Losiny Ostrov is a forested area on the territory of Moscow (the districts of Metrogorodok, Golyanovo, Bogorodskoye and, slightly, Sokolniki and Yaroslavsky) and the Moscow Region (urban districts of Balashikha, Korolev, Mytishchi and Shchelkovo). The largest forest area in Moscow and the largest among the forests located within the city (Moscow part of the forest). Since 1983, it has the status of a national park, formed simultaneously with Sochi. Specially protected area of federal significance, category II according to the IUCN classification.
The total area of the national park in 2001 was
116.215 km². The forest occupies 96.04 km² (83% of the territory), of
which 30.77 km² (27%) are within the city of Moscow. The rest is
occupied by water bodies - 1.69 km² (2%) and a swamp - 5.74 km² (5%). An
additional 66.45 km² has been prepared for the expansion of the park.
The park is divided into five functional zones:
Protected area,
access and any economic activity are strictly prohibited - 1.8 km² (1.5%
of the territory);
Specially protected zone, access is allowed in
agreement with the administration or accompanied by park employees -
42.9 km² (34.6%);
The zone of protection of historical and cultural
monuments, open to the public, activities that change the historical
appearance of the landscape are prohibited - 0.9 km² (0.7%);
Recreational area, open for free visits - 65.6 km² (52.8%);
The
economic zone includes objects that are important for the life of the
park and adjacent residential areas - 12.9 km² (10.4%).
It
includes 6 forest parks: Yauzsky and Losinoostrovsky (located within
Moscow), as well as Mytishinsky, Losinopogonny, Alekseevsky and
Shchelkovsky near Moscow. Geographically, the park is located at the
borders of the Meshcherskaya lowland and the southern spurs of the
Klin-Dmitrov ridge, which is the watershed between the Moscow River and
the Klyazma. The terrain is a slightly hilly plain. The height above sea
level ranges from 146 m (floodplain of the Yauza River) to 175 m. The
relief is the flattest in the central part of the park. The most
picturesque is the southwestern part of the park, where the terraces
over the Yauza floodplain have rather steep slopes.
The sources
of the Yauza and Pekhorka rivers are on the territory of the park. The
natural channel of the Yauza was significantly destroyed during peat
extraction in 1950-1970; the channel of the Pekhorka has changed a lot
during the construction of the Akulovskaya hydroelectric power station.
On the territory of Losiny Ostrov, several small rivers and streams flow
into the Yauza, including Ichka and Budaika.
River valley Yauza in the Bogorodskoye area (Moscow)
Taiga near Moscow: old coniferous and mixed forests, (Moscow)
Alekseevskaya grove and Alekseevsky (Bulganinsky) pond (Balashikha)
Yauza wetland complex and Mytishchi water intake station (Mytishchi)
Korzhevsky plantings (man-made forest park landscape on the border with
the city of Korolev)
Quarry near st. Peat enterprise (Korolyov)
Moose Biostation. Works since 2002. It opened in
December 2015 after renovation. Here you can touch and feed the moose,
learn everything about his life.
Arboretum. Opened in 2014. Three
topics are intertwined in the theme of the exposition - the diversity of
Russian forests, the fauna of the Moscow region and the work of forest
workers. The arboretum is located next to Alekseevskaya grove (a site of
200-year-old pine and linden forests). In the landscape of the grove,
the features of the planning of a country estate of the turn of the
17th-18th centuries are still traced, barrows of the 12th century.
Museum "Russian way of life". Exists since 1998, renovated in 2015. The
peasant and suburban life of the turn of the 19th-20th centuries and the
economy of the Vyatichi during the colonization of the valley of the
river are shown. Moscow (X century).
Birdwatching tower on the
Chugunny Bridge (Mytishchi). From the tower, shallow waters and reed
thickets are clearly visible. Interesting to visit in spring and autumn,
during the migration.
Until the middle of the 20th century, the area was known as Pogonny Elk Island. This name comes from the era of court hunting: the island is a grove among cultivated land, linear - from the "hunt", dog hunting; moose - from the largest object of hunting.
Elk Island has been known since 1406. From the 15th to
the 17th centuries, the lands were part of the Taininskaya palace
volost, the lands of which from ancient times served as hunting grounds
for Russian princes and tsars. So, in 1564, Ivan IV hunted bears here.
In general, the reserve regime was maintained for Losiny Ostrov. In
1799, the forests were transferred to the department of the treasury and
the first topographic survey was carried out; The forest is divided into
quarters, the area of each is equal to a square verst. The first
forestry was founded here in 1842, at the same time, the senior tax
inspector Yegor Grimme and the junior tax inspector Nikolai Shelgunov
completed the first forest ordering. According to its results, the
dominance of spruce (67%) was noted in the forest fund, which was
subsequently replaced by pine and birch.
