long-term studies in various regions of Russia, as well as the analysis of a substantial amount of literary data and archival material. The animals’ ranges are given by individual taxonomic unite (class, order, etc.) and are represented in accordance with traditional methods of small-scale zoogeographical cartography. The textual commentary illuminated the role of each species in the formation and function of natural foci and their association with specific landscapes.

The paper investigates the data on the fauna of the European Russia at the end of the XVIII century, contained in the materials of the General Land Survey, in comparison with contemporary data. The distribution ranges of the majority of large mammals observed in the study area two centuries ago, have not changed significantly, but the biological diversity has increased due to the emergence of new species.

This paper discusses the relationships of zonal vegetation boundaries with some climatic indicators. Possible changes in subzonal vegetation boundaries in the territory of European Russia and Western Siberia are forecasted within the framework of one of the global warming scenarios. The revealed regularities make it possible to suggest a mathematical cartographic model of vegetation zonality for the 2046–2065 period.

The steppe marmot disappeared from the modern Penza region at the end of the 19th century. The history of the disappearance of the marmot and the results of its reintroduction in 1985–1989 are considered in the article. The characteristics of the modern state of the marmot settlements that formed as a result of the reintroduction are given.