An investigation of biomonitoring in urban environments through the assessment of fluctuating asymmetry in diverse species of woody plants: a case study conducted in Irkutsk

For the assessment of environmental quality through living beings, it is possible to employ woody plant species that are commonly found in urban settings, alongside the suggested species Betula pendula Roth. The data for this research were gathered between 2018 and 2024 in Irkutsk, focusing on twelve prevalent species of woody plants as the subjects of scientific inquiry. The effects of motor vehicle traffic were identified as a significant factor influencing the research outcomes. In Irkutsk, a total of 202 test sites were established across three specific zones: transportation, residential, and recreational. The average values of fluctuating asymmetry in the transportation zone, which is characterized by heavy traffic, were observed to increase in comparison to the recreational zone. Specifically, Ulmus parvifolia exhibited an increase of 1.41 times, Pyrus ussuriensis showed an increase of 1.36 times, Padus maackii increased by 1.34 times, and both Padus avium, Acer negundo, and Betula pendula demonstrated an increase of 1.33 times. Additionally, Acer ginnala exhibited an increase of 1.29 times. These findings indicate a significant sensitivity of these species to the examined environmental factor. In contrast, Populus alba and Malus baccata displayed signs of stress due to the impact of traffic, although the observed changes were less pronounced, with differences of 1.17 and 1.23 times, respectively. No significant fluctuations in development stability indicators were noted for Syringa vulgaris and Syringa josikaea across the studied zones. Furthermore, Populus balsamifera did not reveal any differences in fluctuating asymmetry indicators in relation to the intensity of traffic flow. The fluctuating asymmetry indicators obtained from this research contributed to the development of scales for eight phanerophyte species, which can be employed in monitoring the condition of the natural environment in urbanized areas. The application of fluctuating asymmetry provides a reliable means of assessing the development stability indicators of woody plants, thereby enabling the informed and targeted selection of species with specific parameters for mitigating negative impacts in urban greening initiatives. To achieve this, the “development stability difference coefficient which accounts for species-specific variations in the examined characteristics, using values derived from recreational areas as a baseline.

1. Guidelines for evaluating environmental quality based on the condition of living organisms: An assessment of development stability in living organisms by the level of asymmetry of morphological structures. Decree of Rosecology dated 16.10.2003, № 660. Moscow: Nauka; 2003. (In Russ.).

2. Shadrina E.G., Vol’pert Ya.L. The practice of environmental health assessment: efficiency of fluctuating asymmetry and other bioindication-based approaches. Zhizn Zemli [Life of the Earth]. 2018;40(2):183–198. (In Russ.).

3. Zaharov V.M., Trofimov I.E. Morphogenetic approach to estimation of environmental health: study of developmental stability. Ontogenez. 2017;48(6):433–442. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.7868/S0475145017060064

4. Zaharov V.M., Trofimov I.E. Assessment of biodiversity status: study of developmental stability. Biology Bulletin. 2020;47(2):115–122. https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359020020120

5. Adamovich T.A., Olkova A.S. Variability of fluctuating asymmetry of Betula pendula Roth leaves depending on growing conditions. Siberian Journal of Sciences and Agriculture. 2024;16(3):250–262. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.12731/2658-6649-2024-16-3-840

6. Chernakova O.V. Evaluation of stability of Acer ginnala Maxim growth in Irkutsk city using the by fluctuating asymmetry of leaves. Vestnik IrGSHA. 2019;(95):84–92. (In Russ.).

7. Chudnovskaya G.V., Chernakova O.V. Indicators of the developmental stability of Betula pendula Roth participating in the landscaping of the city of Irkutsk. Vestnik IrGSHA. 2020;(100):100–111. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.51215/1999-3765-2020-100-100-111

8. Chernakova O.V. Indicators of the stability of the development of Pyrus ussuriensis Maxim., participating in landscaping of Irkutsk. Vestnik IrGSHA. 2021;6(107):93–106. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.51215/1999-3765-2021-107-93-114

9. Chudnovskaya G.V., Chernakova O.V. Indicators the of development stability of Populus balsamifera L., participating in landscaping the city of Irkutsk. Vestnik IrGSHA. 2021;(104):93–106. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.51215/1999-3765-2021-104-93-106

10. Chudnovskaya G.V., Chernakova O.V Indicators the of development stability of Malus baccata (L.) Borkh., participating in landscaping the city of Irkutsk. Vestnik IrGSHA. 2023;2(115):133–144. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.51215/1999-3765-2023-115-133-144

11. Chudnovskaya G.V., Chernakova O.V. Fluctuating asymmetry of the leaf of Acer negundo L. as an indicator of the state of the organism and the quality of the urban environment. Arctic and Subarctic Natural Resource. 2023;28(2):293–302. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31242/2618-9712-2023-28-2-293-302

12. Kulagina V.A., Grigorieva N.G. Leaves of balsamic popular (Populus balsamifera L.) and oriental lilac (Syringa vulgaris) as within indicator of the environment of krasnoyarsk city`. In: Innovative trends in the development of Russian science: Proceedings of the 12th International Scientific and Practical Conference of Young Scientists, Krasnoyarsk, April 8–9, 2019. Krasnoyarsk: Krasnoyarsk State Agrarian University; 2019, pp. 50–54. (In Russ.)

