 The
Great Arctic State
Nature Reserve – the
largest nature
reserve of Russia
and the whole Europe
- was founded on May
11, 1993 by
Resolution No.431 of
the Government of
the Russian
Federation (RF).
Geographical
location
The Nature Reserve
is located on the
Taimyr Peninsula and
on islands of the
Arctic Ocean, on the
territory of Taimyr
Autonomous Area.
This is not only the
largest nature
reserve in Russia (the
third largest in the
world), but also the
largest specially
protected territory
in the whole Eurasia.
Goal of
foundation
The main goal of the
Nature Reserve`s
foundation is the
protection of
habitat of the
nesting birds,
migrating by the
north Atlantic way (brent
goose Branta
bernicla, a lot of
sandpipers Limicolae
and other species).
A significant role
in the creation of
the Nature Reserve
was played by the
WWF and the National
Park
“Schleswig-Holstein
Wattenmeer” (where
passage and winter
stay habitats of
these species are
protected). Thanks
to their support
project works were
implemented in
1989-1993.
Area
The total area
of the Great Arctic
Nature Reserve is 4
169 222 ha, of which
980 934 ha is a
water area. Owing to
its cluster
structure it covers
the land territory
which is 1000 km
long from west to
east and 500 km long
from north to south.
The Nature Reserve
consists of seven
sections (they, in
their turn, include
34 separate clusters):
1.
Dixon-Sibiryakovsky
section (about 200
thousand ha)
includes the
Sibiryakova Island
(85 thousand ha)
with adjoining small
islands and sand
banks and the small
section “Meduza Bay”
(379 ha), where the
International
Biological Station
“Willem Barents” is
located.
2. Kara Sea Islands
section (about 400
thousand ha),
includes: the
Serguey Kirov
Archipelago, the
Voronina Island, the
Izvestiy TSIK
Islands (Archipelago),
the Arctic Institute
Islands (Archipelago),
the Sverdrup Island,
the Uedineniya
Island and a number
of smaller islands.
This section
represents rather
fully the natural
and biological
diversity of arctic
sea islands of the
eastern part of the
Kara Sea.
3. Pyasinsky section
(1.1 mln ha) covers
the delta of the
Pyasina river, the
eastern coast of the
Pyasinsky Bay and
the adjacent
sections of the
Taimyr Peninsula in
the basins of the
rivers Khutudabiga,
Spokoinaya, Lenivaya,
as well as the
western part of the
Khariton Laptev
Coast. The territory
of this section is
very diverse. 40 –
60 km south of the
section the nature
reserve is adjoined
by Pyasinsky Federal
Nature Reserve with
the area of about
900 thousand ha.,
which was organized
with the purpose of
protecting the area
of wild reindeers`
summer stay and
numerous places of
geese`s nesting and
moult.
4. Middendorf Bay
section (69 thousand
ha) is a typical,
practically
unexplored, arctic
tundra.
5. Nordensheld
Archipelago section
(about 500 thousand
ha) is the largest (except
Severnaya Zemlya)
archipelago of the
Kara Sea, consisting
of approximately 90
small, middle-sized
and several rather
large islands.
6. Nizhnyaya Taimyra
section ( 1.9 mln ha)
is the larger
section of the
nature reserve,
including the Lower
Nizhnyaya Taimyra
river and the basin
of its tributary –
the Shrenk River, as
well as the coast of
the Taimyr Bay and
the Tollya Bay.
7. Chelyuskin
Peninsula section
(35 thousand ha) has
within its limits
the world`s only
continental arctic
deserts.
Subordinate
territories and
protected area
The Federal Nature
Reserve
“Severozemelsky”
with the area of 421
701 ha and the
nature reserve of
regional importance
“Brekhovskiye
Islands” with the
area of 288 487 ha
are subordinate,
with the rights of
structural
subdivisions, to the
Great Arctic Nature
Reserve.
The protected area
was formed by
Resolution No.134 of
the Administration
of Taimyr Autonomous
Area, dated 20th
September 1994, on
the total area of 9
550 ha (the section
“Meduza Bay” – 3020
ha, the section
“Efremova Bay” –
6530 ha).
Ecological
education and
tourism
The Great Arctic
Nature Reserve
receives tourists on
a commercial basis
and has several
organized tourist
routes in the
protected area.
Conventions
The subordinate
regional nature
reserve
“Brekhovskiye
Islands” belongs to
the water-and-march
lands of
international
importance (Ramsar
Convention).
GENERAL DATA AND
HISTORY OF
FOUNDATION
The protection of
nature in the
world`s arctic zone
is an important
global ecological
problem of the
modern time. The
creation of the
circum-polar system
of arctic nature
reserves is one of
the important ways
of solving this
problem. Such
coordinated system
does not exist in
the world yet.
The idea of creation
of the Great Arctic
Nature Reserve was
not born in an
office, but during
expeditions` works
in the Arctic, in
Taimyr. In 1989 the
Arctic Expedition of
the Institute of
Ecological and
Evolutional Problems
(IEEP) of the
Russian Academy of
Sciences, then
called the Institute
of Evolutional
Morphology and
Ecology of Animals (IEMEA)
of the Academy of
Sciences of the USSR.