The word "island" in
central Russia called a forest area in the steppe, a hill on the plain,
a "mane", low and flat-topped mounds, hills. In one of these meanings,
the word "island" became the basis for the name of the village of Ostrov
in the Moscow region. In the toponym “Losiny Ostrov”, the term “island”
is used in the sense of “a piece of forest” and “forest grove”.
In 1844, the forester Vasily Gershner laid the foundation for the
creation of man-made forests in Losiny Ostrov. Active silvicultural
work, mainly sowing and planting pine, has been carried out for 115
years. These plantings are still resistant to intense anthropogenic
impact. In the second half of the 19th century, clearings were cut for
forest ventilation and some small areas with old trees were cleared.
The growth of the population of Moscow in the second half of the
19th century caused a dacha boom, and the development of railways
determined popular destinations. In 1898, a marshalling yard at the 10th
verst (now Losinoostrovskaya) was opened near the forest, and the rapid
development of the village of Losinoostrovsk began. During this period,
the area, known as Pogonno-Losiny-Ostrov, becomes a popular vacation
spot for local residents and summer residents. In 1903-1908 the forest
was cut through by the Moscow circular railway. In the 1910s, botanical
and entomological excursions were made to Pogonno-Losiny-Ostrov. The
forest is described as consisting mainly of pine, spruce and linden. The
fauna consists of hazel grouse, pigeons, thrushes, falcon, hawk, kite,
crow, eagle owl and owl. Watch foxes, hares, squirrels, ferrets,
hedgehogs. Moose are found closer to Bolshiye Mytishchi. There are
almost no songbirds. There are a lot of hazel, raspberries, blueberries,
lingonberries and wild strawberries, cranberries are found in peat
glades. There are few mushrooms. There are lodges in the forest where
there is a samovar, milk, and honey.
The idea of creating a
national park as early as 1912 was put forward by the head of the
forestry, collegiate adviser Sergey Vasilyevich Dyakov. In 1934, Losiny
Ostrov was included in the 50-kilometer "green belt" around Moscow.
Most of the forest was cut down during the Great Patriotic War. In
1943, a decision was made to restore the forest fund of Losiny Island.
The implementation of the plan began in 1944. In 1979, by a joint
decision of the Moscow City and Regional Councils of People's Deputies,
Losiny Ostrov was transformed into a natural park, and on August 24,
1983, a national park was formed by a decision of the Council of
Ministers of the RSFSR.
In September 2006, Moscow Mayor Yuri
Luzhkov sent a letter to the Government of Russia with a request to
reduce the area of the national park on the territory of Moscow by 150
hectares (it was planned to lay the route of the Fourth Transport Ring
in this territory, as well as build a cottage settlement -
"Ambassadorial Town"). It was proposed to compensate for these
territories at the expense of the Gorensky Forest Park of the Balashikha
Special Forestry (Moscow Region). In January 2007, the Russian
Government denied the Moscow mayor's request to change the boundaries of
Losiny Ostrov.
In September 2016, the Belokamennaya station of
the Moscow Central Ring was opened directly on the territory of the
national park.
In March 2019, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
announced that he would instruct the Ministry of Natural Resources to
change the boundaries of the Losiny Ostrov park in the Moscow region in
order to modernize a section of the Shchelkovo highway. It is planned to
exclude 140 hectares of territory from the composition of the national
park, of which 54 are forest plantations. In return, Losiny Ostrov will
be given almost 2,000 hectares of other forests near Moscow. Greenpeace
Russia appealed to the Prosecutor General's Office to prevent the
seizure of land from the Losiny Ostrov park. TV presenter and
environmentalist Nikolai Drozdov appealed to the governor of the Moscow
region Andrei Vorobyov to save Losiny Ostrov.
Alekseevsky forest park
Mytishchi Forest Park
Yauza Forest Park
Losinoostrovsky forest park
Losino-Popogonny
forest park
Shchelkovsky forest park
Sokolniki Park"
On March 29, 2000, Prime Minister of the Russian
Federation V. V. Putin signed a decree instructing the Federal Forestry
Service of Russia, together with the Moscow government, the
administration of the Moscow Region and the State Committee of the
Russian Federation for Environmental Protection, to develop and approve
the regulation on the Losiny Ostrov National Park and ensure control
over compliance with the regime of special protection of its territory.
