What-what, but Russia is not deprived of natural beauties! And one of its most unique corners is the Polistovsky Reserve, a photo of which is presented in this article. But it is better, of course, not to limit yourself to viewing pictures, but to see this piece of paradise with your own eyes. This amazing place will be discussed further.
Geographic characteristics
The Polistovsky Reserve is located in the Russian hinterland and covers an area of almost thirty-eight thousand hectares in the west of the Valdai Upland in the Pskov region (Bezhanitsky district). The Polist River flows through its territory, after which it is named. In the east, it borders on another nature protection zone - the State Rdeisky Reserve, in the Nizhny Novgorod Region.
If we talk about zonal division, then the Polistovsky Reserve is taiga and coniferous-deciduous forests. The climate here is temperate continental, characterized by fairly mild, cloudy winters. Frequent fogs and high humidity are the main distinguishing features of theseplaces. And there is also a very complex land cover with a predominance of sod-podzolic, peat bog and sod-gley loamy soils.
History of Creation
Polistovsky State Reserve is relatively young. It was officially registered only in 1994. But the hunting reserve, on the basis of which the reserve was created, has existed here since the seventy-seventh year. And they began to study the Polistovsky swamps even earlier - in 1909. Academician Vladimir Nikolayevich Sukachev supervised the research work.
The territory of the reserve has long been a "promised land" for domestic geobotanists and bog scientists who searched and found unique material for their dissertations and doctoral works on it. In 1992, botanist students of Moscow State University conducted the most serious floristic research here, describing the vegetation (272 species) of Russian raised bogs.
The Polistovsky nature reserve is the largest nature protection object of federal significance. In terms of the abundance and diversity of swamps, it has no equal not only in the northwestern part of the Russian Federation, but throughout Europe.
The meaning of the reserve
The Polistovo-Lovatskaya bog system, within which the reserve is located, was formed about ten thousand years ago and, compared to others similar to it, is very well preserved. Getting here, a person seems to be transferred to ancient times and has the opportunity to see the pristine nature in all its glory. Since the seventy-third year, these places have been under the care of an international project"Thelma", which included the swamp system in the list of protected objects.
Polistovsky nature reserve is of great importance not only in terms of tourism, which has been actively developing here lately, but also (primarily) in terms of science and education. For students of biology and swamp scientists, you will not find a better visual aid.
Ecosystem uniqueness
What is the uniqueness of the Polistovo-Lovatskaya bog system? Why is she cherished like the apple of an eye? It's all about the magical properties of raised bogs, which occupy about eighty percent of the reserve.
Fifteen wetlands have merged into one gigantic body of water, acting as a natural filter. All pollutants (chlorine, metals, radionuclides, etc.) are absorbed by peat, and the result is the purest, almost distilled water. It feeds on the Neva River, Lake Ilmen, the Gulf of Finland and other water bodies of the region.
In addition, the raised bog purifies the air, ridding it of excess carbon dioxide with the help of plants. The latter absorb the harmful element, which over time also becomes part of the peat deposits.
Flora of the Polistovsky Reserve
The features of the protected area create ideal conditions for marsh algae, the world of which is extremely rich and diverse here. On the territory of the Polistovsky Reserve, there are also about seven hundred species of various plants -most of the object is occupied by coniferous-deciduous forests.
The herbaceous layer is represented by mosses, oak anemone, stone berry, heather, cottongrass, cassandra, bought many-flowered, etc. Spruce, oak, ash, elm, linden, maple, hazel, dwarf birch predominate among tree species. Typical for this area are cloudberry, marsh cranberry, sundew, as well as an orchid that adorns the local meadows.
The Polistovsky Reserve is also a storehouse of rare plants listed in the Red Book. Among them are marsh gammaria, Siberian iris, B altic palmate root, tender sphagnum, marsh sphagnum and many others.
Fauna: animals of the Polistovsky Reserve
The fauna of the Polistovsky Reserve also includes representatives of the Red Book. Especially a lot of them among birds. So, for example, the Central Russian ptarmigan, osprey, black-throated diver, gray crane, white-tailed eagle and golden eagle living here are under the threat of extinction. Curlew (the largest population in Europe), southern golden plover, gray shrike, etc. also nest on the territory of the reserve.
The amphibious "population" is calculated by only three species of animals - the common toad, common frog and moor frog. Of the reptiles, one can recall the viviparous lizard, the spindle and the common viper.
But the mammals of the Polistovsky Reserve are represented quite widely: rare flying squirrel, mink and red evening; more common elk, lynx,roe deer, wolf, wild boar, bear, etc. - thirty-six species in total.
As for swampy lakes, they are not very rich in underwater life. The most common predators are pike and perch. And in Lake Polisto you can also meet pike perch, burbot, bream, roach, sabrefish and ide.
Tourist aspect
The Polistovsky Reserve, of course, is vigilantly protected from human influence, which can be detrimental to nature. In some corners, outsiders are strictly forbidden to enter. But the tourist component is still present here.
Recently, more and more often you can find ads from travel agencies advertising a protected area. Guests are lured by the dark, like coffee, water of lakes and rivers, ecological paths, hiking and water routes, acquaintance with beavers, picking cranberries and many other things that are especially valuable in the modern urbanized world, not only from the point of view of a scientist, but also an ordinary city dweller. tired of the bustle of the metropolis.