The works were done
jointly by Russian
and German
scientists. As a
result of
investigations in
Northern Taimyr
E.E.Syroechkovski
and P.Prokosh
formulated the idea
of organizing a
large arctic nature
reserve, which would
be representative of
the Central Arctic`s
ecosystems in Russia.
The preparation of
the Nature Reserve`s
organization,
development of its
scientific
justification and
scientific concept,
specific project
works, land
approvals,
cartographical and
other works were
being carried out
for several years
and were of
comprehensive nature.
A lot of Russian
scientists and
scientists of a
number of foreign
countries took part
in this enormous
work. They were
mostly zoologists,
but also botanists,
biogeographers,
physical geographers,
economic geographers,
goemorphologists,
soil experts,
meteorologists,
hunting experts,
ethnographers and
specialists in the
history of
development and
investigation of the
Russian Arctic.
All the works were
carried out within
the framework of the
Arctic Expedition
IEEP RAS (Head of
the Expedition –
Academician
E.E.Syroechkovski).
The employees of the
Zoological and
Botanical Institutes
of the Russian
Academy of Sciences,
the Institute of
Geography of the
Russian Academy of
Sciences, Moscow
University,
All-Russian Research
Institute of
Environmental
Protection and
Nature Reserves of
the Ministry of
Environment of RF
and others took part
in this work. Among
international and
national
environmental
organizations the
most significant
role was played by
the Wild World Fund
(WWF) in the person
of its German
division in the
Schleswig-Holstein
Land (Dr.P.Prokosh).
In 1991-1993 WWF
took a considerable
part in the
financing of the
Nature Reserve`s
foundation project.
The foreign
institutions, which
participated in the
work of the Arctic
Expedition, included
the representatives
of scientific
institutes of the
Ministry of
Agriculture, Natural
Resources and
Fishing of the
Netherlands (Dr
G.K.Bure, Dr
B.Ebbinge and others),
the Ministry of
Environmental
Protection of
Germany, the
National Service of
Hunting of France,
the British Royal
Society for Birds`
Protection and
others.
In the course of the
investigation new
theoretical
positions, important
for environmental
protection, have
been developed. One
of them, already
implemented in
practice, is the
development of
scientific
fundamentals of
nature reserves`
cluster structure of
territorial
organization and
functioning. It has
been found out that
it is under such
system, optimally
representative of
the natural and
biological diversity
of large areas of
land and water that
the most rational
spatial
environmental forms
(in this case – the
form of a nature
reserve) can be
developed. This
theoretical concept
has been now
successfully
implemented during
the organization of
the Great Arctic
Nature Reserve and
the Biospheric
Nature Reserve
“Ubsunurskaya Kettle”.
Besides, the cluster
form of nature
reserves`
organization is
cost-effective and
administratively
rational.
In 1990-1992 the
Arctic Expedition of
IEEP of RAS started
the work of choosing
the territory and
justifying the
Nature Reserve`s
organization. At the
same time profound
zoological,
botanical and other
research works were
being carried out.
These works were
conducted by
specialists from
Russia, the Ukraine
and 12 more
countries. The
research was done on
an annual basis by
five to six
expedition units
simultaneously. In
1992-1993 a special
project prospecting
group worked as a
part of the
expedition. The
group was developing
an engineering and
technical part of
the project; it was
headed by the
experienced Design
Engineer
V.V.Nikoforov.
As a result the
research has covered
the whole Northern
Taimyr with the
adjacent territories
– from Sibiryakova
Island and the
eastern part of the
Gydan Peninsula in
the West up to the
extreme points of
Eastern Taimyr, the
Preobrazheniya
Island and the Lower
Anabar river in the
East. The extreme
points in the North
are the Chelyuskin
Cape and the
Izvestiy TSIK
Islands in the Kara
Sea, and in the
South – the wood
island Ary-Mas and
the area of Labaz
Lake (Taimyrsky
nature reserve). The
most profound
research has been
carried out in the
eastern part of the
Gydan Peninsula, as
well as the
Sibiryakova Island,
the delta of the
Pyasina river and
the coast of the
Pyasinsky Bay in
Western Taimyr; the
Sterlegova Cape, the
Knipovicha Bay, the
basin of the
Gusinaya River and
the Lower Nizhnyaya
Taimyra River in
Northern Taimyr; the
area of
Pronchishcheva Lake
and the Kuldima
River in Eastern
Taimyr; the
Preobrazheniya
Island in the Laptev
Sea, the Izvestiy
TSIK Islands, the
Sverdrup Island and
the Russkiy Island (Nordensheld
Archipelago) in the
Kara Sea. In some of
the points the works
were being carried
out during two to
four years.
The general
preliminary
information was
compiled as a Report
of more than 1000
pages. It is planned
to use this Report
as a basis for
writing a collective
monograph on the
Great Arctic Nature
Reserve. |
