Natural and anthropogenic impact on the biodiversity of malacofauna of the Caspian Sea

Abstract

Generation of biodiversity during the Neopleistocene and the Holocene was determined by the parameters of aquatic environment of basins (the sea-level mode, temperature, salinity), mainly reflecting climatic changes. The anthropogenic factor contributes essentially to the structure of the biodiversity. This paper aimed to show the impact of natural and anthropogenic factors on the generation of the mollusk’s biodiversity. The material for research was the analysis of the long-term field works of the author on the coasts of the Caspian Sea and the studying of the core of sea boreholes. It is cocluded that over the last 6 thousand years, invasive and acclimatized species made much more significant changes in biodiversity than those caused by natural factors. Natural ecosystems have undergone the anthropogenic transformation. Over the course of historical time, there has been not only fast change in biodiversity, but also irreversible change in aquatic ecosystems. The role of the anthropogenic factor on the species distribution in the basin became the major.