About Productivity of Plant Communities of Arctic Tundra of Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island (the Novosibirsk Islands, Yakutia)

Abstract

Data on the productivity of overground phytomass of Arctic tundra of the island of Bolshoy Lyakhovsky (the Novosibirsk Islands) is provided. A study was conducted by hay crops method. It was established that the reserves of the top phytomass of vegetation in the lowland landscapes of the North-Eastern tip of the island on the averages varies from 60,3 to 700,4 g/m2 and locally reaching maximum a value 1501,5 g/m2. When stocks of a biomass is greater than 150 g/m2, the increase is due to the mosses, which account for 70–90 %. The mass of forage plants in the tundra at maximum reaches up to 86,8 g/m2. A higher proportion of feed fractions is in communities of thermokarst complex, coastal meadows and coastal tundra meadows, which is provided mostly by vascular plants. The role of lichens and macroalgae is small and allows to consider them only as an incidental food in summer period. Sometimes Salix polaris has a feed value.