Darwin Reserve: the realm of peat islands

Biosphere reserves are specially designated specially protected areas, designed to preserve the natural self-regulating natural system. Nature in these zones is usually untouched, "wild" or slightly modified by human activities. Russia's biosphere reserves, like all other types of protected natural areas, are completely outside the scope of any economic activity. These organizations operate within the framework of the World Program, designed to demonstrate the optimal relationship between man and nature.

Among the Russian biosphere protection zones, the Darwin Reserve plays an important role. The history of its creation and development clearly demonstrates the concern for reserves, which the state shows.

In 1941, at the junction of three regions - Yaroslavl, Tver and Vologda - the Rybinsk Reservoir was built . The Great Patriotic War, which began, did not immediately allow us to study its influence on climate change. But right after the end, in the summer of 1945, the Darwin Reserve was created directly to monitor the changes that took place in nature under the influence of the reservoir.

Today, this protected area occupies 112,000 hectares, only half of which falls to land: the rest is occupied by coastal waters.

In the winter of 2002, the Darwin Reserve was included in the international list of significant biosphere reserves.

The territory of the reserve is basically the lowland on the bank of the Rybinsk Sea, alternating with dunes and elongated, gently sloping uplands: traces of a prehistoric glacier. In the marshy lowland, lakes are often found, the largest of which is Morotskoe, occupying about 700 hectares.

The Darwin Reserve is remarkable for its temperate continental climate. It is very pleasant in summer, when the average temperature is + 18 °, it is not very cold in winter, because frosts are more than -10 ° are rare.

The territory of the biosphere reserve is valuable for its swampy forests and swamps, which originated more than 17 thousand years ago. Scientists have established that these swamps were formed in the late glacial and postglacial periods.

Today in this protected area more than 15 species of rare birds, long listed in the Red Book, breed and breed annually. Proof of the effective work of the reserve were the swan-swans that had almost disappeared in Russia, which some time ago began to nest and multiply on the reservation site. Besides them, there are a lot of grouse nests in the reserve, wood grouses, and the density of the population of birds of prey is higher than anywhere else in the world.

There are also plants listed in the Red Book. The Traunsteiner's fingernail, a real slipper, a lepidoptera, and some other species feel great in the guard zone. The main vegetation is pine forests. However, the shoal is warming up well in the summer, so a lot of different herbs and shrubs grow here: the hornwort, the head of the head, the pondyards, etc. The reserve is rich in berries: cloudberry, cranberry, blueberry.

For tourists on the periphery of the zone organized an excursion route. During a walk on it you can see from afar, squirrels, wild boars, foxes, and sometimes brown bears. However, such meetings are quite dangerous: animals feel at home and do not like guests.

In the reserve, the Museum of Nature is organized. In it - the richest collection of "Russian" butterflies, the world's first wood grouse farm.

But, perhaps, the most unique are the peat islands of the reserve. After the discovery of the Rybinsk Reservoir, the peat bogs were flooded. For many years, peat pieces floated to the surface and drifted until they were stopped by thickets or other obstacles. Over time, such peat islands appeared vegetation, and today even trees grow there.

Since 2000 the Darwin Reserve has been a part of the World System of Biosphere Reserves.