Zabaikalsky State National Park is a true pearl of Buryatia. The unique landscapes of the eastern coast of Lake Baikal, valuable natural complexes, the safety of which was under threat, prompted the Government of the RSFSR in 1986 to issue a decree on the creation of a state-protected park in this area.
Here is a real paradise for animals: more than 44 species of mammals, 50 - vertebrates, 241 species of birds, 3 species of reptiles and the same number of amphibians. Many representatives of the fauna are included in the Red Book of Russia.
The National Park is part of a huge complex, a real repository of northern sights and natural beauties called the Reserve Podlemorie. It includes two more parks - the Frolikhinsky Reserve and the Barguzinsky Reserve. All three protected areas are part of the Lake Baikal site, which is under the protection of UNESCO.
Park Features
The protected area coversAcademic, Sredinny, Svyatonossky and Barguzinsky ridges and in total occupies 269 thousand hectares. 37 thousand hectares is the water area of Lake Baikal, the deepest freshwater lake in the world.
Most of the reserve complex is occupied by mountain slopes, abundantly covered with thickets of dwarf dwarf dwarf pine, dwarf pine, larch, pine and cedar taiga.
One of the most beautiful places is the Svyatoy Nos peninsula: the Chivyrkuisky isthmus connects it with the eastern coast of Lake Baikal. The top of the Academic Ridge, which is the underwater boundary between the northern and southern basins of the Baikal Basin, is represented by the Small Ushkany Islands and the Big Ushkany Island.
This formation was named the Ushkany Islands archipelago.
Chvyrkuisky Bay
Zabaikalsky National Park is famous for the largest freshwater seal rookery in Baikal. This is an endemic of Baikal and the only representative of the order of pinnipeds. Most of all, seals are found on the Ushkany Islands, where their number sometimes reaches 2500 - 3000 individuals. In autumn, during storms, seals (most often pregnant females) move to Chivyrkuisky Bay. However, this is not their winter hut: having healed and rested, the seals again move into open water, as the bay is covered with ice.
The bay is famous for its thermal springs, the most famous of which is Serpentine. It owes its name to the population of the common grass snake that lives in the Arangatui marshes. The water temperature in the spring sometimes reaches +50-60 degrees. Mineral springs Nechaevsky and Kulinye bogs are also popular among park guests.
The shores of the Chivyrkuisky Bay are heavily indented, the waters cut into the land for 25 kilometers. This feature led to the fact that along the entire reservoir appeared small sandy bays protected from the winds up to five meters deep. One of the most remarkable is Ongokon Bay.
Five tourist routes enable guests to get acquainted with the inhabitants of the protected area, its beauties and breathtaking landscapes. From the highest point of the park - Mount Markovo, located on the Svyatoy Nos peninsula, an amazing panorama of the area opens up.
Islands and park
The nature of Buryatia is diverse and beautiful in any of its manifestations. So, taking a boat trip along the Chivyrkuisky Bay, you can admire the real islands, the steep banks of which have become a refuge for numerous gray and herring gulls that build their nests here.
Climatic features of the park
The park is located in the Central Baikal eastern climatic region, which is characterized by a continental climate with warm, sometimes dry summers and long cold winters. The influence of Baikal softens weather conditions in the coastal part of the protected area. The average temperature in winter is -19 degrees Celsius, in summer +14 degrees. The water temperature in the lake does not rise above +14 degrees even on the hottest days.
Water resources of the reserve
Zabaikalsky NationalThe park is rich in water resources. Many small rivers flow here, among which the Big Chivirkuy, Malaya and Bolshaya Cheremshana stand out. The basins of these rivers are closed, so they carry their waters to Baikal. There are also lakes here: the largest of them are Arangatui and Small Arangatui, located on the Chivyrkui Isthmus and connected to the bay. Bormashovoe Lake is smaller and is known for its mineral waters.
A feature of the park is the presence of karst lakes - there are more than twenty of them.
Flora of the Zabaikalsky National Park
The Trans-Baikal Territory is located in the zone of taiga forests, which directly affects the structure of the vegetation cover of this area. It is due to the vertical zonality of the Trans-Baikal mountainous regions. The forests mainly consist of coniferous trees: Gmelin larch, Siberian fir, pine, cedar and dwarf pine.
A small area is occupied by deciduous forests, represented mostly by stone and broad-leaved birches and aspens.
Zabaikalsky National Park is distinguished by an unusual distribution of mountain taiga forests compared to their location in the continental Siberian mountains. Thus, in the park, the number of cedar-larch and larch trees is relatively small - their area occupies about 14 thousand hectares, and they are located on madders along river terraces, while in other Siberian forests such trees are represented in the majority.
Endemics and relics
The flora of the protected area is diverse,many plant species are endemic and relict. The most valuable of them settled in the highlands of the Ushkany Islands and the Holy Nose.
These include chosenia, dwarf pine and dwarf dwarf communities, Teeling's borodinia.
Fauna Diversity
The real home for sables, wolves, wolverines, bears, foxes, squirrels, elks, brown bears, red-gray voles, hazel grouses, nutcrackers, musk deer, black-capped marmot and many other representatives of the fauna has become the Trans-Baikal National Park. Animals feel completely safe here.
Among the representatives of amphibians there are rare species - the Siberian frog and moor frog. Six species of reptiles also found here include the grass snake, agile lizard, cottonmouth and viviparous lizard.
Among birds, both sedentary and vagrant, you can find white and yellow wagtails, brown-headed chickadees, Muscovites, Dubrovniks, nuthatches, nutcrackers, lapwings, snipes, cherries, common terns, gray and silver gulls. Sometimes in the park you can see a black stork (whose nesting site is still a mystery), golden eagle, white-tailed eagle, peregrine falcon and osprey.
Another rare bird that has disappeared from the coast of Lake Baikal and lives in small numbers in the Chivyrkuisky Bay is the great cormorant.
Many species of birds arrange their nests in swamps hidden from human eyes and located mostly on the Chivyrkui Isthmus. Here is also the leastthe transformed ecosystem of the world - the Arangatui swamps, which are inhabited by elk, capercaillie, muskrats.
The most numerous group of waterfowl is the mallard, goldeneye, pintail, whooper swan, teal whistle and red-headed pochard.
There are also owl birds in the park: marsh and long-eared owls, the Ural owl, eagle owl and snowy owl - very rare guests, found only in winter or in places where the human foot rarely steps.
The national parks of Buryatia, including the Zabaikalsky National Park, are rich in various representatives of the underwater world. Thus, perch, ide, Siberian grayling, dace, burbot, omul, Baikal sturgeon, pike, roach and endemic species - small golomyanka.
Zabaikalsky National Park: how to get there
The closest settlement to the park is the village of Ust-Barguzin.
You can get here by land or water. The optimal route by land is the services of private transport, which departs from Irkutsk along the coast of Lake Baikal. From the capital of the Republic of Buryatia - the city of Ulan-Ude - you can get to the park by fixed-route taxi or regular bus.
The distance to the reserve is about 275 km and the journey takes about 5-6 hours.
Be aware that most of the way is on a gravel road. For people who prefer the water route, from the port of Baikal, as well as from the villages of Khuzhir, Nizhneangarsk andPrivate flights leave Listvyanka.
Visiting this park, you will not regret it for a minute, because it is not only the hallmark of Baikal, but also a real oasis of natural wonders, which are so rich in the Trans-Baikal Territory!