The regulation on the national park, approved on June 30, 2010 by
order of the Ministry of Natural Resources, establishes a differentiated
protection regime that takes into account the natural, historical,
cultural and other features of the zoning of its territory, including:
a specially protected zone, which provides conditions for the
conservation and restoration of valuable natural complexes and objects
with strictly regulated visits;
educational tourism zone, open for
organizing environmental education and familiarization with the sights
of the national park;
a recreational area designed to organize the
recreation of visitors in natural conditions;
zone of protection of
historical and cultural objects - the most valuable (unique) monuments
of archeology, history, culture;
an economic zone intended for the
implementation of economic activities necessary to ensure the
functioning of the national park.
Scheme of functional zoning of
the territory
In order to limit the harmful anthropogenic impact of
the environment on the flora and fauna of the national park, the
Regulations on Losiny Island clearly designated the territory of its
buffer zone, within which sources of pollution of the air and water
basins must be eliminated and the construction of objects that can
damage nature is prohibited.
The boundaries of the buffer zone
were determined by a joint decision of the Moscow Regional and Moscow
City Councils of People's Deputies and their natural description was
included in the Regulations on the National Park of June 30, 2010.
The boundaries of the buffer zone
On February 9, 2011, an
agreement was signed on the interaction between the Ministry of Natural
Resources of the Russian Federation and the Government of Moscow to
ensure the functioning of the Losiny Ostrov National Park in order to
realize the right of Muscovites to a favorable environment and preserve
the unique natural complex. The agreement obliged the Ministry of
Natural Resources to coordinate with the Government of Moscow the
regulation on the regime for the use of lands included in the boundaries
of the national park and located in the urban part of the national park,
"without withdrawing them from economic exploitation."
On March
26, 2012, the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation
approved a new Regulation on the Losiny Ostrov National Park. The
regulation clarified the functional zoning of the territory of the
national park, in which the following were identified:
a protected
area, for the preservation of the natural environment in its natural
state and within the boundaries, which prohibits the implementation of
any economic activity;
a specially protected area in which, while
maintaining the natural environment in its natural state, excursions and
visits for the purpose of educational tourism are allowed;
a
recreational area used for the development of physical culture and
sports, placement of objects of the tourism industry, museums and
information centers;
zone of protection of objects of cultural
heritage (monuments of history and culture) of the peoples of the
Russian Federation, in which recreational activities are also allowed;
economic zone.
The section describing the boundaries of the
buffer zone of the national park was excluded from the new Regulations,
but it was noted that, in accordance with the legislation of the Russian
Federation, “issues of the socio-economic activities of economic
entities, as well as projects for the development of settlements located
on the territory of the national park and its buffer zone are
coordinated from the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia.
The
state importance of the mandatory arrangement of buffer zones of
specially protected natural areas is confirmed by the Decree of the
Government of the Russian Federation of February 19, 2015, which
establishes that the width of the buffer zone of the national park
should be at least one kilometer. At the same time, the Rules
specifically emphasize that the protected zones of national parks
"cannot be located within the boundaries of specially protected natural
areas of federal significance." In connection with the ongoing attempts
to use the territory of Losiny Ostrov and its buffer zone contrary to
the current regulations, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on
December 26, 2016 confirmed that “the boundaries of the national park
and its buffer zone are determined by appendices 2 and 3 to the decision
of 05/04/1979 No. 1190 -543.
In August 2017, the head of the
press service of the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian
Federation, in an interview with RIA Novosti, confirmed that “the
protected zone does not provide for economic activities that have a
negative impact on the national park, including housing construction.”
The boundaries of the protected zone of Losiny Ostrov are indicated
on information boards and marked on the ground with special warning
signs.
At the end of 2019, the Ministry of Natural Resources, in
a new draft regulation on buffer zones of specially protected natural
areas, proposed to allow not only the possibility of changing and
terminating the existence of buffer zones, but also allowing the
construction of social facilities and residential buildings in them that
do not have a “negative impact on natural complexes”.
On December 14, 2009, the Arbitration Court of the
Moscow Region, at the request of the regional prosecutor's office, ruled
to demolish the house. The Federal Arbitration Court of the Moscow
District upheld this decision.
The developed general plan of the
urban district of Balashikha, approved by the Council of Deputies and
personally by the head of the urban district V. G. Samodelov in December
2005, contained unreliable information about the boundaries of the
National Park and partially provided for its development. The boundary
of the park indicated on the plan receded from the established boundary
in some areas up to 400 meters.
