A Body of Water as a Biological Whole: V. M. Rylov (1889–1942) and the Origin of Ecosystem Concepts in Aquatic Ecology

Affiliation: St. Petersburg Branch of S. I. Vavilov Institute for the History of Science and Technology, Russian Academy of Sciences
Address: Saint Petersburg, Universitetskaia nab., 5

Journal name

Voprosy istorii estestvoznaniia i tekhniki

Edition

Volume 42 Issue 2

Pages

205-227

Abstract

This article reviews some almost forgotten works of Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Rylov (1889–1942), a well-known Russian hydrobiologist, who specialized in the freshwater zooplankton. These works, published in the 1920s, were partly based on his papers presented at major all-Union and international scientific events (the First All-Russian Congress of Zoologists, Anatomists, and Histologists in Petrograd and the congresses of the International Society of Theoretical and Applied Limnology). In his articles and presentations, Rylov emphasized the need for quantitative assessment of the impact of planktonic organisms on the aquatic environment, based on numerous observations of this impact, particularly during phytoplankton blooms, and of the physiological activity of zooplankton. To this end, he introduced two novel indicators, biodynamic standard and biodynamic titer. Rylov regarded aquatic organisms as a potent factor affecting aquatic environment and believed that their activity should be looked if a water body was to be studied as a “biological whole”. Rylov also developed the concepts of primary and secondary trophic standards of a water body and tried to establish a correlation between biological processes in a water body and geological conditions of its catchment area in the formulations of these concepts. Therefore, Rylov’s views may be regarded as a step from the quantitative plankton studies widely conducted in the first quarter of the 20 th century to the development of the first rounded concepts of ecosystems. The analysis of Rylov’s works and views on the biological and limnological integrity of a water body reveals that his ecosystem concept is physiologically based. The recognition of water body integrity directly followed from his plankton research of many years, in particular, from his studies on the organisms’ impact on the environment, largely caused by the high metabolic rate of aquatic microorganisms.

Keywords

V. M. Rylov, water body, ecosystem, aquatic ecology, freshwater plankton, holism

Received

12.02.2021

Publication date

28.06.2021

Number of characters

50783

Cite

GOST	Rizhinashvili A. A Body of Water as a “Biological Whole”: V. M. Rylov (1889–1942) and the Origin of Ecosystem Concepts in Aquatic Ecology // Voprosy istorii estestvoznaniia i tekhniki – 2021. – V. 42. – Issue 2 C. 205-227 [Electronic resource]. URL: https://vietmag.org/S020596060015087-7-1 (circulation date: 24.04.2024). DOI: 10.31857/S020596060015087-7
MLA	Rizhinashvili, Alexandra "A Body of Water as a “Biological Whole”: V. M. Rylov (1889–1942) and the Origin of Ecosystem Concepts in Aquatic Ecology." Voprosy istorii estestvoznaniia i tekhniki 42.2 (2021):205-227. DOI: 10.31857/S020596060015087-7
APA	Rizhinashvili A. (2021). A Body of Water as a “Biological Whole”: V. M. Rylov (1889–1942) and the Origin of Ecosystem Concepts in Aquatic Ecology. Voprosy istorii estestvoznaniia i tekhniki 42(2), pp.205-227 DOI: 10.31857/S020596060015087-7

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