What can supraspecies richness tell us?

Biogeographers, ecologists, palaeontologists, and conservation managers often deal with checklists in which not all individuals have been identified to a species level, or the accuracy of species identification is questionable. Is it possible and credible to investigate species richness based on such checklists? Studies on macrofauna in the Far Eastern seas, eastern Arctic seas, and adjacent waters of the Pacific and Arctic Oceans suggest that in different habitats and for diverse taxa, species, and higher taxa richness strongly correlate with each other and increase with an expansion in the study area and sample size according to the species–area law. Such an increase is higher in the bottom zone than in the pelagic. Species and higher taxa richness also show a decrease from lower to higher latitudes, which is in line with the Humboldt–Wallace’s law. According to Willis’ law and self-similarity in the organisation of taxonomic levels, species richness can be assessed based on the genus, family, and order richness. In other words, supraspecies richness itself can tell us the same as species richness and therefore certain global patterns revealed at the species level may also be revealed at the supraspecies level. Such a concordance in general trends among richness parameters at different taxonomic levels in practice implies that species richness can be studied based on lists that lack species identifications or lists with doubtful species identification. We suggest bolder use of supraspecies richness in science and practice, discussing the disadvantages and advantages of this approach.     

On the influence of climatic factors on the ratio between the cosmogenic isotope 14C and total carbon in the atmosphere in the past

Radiocarbon ¹⁴C is a cosmogenic isotope, which is most extensively used by scientists from a wide variety of fields. Its rate of generation in the atmosphere depends on solar modulation and thus, studying ¹⁴C concentration in natural archives, one can reconstruct solar activity level in the past. The paper shows results of box-model calculations of generation of the ¹⁴C isotope in the atmosphere and its relative abundance during the time interval 1389–1800 AD, taking into account influence of changing climate. This interval includes the deep minimum of solar activity and period of significant change in atmospheric concentration of CO₂ and global temperature. The performed analysis showed that concentration of ¹⁴C in the atmosphere reflects not only variations of the galactic cosmic rays intensity but as well changes of temperature and atmospheric CO₂ concentration. It is shown that the decrease in CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere during 1550–1600 can be connected with absorption of CO₂ by the ocean surface layer. Thus, taking into account the climatic changes is an important condition for the reconstruction of solar activity in the past using data based on cosmogenic isotopes.     

Against the wind – new factories of Russian manufacturing subsidiaries of Western multinational corporations

Using a series of interviews with the heads of Russian subsidiaries of Western multinational corporations and a unique database registering the openings of their new manufacturing plants in Russia during 2014–2015, we trace the changing demography, geography, and economics of foreign direct investments in industrial assets in Russia. We demonstrate that foreign companies in general were capable of overcoming the adverse economic conditions of 2015 and were able to complete their projects of installation of new factories that were launched in 2012–2013. More importantly, economic sanctions caused accelerated completion of previously started industrial works. Such new and upgraded factories not only target current opportunities and market niches in consumer markets but also aim at exploring possibilities in core industrial markets, including mining equipment, transportation equipment, and other types of industrial equipment. We also highlight the emergence of a new type of industrial project known as “fenced field projects,” which are new manufacturing facilities within the existing industrial sites of successful Russian firms. This new type is particularly attractive for companies in the machine-building and chemical industries. Fenced field projects can be either wholly owned subsidiaries or joint ventures, but the main feature of such projects is the active use of the developed physical and business infrastructure of the “hosting” Russian company. We demonstrate not only the changes in the geographic distribution of foreign direct investments in Russia but also the impact on medium-sized industrial towns (200,000–400,000 inhabitants), the most frequent location for industrial projects by foreign multinationals.