QUANTITATIVE VARIABLES OF ARTEMIA IN SALT LAKE TUZKOL (BALKHASH-ALAKOL BASIN)

Studies of salt waterbodies are topical for understanding their role in preserving and producing cysts of the valuable bioresource Artemia. A comprehensive analysis of the salt lake Tuzkol carried out in May and August 2022. Standard methods performed sampling and processing of samples of Artemia. Artemia population represented by a bisexual race, but abundance of males is insignificant (0.02% of total population). The total abundance of artemia reached 34.0 thousand individuals/m3 in May and 13.0 thousand individuals/m3 in August. Nauplii and individuals at the juvenile stage formed the basis of quantitative variables of artemia. Artemia biomass reached 31.0 mg/m3 in May and 13.0 mg/m3 in August. Large egg-carrying females created the population biomass. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) did not reveal significant differences between the average values ​​of the abundance and biomass of Artemia in different years. During research period, a slight increase in the biomass of Artemia noted, which might be due to a twofold increase in the level of TDS in lake in 2022 compared to the previous year of study. The productivity (by cysts) of Artemia varied from 10.3 to 190.8 kg/ha. The main portion of Artemia cysts concentrated in female ovisacs and the water column in May, by August the cysts prevailed (98.1%) in bottom sediment. In both research periods, cysts were not found in the coastal zone where their catching carried out. Based on benthic cysts, Tuzkol Lake classified as a highly productive waterbody in summer 2022. Bottom cysts, being at the dormant stage, provide the abundance of the first generation of Artemia and are a reserve for preserving the population. Based on this, Lake Tuzkol recommended to be used as a habitat for preserving the unique gene pool of Artemia and for studying the adaptation of halobionts to unstable conditions of the aquatic environment.