Ugra National Park, Russia

 

Description of Ugra National Park

The Ugra National Park is located in the Kaluga region, in the valleys of the Ugra, Zhizdra, Vyssa and Oka rivers. The Ugra National Park was established in 1997 by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 148 of February 10, 1997. Since 2002, it has been a UNESCO biosphere reserve. The national park is located in the six administrative districts of the Kaluga region: Yukhnovsky, Iznoskovsky, Dzerzhinsky, Peremyshlsky, Babyninsky and Kozelsky. The total area of ​​the park is 98 623 ha (of which 43 432 ha are forest land, 1,326 ha are owned by the water fund, 53 375 ha are land without withdrawal).

The Ugra National Park consists of three sections - Ugorsky (64,184 hectares), Vorotynsky (3,171 hectares) and Zhizdrinsky (31,268 hectares), and three separate clusters. The protection zone around the park is 46,109 hectares. The territory of the park has long been a tourist area, the water routes along the Ugra, Zhizdre and Oka are very popular.
 
During the Great Patriotic War, the Ugra River became the site of the battles of the Soviet and German troops. German troops carried out the offensive from the flat coast, and the Soviet troops carried out the defense from the steep bank.

 

Features of the park

The valley character of the territory, the main axes of which are the rivers Ugra, Zhizdra and Oka.
A considerable length of the park. It crosses the entire territory of the region with a narrow dotted line.
National Park "Ugra" is located on long-developed lands.
Motorways that cross the territory of the park make it accessible at any time of the year.
The territory of the park is located near large settlements, as well as close to Moscow.
Combination of different landscape provinces, mosaic of physical and geographical conditions and natural-territorial complexes on the territory of the park.
Many objects of historical and cultural heritage, which are closely related to the history and evolution of natural complexes.
The richness and diversity of historically formed cultural landscapes.
The key ornithological areas of international importance, "Zhyzdra Valley" and "Tyshivska Darshkin", as well as two areas of regional importance - "Zalidovsky Meadows" and "Galky Swamp" are located within the park.
The park includes 20 natural monuments of regional importance.

 

Geography

Relief

The modern topography and landscapes of the park are the result of the Oka and Moscow glaciations of the Quaternary period, and are also related to the peculiarities of the tectonic structure of this area. In particular, the formation of the relief and hydrography of the territory was influenced by the Kaluzka-Biel deep tectonic structure, as well as the Kozel local uplift in the coal deposits. The territory of the national park is located within two physical and geographical provinces: Smolensk-Moscow (Ukrainian section) and Central Russia (Zhyzdryn and Vorotyn areas).

 

Climate

The climate of the Ugra National Park is moderately continental with distinct seasonality. Characteristic features of the climate: warm summers, moderately cold winters with stable snow cover, and well-defined, but shorter transition periods - spring and autumn. The geographical location of the park is decisive in the variety of climatic conditions.

The average annual air temperature of the last three decades is positive and is +5.0 ... +5.5°C, which is 0.7°C higher than the climatic norm. The coldest month of the year is February, with an air temperature of -7 ... -8°С. The lowest temperature for the entire observation period was recorded in January 1940 (-42...-48°С). In low-lying and wind-protected places, the absolute minimum reached -48...-52°С. July is the warmest month of the year. The average temperature this month fluctuates around 18°С. In some years, on hot days, the maximum air temperature reached +36...+39°С.

The average annual rainfall is 650-700 mm. The territory of the national park belongs to the zone of sufficient moisture. The maximum height of the snow cover at the end of February is from 20 to 30 cm. In the park, south and southwest winds prevail in the cold season and north and west winds in the warm season.

 

Water objects

Surface waters occupy about 3% of the total area of the national park, including rivers, small lakes and swamps. About 90 rivers, brooks and streams with a length of at least 1 km flow through the territory, their total length within the park is more than 530 km. All of them belong to the Caspian Sea basin (Volga River). The main rivers, the Ugra and Zhizdra, are left tributaries of the Oka River in its upper reaches.

The largest river is the Ugra, the area of the basin is 15,700 square km. The length is 399 km, the sources are located in the Smolensk region. The length of Ugra within Kaluga Oblast is 162 km, of which 152 km are within the park. The river valley is a floodplain, the width of the floodplain is 1-2 km, the width of the valley in the lower reaches reaches 3.5 km, the width of the channel in the lower reaches is 70-80 m. The depth to the edge on the rapids is 40-60 cm, on the floodplains - up to 4 m The average water flow speed is 0.4-0.6 m/s.

 

The plant world

The total afforestation of the territory of the Ugra National Park is about 63%. The dominant species here are: pine (37% of the area covered by forest), spruce (22%), birch (21%), aspen (9%), oak (7%), ash (2%).

The territory of the Ugranska site belongs to the zone of mixed forests and is located in the swamp-forest fir-oak district (north-western part) and the forest fir-oak district (south-eastern part).

The Zhyzdryna section of the park is also located in the zone of mixed forests. The valley of the Zhizdra River acts as a sharp natural border between the left-bank landscapes of the Meshchovsky Opillia, which are almost completely plowed, and the forested zander plains on the right bank.

The territory of the national park is unique from a botanical and geographical point of view. Today, the park has 1,142 species of vascular plants (about 960 of them indigenous), which makes up about 90% of the natural flora of the Kaluga region. All plant groups that are in the region are presented here.

The significant length of the territory from north to south (more than 100 km) has a noticeable effect on the change of plant complexes.

In the national park "Ugra" there are 140 species of plants included in the regional Red Book, about 30 of them can be found only here. Among them: common centipede, branchy marigold, Russian young, peach-leaved or pond violet, water walnut, etc. 6 species of plants are included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. These are feathery hemlocks, real cuckoo shoes, long-leaved buttercup, baltic foxglove, helmet-bearing cuckoo, neotiantha capturuvata. Cuckoo boots are also included in the list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

 

Fauna

About 90% of the species diversity of the region is found among the animals of the Ugra National Park. Currently, there are more than 300 species of vertebrates here. Of them, 20% live on the edge of their range. The combination of several geographical zones within the park determines the mixed nature of the fauna. Taiga, Central European and steppe species are found here. This determines the high degree of species biological diversity.

On the territory of the park live: 2 species of roundmouths, 33 species of fish, 11 species of amphibians, 5 species of reptiles, 210 species of birds (25% are migratory) and 52 species of mammals. Almost 40% of animal species breed on the territory of the park.

The list of rare and endangered species of the Kaluga region includes 1 species of roundmouth, 5 species of fish, 54 species of birds and 12 species of mammals. 20 species of vertebrates are listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. These are common or Russian swifts, common goshawks, European black-necked loons, black storks, ospreys, steppe harriers, white-tailed eagles, great ospreys, little ospreys, burying-birds, golden eagles, snake-eaters, peregrine falcons, magpies, great owls, common owls, middle spotted woodpecker, gray magpie, Russian crested woodpecker, giant woodpecker. In addition, 20 species of vertebrates are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

According to preliminary estimates, the invertebrate fauna within the park includes several thousand species. Among the studied species, 8 are included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, and 22 species are included in the list of rare local importance.