Zoobenthos in Small Reservoirs of the Northern Slope of the Baltic-Caspian Watershed of the Volga-Baltic Waterway.

In 2010–2013, the benthic fauna was studied in the Novinkinskoe, Belousovskoe, and Vytegorskoe reservoirs for the first time. In zoobenthos, 103 species and taxa of a higher rank were identified. An increase in quantitative indicators, species richness, and diversity were noted in the series profundal → open littoral → thickets. The profundal of all reservoirs was characterized by the Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri–Procladius complex. In the littoral, the structure of communities was predetermined by the type of substrate and the type of thickets. The highest quantitative indicators of zoobenthos were recorded in the abnormally hot year of 2010. Compared to the Volga River reservoirs located to the south, the zoobenthos of the Novinkinskoe, Belousovskoe, and Vytegorskoe reservoirs was characterized by lower quantitative indicators and species richness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]