Biosphere Reserve as an Object of Regional and Global Geosystem Monitoring

Using the By-Oka-Terrace Biosphere Reserve as an example, the prospects of regional and global geosystem monitoring of the structure, function, and dynamics of forest biogeocoenoses are considered. The empirical-statistical models based on the data from large-scale landscape-ecological surveys demonstrate the most effective channels of external influence on the hydrothermal regime, structure, and function of forest biogeocoenoses of the Reserve. The most effective channels of external influences on the hydrothermal regime as well as the structure and function of forest biogeocoenoses of the reserve have been identified. The causal mechanisms of the formation of their different edaphic climaxes have been established. The determining role of the catena organization of forest communities in the diversity of their succession dynamics and responses to external influence has been demonstrated. The Reserve has proven to be an advantageous object for the implementation of regional geosystem monitoring, i.e., the control of successional progress in the formation of climax ecosystems. However, the object of research aimed at solving the problems of global biosphere monitoring must be representatives of a given zonal-regional bioclimatic system, which has a very limited range in the reserve. Structural development and biological cycle parameters were used to determine the forest phytocoenoses closest to the zonal climax, which can be priority objects for global biosphere monitoring as regards their biological cycle parameters.