Disentangling the contribution of long‐term evolutionary processes and recent anthropogenic impacts to current genetic patterns of wildlife species is key to assessing genetic risks and designing conservation strategies. Here, we used 80 whole nuclear genomes and 96 mitogenomes from populations of the Eurasian lynx covering a range of conservation statuses, climatic zones and subspecies across Eurasia to infer the demographic history, reconstruct genetic patterns, and discuss the influence of long‐term isolation and/or more recent human‐driven changes. Our results show that Eurasian lynx populations shared a common history until 100,000 years ago, when Asian and European populations started to diverge and both entered a period of continuous and widespread decline, with western populations, except Kirov, maintaining lower effective sizes than eastern populations. Population declines and increased isolation in more recent times probably drove the genetic differentiation between geographically and ecologically close westernmost European populations. By contrast, and despite the wide range of habitats covered, populations are quite homogeneous genetically across the Asian range, showing a pattern of isolation by distance and providing little genetic support for the several proposed subspecies. Mitogenomic and nuclear divergences and population declines starting during the Late Pleistocene can be mostly attributed to climatic fluctuations and early human influence, but the widespread and sustained decline since the Holocene is more probably the consequence of anthropogenic impacts which intensified in recent centuries, especially in western Europe. Genetic erosion in isolated European populations and lack of evidence for long‐term isolation argue for the restoration of lost population connectivity.

We studied the relationship between the variability and contemporary distribution of pelage phenotypes in one of most widely distributed felid species and an array of environmental and demographic conditions. We collected 672 photographic georeferenced records of the Eurasian lynx throughout Eurasia. We assigned each lynx coat to one of five phenotypes. Then we fitted the coat patterns to different environmental and anthropogenic variables, as well as the effective geographic distances from inferred glacial refugia. A majority of lynx were either of the large spotted (41.5%) or unspotted (uniform, 36.2%) phenotype. The remaining patterns (rosettes, small spots and pseudo-rosettes) were represented in 11.0%, 7.4%, and 3.9% of samples, respectively. Although various environmental variables greatly affected lynx distribution and habitat suitability, it was the effect of least-cost distances from locations of the inferred refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum that explained the distribution of lynx coat patterns the best. Whereas the occurrence of lynx phenotypes with large spots was explained by the proximity to refugia located in the Caucasus/Middle East, the uniform phenotype was associated with refugia in the Far East and Central Asia. Despite the widely accepted hypothesis of adaptive functionality of coat patterns in mammals and exceptionally high phenotypic polymorphism in Eurasian lynx, we did not find well-defined signs of habitat matching in the coat pattern of this species. Instead, we showed how the global patterns of morphological variability in this large mammal and its environmental adaptations may have been shaped by past climatic change.

The paper presents the results of biodiversity assessment on the territories with different ecological conditions. The studies were carried out on the territories during the reforestation period after the anthropogenic load associated with deforestation, as test sites (PP) and forest biogeocenoses adjacent to deforestation and not affected by forestry activities - control (K). The research methods are indicated. The Jacquard and Stugren-Radulescu coefficients, as well as the Sorensen-Chekanovsky and Kulchinsky indices were used to assess the biodiversity. During the survey of the territories, 32 species of animals were found: 1 species belongs to the class of amphibians, 5 - reptiles, 13 - birds and 13 - mammals. The list of the faunal composition of the studied territories is given. As a result of the conducted studies it has been revealed that the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the faunal composition directly depend on the derived type of forest, the method of deforestation and the environmental conditions prevailing on this territory. Of the territories considered, the greatest faunal diversity (19 species) was observed on the territories with 12-year-old-cut-down forest, with moderately moist soils and predominant floristic diversity. Based on the calculation of the indices and coefficients of similarity and difference, the similarity of the species faunal diversity has been revealed on the territories of mixed-grass and blue joint fellings as well as in the control areas of lingonberry pine. The difference from all the sample areas has been revealed in the meadowsweet felling (PP1) and the adjacent forest biogeocenosis - grass-marsh pine forest.

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The paper examines characteristics of the Eurasian beaver population (Castor fiber Linnaeus, 1758) on territories with different anthropogenic load. Monitoring the beaver population and habitat, including the landscape basis and natural zoning with the allocation of natural, natural-anthropogenic and anthropogenic territories as natural ecological systems allows you to manage and rationally use the resources of these animals. Previously there were mainly natural territories in the studied region, however with the growth of the human population and its economic activity their properties have changed. According to biotic criteria, geochemical circulation, significant (formerly natural) territories functionally already correspond to natural-anthropogenic and anthropogenic objects, since the supply of fodder, population density and density of animals have changed. According to natural zoning, taking into account the identified changes in the habitat of beavers (by biotic criteria), we have examined their territorial distribution as well as the number of settlements in various natural objects of the region. On the studied rivers the density of the beaver population in the channel decreases in the following order: natural territory natural-anthropogenic anthropogenic, but the indicator of private abundance (the density of animals on the territory where beavers live directly) and aggregation (crowding of individuals) increases. The population density of the river bed of the studied rivers by beavers on anthropogenic territories is from 0,9-3,7 individuals/km, which is lower than on natural and natural-anthropogenic territories, where this indicator is from 1,5 to 6 individuals/km. The length of the river bed, where beavers live directly, without taking into account significant buffer zones, varies in natural areas from 60 to 100%, which is more than in areas with anthropogenic load, where this indicator in the study area decreases to 40%. A decrease in the size of river channel sections suitable for beaver colonization leads to overcrowding (aggregation) of individuals. Compared with the total density of beaver population in the river channel 0,9-3,7 individuals/km of the channel (excluding the Kondurcha River - 6 individuals/km of the channel) the population density, locally, on anthropogenic and natural-anthropogenic territories increases to 4-7,5 individuals/km.