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Voronina (Voroninsky) Nature Reserve (russian: Воронинский заповедник) is a strict ecological reserve (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 ...
'') located in the valley of the Vorona River (the right tributary of the
Khopyor River The Khopyor (, also transliterated as Khoper) is a river in European Russia, the biggest left tributary of the river Don.Х ...
), in the forest-steppe zone of southwest
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 ...
. The Voroninsky Reserve protects riverine wetlands in the southeast of the Oka–Don Plain. The reserve is situated in Kirsanovsky and Inzhavinsky districts of
Tambov Oblast Tambov Oblast (russian: Тамбо́вская о́бласть, ''Tambovskaya oblast'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Tambov. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 1,091,994. Geo ...
, about 100 km southeast of the city of
Tambov Tambov (, ; rus, Тамбов, p=tɐmˈbof) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Tambov Oblast, Central Federal District, central Russia, at the confluence of the Tsna River (Moksha basin), Tsna and ...
. It was created in 1994, and covers an area of .


Topography

The Voronina Reserve has a terrain that is relatively flat river valley plain, with some spurs of the
Central Uplands The Central UplandsDickinson (1964), p.18 ff. (german: die MittelgebirgeN.B. In German die ''Mittelgebirge'' (plural) refers to the Central Uplands; das ''Mittelgebirge'' refers to a low mountain range or upland region (''Mittel'' = "medium" and ...
. The river valley, of glacial alluvial origin, is 2–6 km wide, and at the most 60–70 meters below the adjacent plateau. The average altitude is about 160 meters above sea level. About 78% of the reserve is wooded, and the remainder is wetlands and open field. The reserve consists of two large protected areas along the river, and 10 smaller sectors spread around the center. The main central feature is the Vorona River, which flows at this point southeast to the Khopyor River and then to the
Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vill ...
. The ground cover is "black soil", with the richest soil in the lowest levels. The two main sectors are
Official Map
: * Inzhavinsky forest (4,990 ha). * Kirsanovsky forest (5,330 ha).


Ecoregion and climate

Voronina is located in the ''
East European forest steppe The East European forest steppe ecoregion (WWF ID: PA0419) is a patchwork of broadleaf forest stands and grasslands (steppe) that stretches 2,100 km across eastern Europe from the Ural Mountains in Ural, through Povolzhye, Central Russia to the m ...
'' ecoregion, a transition zone between the broadleaf forests of the north and the grasslands to the south.. This ecoregion is characterized by a mosaic of forests, steppe, and riverine wetlands. The climate of Voronina 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. In the Voronina Reserve, the average temperature in January is , and is in July. The growing season is 182–185 days. Average precipitation is from 470 to 560 mm/year.


Flora and fauna

The floodplain forests are dominated by 100–150 year old oak. In these areas, under-story oak is almost non-existent now as the Norway maple and elm take their place. The slope forests (on the right side of the Vorona) are generally narrow (under 1 km) and contain old-growth forests of oak, linden, maple and elm. The meadow steppe areas of the floodplain are grasslands with extensive nettles at the top tier, and with scattered alder communities. The alder forests have been historically affected by logging and agricultural use, but have been protected since 1964, and were the subject of
reforestation Reforestation (occasionally, reafforestation) is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation, but also after clearcutting. Management A debate ...
around that time. There are poplar and birch floral communities along the old riverbeds. The animal life of the reserve is representative of the southern forest-steppe.


Ecoeducation and access

As a strict nature reserve, the Voronina Reserve is mostly closed to the general public, although scientists and those with 'environmental education' purposes can make arrangements with park management for visits. There are 8 'ecotourist' routes in the reserve, however, that are open to the public; these require permits to be obtained in advance. The main office is in the city of Inzhavino.


See also

* List of Russian Nature Reserves (class 1a 'zapovedniks') *
National parks of Russia There are currently 64 national parks in Russia. Together they cover approximately . Overview Until the 1960s only nature reserves and ''zakazniks'' existed in the Soviet Union, so international experience in creating a form of protected areas i ...


References


External links


Map of the Reserve (official website)

Map of Voronina Reserve, OpenStreetMap

Map of Voronina Reserve, ProtectedPlanet
{{Russian Zapovedniks 1994 establishments in Russia Geography of Tambov Oblast Nature reserves in Russia Protected areas established in 1994 Zapovednik