Impact of Polluted Bottom Deposits on the Species Structure and Abundance of Bivalves in Peter the Great Bay, Sea of Japan

Data from long-term (1979–1988) studies of bivalve fauna and of the content of priority pollutants in the bottom deposits of Peter the Great Bay have been analyzed. It was established that the biomass, population density, number of species, and the species diversity indexes of Shannon-Weiner and of the Pielou evenness of bivalves negatively correlated with the total pollution factor, TPF, of bottom sediments. Changes in the ecological parameters of bivalves with an increase in pollution occurred in spurts within the 3.4–3.6 interval of TPF values. The area of such values covered not only the coastal zone of Vladivostok, but also a considerable part of Amursky Bay.