Long-term change s in the macrobenthos of the central part of Lake Ladoga
During the environmental monitoring (1994-2012) communities of macrobenthos in the profundal zone of Lake Ladoga were investigated. The data on the species composition and quantitative development of benthal animals is presented. Long-term dynamics of the structural characteristics of zoobenthos is considered. It is shown that the species composition of benthic biocenosis, their dominant complex and the ratio of major groups remain relatively stable over a long period of time. Low variability of deep-water biocoenosis preserved thanks to the large volume of water mass and inertia of all the limnological processes. It was marked by steady growth of the quantitative characteristics of macrobenthos in comparison with the 1960s of the twentieth century, which indicates an increase of the trophic status of benthic habitats.