The article provides a relevant nomenclature list of Orchidaceae on the Black Sea coast in Krasnodarsky Krai (Russia), with clarification of the taxonomic status of each taxon. Fifty-one taxa (41 species and eleven subspecies) are known in the study area; apart of them, there are ten hybrids. Of them, five taxa are not found anywhere else in Russia, including Cephalanthera epipactoides, Epipactis euxina (endemic), E. leptochila subsp. neglecta, E. pontica, and Serapias orientalis subsp. feldwegiana. Two taxa (Epipactis condensata and Ophrys mammosa subsp. caucasica) slightly exceed the boundaries of the study area. Data on the distribution, occurrence, and association of species with plant communities are provided. Most taxa are more or less represented in forest communities. Only eight species are confined to grassland communities and ecotonic habitats. For 19 taxa, favourable conditions seem to be in anthropogenically disturbed habitats, preferring clearings under power lines, sides of forest roads, deposits, hay meadows, and dendroparks. Data on new locations and the state of the most threatened orchid species on the Black Sea coast in Krasnodarsky Krai are presented. Three species, Anacamptis coriophora, Dactylorhiza incarnata and Epipactis palustris, seem to have disappeared in the study area, possibly due to human activity. The state of regional populations of ten taxa causes concerns about their conservation on the Black Sea coast in Krasnodarsky Krai. Seven taxa (Anacamptis laxiflora subsp. dielsiana, Cephalanthera epipactoides, Dactylorhiza viridis, Epipactis condensata, E. euxina, Neotinea ustulata, Ophrys apifera, and Himantoglossum comperianum) have a critical status. For these orchids, the risk of extinction is very high in the study area. The other three taxa can be described as endangered , namely Himantoglossum caprinum, Ophrys mammosa subsp. caucasica, Orchis militaris subsp. stevenii. The problems of orchid diversity conservation in the study area are identified. We are convinced that the most effective method of orchid conservation on the Black sea coast of Krasnodarsky Krai concerns the further developing of a Protected Area network, primarily through the creation of regional Protected Areas, including natural parks, nature monuments, municipal Protected Areas.

Podarcis siculus (Rafinesque-Schmaltz, 1810) or Italian wall lizard is one of the most invasive reptile-species. Recently, this lacertid lizard has been introduced to Mediterranean areas of southern Europe, South-West Asia (Turkey) and North America (USA). An abundant population of P. siculus was discovered on one of the sites of the Natural Ornithological Park in the Imeretinskaya Lowland, on an area of over 0.22 km2 (Sochi, Russia). The data were collected in the May of 2020 in a strip survey method in the Imeretinskaya Lowland. To identify the colonization area of the invader, we examined all 8 sections of the Natural Ornithological Park in the Imeretinskaya Lowland and adjacent urbanized areas. More than 150 animals were observed. These Italian wall lizards, undoubtedly, belong to the northern-central Italian morphotype (presumably P. s. campestris). This is the first record of this species in the former USSR area and, also, this is the species’ north-easternmost locality. The population inhabits secondary natural biotopes and urban area. Among them are the banks of artificial water bodies, areas with cultivated trees and shrubs, as well as parks, and house lawns in the urban area. Population density was estimated from eight to 40 specimens per 100 m of the transect. A moderate proportion of young specimens (more than a 40%) would indicate a healthy and continued growth of the emerging population. To determine the possible period of the species introduction, space images of the Imeretinskaya Lowland were analyzed beginning from the transformation of its landscape for the Winter Olympic Games of Sochi 2014 until the May of 2020. The introduction of the species presumably occurred with the delivery of large-sized ornamental trees and shrubs from Italy in 2012–2013. Podarcis siculus should be included in the list of herpetofauna of Russia and particularly of the Caucasus. This is an alien species with a proven ability to become an invasive species, what will lead to a greater undesirable and unavoidable contact with native small lizards of the genus Darevskia Arribas, 1997. On the other hand, as it is often observed with new invaders, a sudden rise in population abundance could be followed by a sharp decline. A continuous monitoring of the area in question and of the number of local Italian wall lizards is necessary to confirm or refute the assumed scenarios of further invasion of P. siculus on the Black Sea Coast of the Caucasus. Further action plans for this population should be developed depending on supposed future trends.

The article analyses the effect of fellings for primary use on the disturbance of the water protection function of sessile oak (Quercus petraea) forests in the Western Caucasus. The study is based on long-term monitoring of spring runoff in catchments with experimental fellings in the Forest and Hydrological Station «Gorsky» (Tuapse District, Krasnodarsky Krai). It has been established that over a 28-year period after the experimental fellings, the stabilisation of runoff conditions has never come. The runoff in oak forests is mostly impacted by clear-cuttings with tractor harvesting technology. Over 30 years after clear-cutting, the spring runoff has increased on an average by 1.46 times, with a maximum increase (by 2.5 times) being observed for the first two years after cutting. In areas with group fellings, the runoff regime is generally similar to that of the control catchment for the same period.

New information on the distribution of Oxyura leucocephala on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus is provided. The first appearance of the species in this region was recorded in 1991. At present Oxyura leucocephala is a small wintering and migratory species found on the Black Sea coast of the Krasnodarsky Krai (Russia) and Abkhazia. Single individuals or pairs of birds are usually noted, less often groups of up to ten white-headed ducks. The most significant was the wintering of Oxyura leucocephala on the lakes of the natural ornithological park in the Imeretinskaya lowland (Sochi, Russia) in 2016-2017. An assumption is being made about the formation of a new wintering area for Oxyura leucocephala occupying the northeastern coast of the Black Sea.