Thus, in violation of the current
legislation, the document was not submitted to the Department of
Rosprirodnadzor for the Central Federal District and was not approved
and was adopted in violation of the Federal Law "On Specially Protected
Natural Territories". This law provides that the issues of
socio-economic activity of economic entities, as well as development
projects for settlements located in the territories of the respective
national parks and their protected zones, are coordinated with the
federal executive authorities.
“During the construction of a new
Shchitnikovo microdistrict in August 2008, the developer Kifo-N
Construction Company arbitrarily fenced off a land plot located in the
49th quarter of the Alekseevsky forest park and carried out work on
arranging a foundation pit and a trench. As a result, the soil was
damaged on an area of 3764 m² and forest crops were destroyed on an area
of 1 ha. The damage amounted to over 62 million 792 thousand rubles,”
the Prosecutor General’s Office stated.
On the fact of illegal
felling of trees with unauthorized seizure of the territory, a criminal
case was initiated, which was investigated by the investigative
department at the Internal Affairs Directorate for the urban district of
Balashikha. However, the criminal case was later closed. Construction
work was stopped in 2009, but the already occupied territory was not
returned to the national park. As of 2017, it housed two new Balashikha
microdistricts. In addition, for their residents, the Moscow authorities
were allowed to cut down another 0.3 hectares of forest.
The national park is located in the subzone of
deciduous-spruce forests of the Valdai-Onega sub-province of the North
European taiga province of the Eurasian taiga region. More than 500
species of vascular plants grow in Losiny Ostrov, including 32 tree
species and 37 shrub species. Forest-forming tree species are birch (46%
of the forested area), pine (22%), spruce (16%), linden (13%), oak (3%).
The share of other breeds is insignificant. Widely represented are
species of herbaceous plants classified as rare and subject to
protection on the territory of Moscow and the Moscow region (common
wolfberry, lily of the valley, European bathing suit, peach-leaved bell,
nettle-leaved bell, green-flowered lyubka, two-leaved lyubka, real
nesting, etc.) Here is the only place in the near Moscow region, where
the noble liverwort naturally grows.
The fauna includes more than
280 species of vertebrates, including more than 160 species of birds, 38
species of mammals; 15 species are fish, 10 are amphibians (of which
only 6 species were reliably confirmed based on the results of
monitoring in 2020 - the common toad, common newt, crested newt, lake
frog, grass frog and moor frog, and 2 are reptiles. According to the
information of the maintenance service staff and improvement of the
national park, at the beginning of 2013, 70 elks, 300 spotted deer, 200
wild boars, 300 hares lived on the territory of Losiny Ostrov, there are
also foxes, American minks, raccoon dogs, squirrels, hazel dormouse,
beavers, muskrats, bank voles, wood mice, goshawks, white-tailed eagles,
ospreys and many other birds).
Birds included in the Red Book of the Russian
Federation and noted in Losiny Ostrov: Gray Shrike, White-tailed Eagle,
Osprey, Titmouse.
Flora: Curly Sparassis, Baltic Dactylorhiza,
Dog Mutinus, Coral Blackberry.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, wild fauna
has been exterminated by packs of stray dogs living in the park.
According to the Izvestia newspaper, packs of 10-15 dogs in the park
hunt young boars and deer, repelling them from their parents, destroy
ground bird nests, catch squirrels, ermines, ferrets and other animals.
According to Boris Samoilov, editor-in-chief of the Red Book of Moscow,
stray dogs have almost completely destroyed the spotted deer in the
park.
The deputy director of the national park, Vladimir Sobolev,
reported in 2009 that there were 5 incidents in the previous winter
associated with the death of animals as a result of attacks by dog
packs: deer, elk and wild boar were killed.
According to the
newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets, which refers to the employees of the
national park, 17 Far Eastern deer were brought to the protected part of
Losiny Ostrov in the 1960s. At the beginning of the 21st century, the
herd numbered about 200 individuals. However, since 2005, employees
began to find gnawed skeletons of deer, which were the victims of
attacks by stray dogs. Only in one winter of 2008-2009, as a result of
attacks by dogs, 17 deer died, which is about 10% of the herd, the
publication claims.
Poaching
In February 2021, the media
reported that 16 killed sika deer with bullet wounds were allegedly
found in the Losiny Ostrov park. Representatives of the park said that
the deer were victims of stray dogs, experts interviewed by the media
adhere to the same version.
The village of Mosvodokanal, Suponevo, Balashikha (microdistrict Abramtsevo), Novy Svet, Dolgoe Ledovo, Oboldino, Korolev (microdistricts Peat enterprise, Pogonny, 12th switch, Oboldino).