Rdeysky Nature Reserve, Rdeysky Zapovednik (russian: Рдейский заповедник) is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

(a ''

zapovednik Zapovednik (russian: заповедник, plural , from the Russian , 'sacred, prohibited from disturbance, committed o protect committed o heritage; ) is an established term on the territory of the former Soviet Union for a protected area whi ...

'') in the northwest of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, located in Poddorsky and Kholmsky Districts of Novgorod Oblast, in the Polist-Lovat Swamp System. The reserve is about 180 km southeast of the city of

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

. It was established on May 25, 1994. The nature reserve is created to protect the

raised bog Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation ( ombro ...

ecosystems of the Northwestern Russia.

Location and geography

The area of the reserve is elongated from southeast to northwest and is adjacent to the border between Novgorod and

Pskov Oblast Pskov Oblast (russian: Пско́вская о́бласть, ') is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the west of the country. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, ...

s. At the other side of the border, in Pskov Oblast, the nature reserve continues as

Polistovsky Nature Reserve Polistovsky Nature Reserve, Polistovsky Zapovednik (russian: Полистовский заповедник) is a strict nature reserve (a ''zapovednik'') in the northwest of Russia, located in Bezhanitsky and Loknyansky Districts of Pskov Oblast ...

. Rdeysky Nature Reserve belongs to the river basins of the Lovat River and the Polist River, though none of them flows through the reserve.

Lake Rdeyskoye A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

, a major lake at the northwest of the reserve of which a part of the shore belongs to the reserve, is the source of the

Redya River The Redya (russian: Редья) is a river in Kholmsky, Poddorsky, Starorussky, and Parfinsky Districts of Novgorod Oblast in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Lovat. It is long, and the area of its basin . The source of the Redya is in ...

, a major left tributary of the Lovat River.

History

There are currently no villages at the territory of the reserve; however, in the past it was populated, and the last village existed until

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The villages were located on islands in the middle of the swamp, and their inhabitants were collecting timber. Small-scale timber production was continuing after the war as well, but the area was too remote to support the settlements. No irrigation work has ever been performed in the area, and the raised bogs remain intact. In 1994, both Rdeysky and Polistovsky Nature Reserves were established to protect the area.

Ecoregion and climate

The reserve is located in one of the most southerly locations of the '' Scandinavian and Russian taiga'' ecoregion. This ecoregion is situated in Northern Europe between tundra in the north and temperate mixed forests in the south. The climate is '' Humid continental climate, warm summer'' (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

(Dfb)). This climate is characterized by large swings in temperature, both diurnally and seasonally, with mild summers and cold, snowy winters

Flora

The area mostly consists of

s. Forest grows on the islands on the bog. The main types forest are coniferous forests based on

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

and broadleaf forest, based on

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

and linden.

Birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...

and

aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the ''Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (China ...

appeared as derivative forest from oak and linden. Around 400 species of plants grow in the reserve.

Fauna

European mink is a critically endangered mammal species which is resident in the reserve. The reserve hosts the largest population of

Eurasian curlew The Eurasian curlew or common curlew (''Numenius arquata'') is a very large wader in the family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across temperate Europe and Asia. In Europe, this species is often referred t ...

in Europe.

References

External links

Map of Rydesky, from OpenStreetMap.org
{{Russian Zapovedniks Geography of Novgorod Oblast Nature reserves in Russia Protected areas established in 1994 1994 establishments in Russia Zapovednik