Size-age structure of Artemia parthenogenetica and A. tibetiana (Crustacea: Anostraca) populations in hypersaline lakes of southern Western Siberia, 2025

Endorheic hypersaline lakes of diverse hydrochemical types in southern Western Siberia, with zooplankton communities dominated by the genus Artemia Leach, 1819, are reliable indicators of water availability and are sensitive to climate–driven water–level changes. The abundance and size–age structure of A. parthenogenetica and A. tibetiana in the salt lakes of Altai Krai, and their environmental correlates, constitute a key research focus. In April–July 2025, ten lakes were surveyed: Bolshoye Shklo, Bolshoye Yarovoye, Krivaya Puchina, Kuchukskoye, Malinovoye, Maloye Shklo, Maloye Yarovoye, Mormyshanskoye, Tanatar III, and Shukyrtuz. Principal component analysis of the collected data distinguished the brine chemistry of habitats occupied by sexual versus parthenogenetic populations. The effects of lake morphometry (area and depth), physicochemical parameters (transparency, temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll a), and ionic composition (CO32-, HCO3-, SO42-, Cl-, Mg2+, N++K+) on Artemia population characteristics were examined. Temperature and salinity proved to be the primary determinants.