The necessity of protection of Campanulas (bellflowers) is considered. A description is presented of the ecological features of many Campanula-type species, and important basic morphological characteristics from the taxonomic point are introduced. The method of the cultivation in factitious populations is discussed. The paper examines some problems of intraspecific variation in bellflower populations and comprehension of this subject by the authors. The most variable specific characteristics of the genus Campanula are singled out.

We report the investigation results of reproductive biology of the Black Sea lizard Darevskia pontica in the valley of the Malaya Laba River (Northwest Caucasus). Based on allocation of groups in size and color, we assume that these lizards begin to reproduce after the second hibernation. Adult females of the Black Sea lizard are statistically superior to the males in body length and weight. Females collected in nature from the III decade of May to the I decade of June laid eggs in the laboratory in the II - III decades of June. In the nature, eggs were found also in the II-III decade of August. The body length of the females which brought the offspring was equal to 50,4-57,3 mm. Clutches contain 3-7 eggs with a mass of 0,21-0,45 g and size of 9,0-10,8×5,1-6,4 mm. Incubation in the laboratory conditions lasted for 40-47 days. Newborn lizards had a mass of 0,20-0,36 g and a body length of 20,2-26,5 mm.

We have studied the morphology of buccal epithelial cells of young smokers with up to 5 years of smoking history. The biomaterial of smokers has shown a significant decrease in the fraction of norm cells and a two-fold increase in the proportion of different morphological abnormalities of cells (tst=0,1%, Р=0,001). In buccal epithelial cells of smokers, cells with cytogenetic disorders (tst=0,1%, Р=0,001) are observed 1,5 times more frequently; disorders of cell proliferation processes and cells with the initial signs of the nucleus destruction (tst=1%, Р=0,01) occur more than twice often. Cells with the signs of complete destruction of the nucleus in smokers are reliably characterized by a significant increase in the number of cells with karyolysis (tst=1%, Р=0,01). The index of accumulation of cytogenetic violations in smokers is calculated.

The paper provides information about the classification of the Russian Caucasus xerophilous flora on the principle of action related to the edaphic factor. We give an original classification scheme of xerophytes and analyze the association of plants to different habitats. We characterize the data on obligate xerophytes, which consist of two groups: soloxerophytes and argilloxerophytes.

We have studied complex parasitic insects in four centers of outbreaks of pine cutworm (Panolis flammea Schiff.). We have obtained the most comprehensive (in the domestic literature) data on species composition of entomophagous insects influencing the number of cutworms, their distribution and host-parasitic relationship. An accurate list of parasites, including 42 species, is compiled. The leading place belongs to the parasites of older caterpillars, particularly tachina flies P. rudis or N. amoena, then a group of caterpillar parasites, mainly B. bilunulatus, R. pachymerus, and Cr. nigritarius.

The study provides an overview of experimental observations of the long-term dynamics of carpet-like Alpine meadows in the Teberda State Biosphere Reserve (TSBR), Russia. Results of the study show that in the TSBR, carpet-like Alpine meadows are subject to significant fluctuations and successional dynamics. Over the 20-year period of observation, a predominantly directed change in abudancy was evident; moreover, an increase in the number of shoots was predominantly indicative of pratal species. Species with different ecology and dynamics preserve the stability of cenosis under varying environmental conditions.

The paper presents the characteristics of the environmental situation in the Moscow region and its individual areas. Measures to lessen the environmental load are proposed. Opportunities and prospects for the creation and improvement of recreational areas are discussed. Special attention is paid to the experience of the teaching stuff of the Department of Ecology and Nature Management of the MRST on increasing the level of students' ecological culture. The authors' participation in the preparation of the annual information bulletins of the Ministry of Ecology and Nature Management of the Moscow Region "On the state of natural resources and the environment of the Moscow Region" has made it possible to acquaint the scientific community with the state of ecology in urban and rural settlements of the region.

The concept of city agglomeration as in general and so in terms of territorial planning is considered. The main benefits of agglomerations, as a special form of the territorial organization of the population and economy, are considered. The development of population resettlement is proved to be efficient in Russia in the form of city agglomerations in the conditions of objective processes of compression of economic space and long economic crisis. Various approaches to investigation and allocation of city agglomerations and their borders in Russia are compared. The Omsk city agglomeration, problems of allocation of its borders as well as the possibility of territorial planning and development are analyzed.

One of the priority directions of modern ecological science is waste management, including recycling and safe disposal. This paper evaluates the possibility of using certain types of industrial and municipal waste in reclamation of mined-out clay pits from the standpoint of minimizing the environmental risk. The advantage of this technology includes, in particular, the solution of several tasks, namely, disposal of waste and reclamation of disturbed lands.

We discuss the content of the medical geoecology as an applied science that studies the impact of geoecological processes on human health in the spatial and temporal specificity of the environment. We consider the main problems of medical geoecology: radiation impact on human health; natural focal diseases; people's morbidity due to environmental factors; genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and human health; and medical and applied content of geoecological traps, which are dangerous places in the environment, where you can get sick or die from the impact of various natural processes.