13. Korotchenko I.S. The influence of Krasnoyarsk heatpower complex of on the size of the fluctuating asymmetry of the balsam poplar leaf plate. Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2015;8(107):15–20. (In Russ.)

14. Korotchenko I.S., Lebedev N.A., Pervyshina G.G., et al. Influence of emissions from thermal power plants of the Krasnoyarsk Region on the stability of development of balsamic poplar. Advances in Current Natural Sciences. 2020;(10):85–90. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17513/use.37495

15. Popelnitskaya I.M., Popov A.O. Leaves’ fluctuating asymmetry of poplars (Populus balsamifera L.) in the urban environment. Advances in Current Natural Sciences. 2017;(12):72–78. (In Russ.)

16. Papinen A.E. Assessment of medium quality by fluctuating asymmetry of Betula pendula Roth., Padus avium Mill. and Crataegus sanduinea Pall. in the floodplain of the Karatuz River (Krasnoyarsk Region). Juvenis Scientia. 2019;(9-10):4–7. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.32415/jscientia.2019.09-10.01

17. Chernykh E.P., Pervyshina G.G., Gogoleva O.V. The ecological assessment of the motor transport influence on fluctuating asymmetry of bird cherry tree (Padus avium Mill.) leaves. Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2013;12(87):137–141. (In Russ.)

18. Chernykh E.P., Pervyshina G.G., Gogoleva O.V. The ecological favourable condition assessment of the Krasnoyarsk city territory with the bird cherry tree use as a bioindicator. Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2014;1(88):96–100. (In Russ.)

19. Chernykh E.P., Pervyshina G.G., Gogoleva O.V. The Krasnoyarsk Krai territory ecological condition assessment by the leaf fluctuating asymmetry method of bird cherry tree (Padus avium Mill.). Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2014;2(89):84–88. (In Russ.)

20. Zakharov V.M., Sharova N.A., Trofimov I.E., et al. Assessment of plant status by the stability of development in natural and anthropogenic conditions (fluctuating asymmetry of leaf features of the silver birch, betula pendula roth) Biology Bulletin. 2020;47(2):186–190.

21. Shadrina E., Turmukhametova N., Soldatova V., et al. Fluctuating asymmetry in morphological characteristics of Betula pendula Roth leaf under conditions of urban ecosystems: evaluation of multi–factor negative impact. Simmtery. 2020;12(8):1–35. https://doi.org/10.3390/sym12081317

22. Khikmatullina G.R. Comparison of morphological characteristics of sheet Betula pendula leaf in conditions of urban environment. Bulletin of Udmurt University. Series Biology. Earth Sciences. 2013;(2):48–56. (In Russ.)

23. Maksimenko A.E., Suntsova L.N., Inshakov E.M. Assessment of the ecological state of the environment based on the asymmetry of the leaves of common bird cherry growing in different areas of the city. In: Forest and chemical complexes – problems and solutions: Collection of articles based on the materials of the All-Russian scientific and practical conference, Krasnoyarsk, December 9, 2016. Krasnoyarsk: Siberian State Aerospace University named after Academician M.F. Reshetnev; 2016, pp. 49–51. (In Russ.)

24. Suntsova L.N., Inshakov E.M. Features of growth of common bird cherry and Maack’s bird cherry in the urbanized environment of the city of Krasnoyarsk. Fruit growing, seed production, introduction of woody plants. 2017;20:183–184. (In Russ.)

25. Korotchenko I.S. Bioindication of contaminated areas of Krasnoyarsk by the magnitude of fluctuating asymmetry of the leaf blade of the Siberian elm. Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2015;11(110):67–72. (In Russ.)

26. Tatarintsev A.I. Sanitary condition of elm plantations in Krasnoyarsk. Bulletin of KrasSAU. 2012;8(71):68–72. (In Russ.)

27. Narvatkina K.L., Bashmakov D.I. Influence of urban environmental conditions on morphometric parameters of American maple leaves (Acer negundo L.). In: XLVI Ogarevsky Readings: Proceedings of the scientific conference, Saransk, December 6–13, 2017. Saransk: Ogarev National Research Mordovian State University; 2018, рр. 103–109. (In Russ.)

28. Shadrina E., Soldatova V., Turmukhametova N. Fluctuating asymmetry as a measure of stress in natural populations of woody plants: influence of ecological and geographical factors on developmental stability. Symmetry. 2023;15(3):700. https://doi.org/10.3390/sym15030700