Central Forest Nature Reserve (russian: Центрально-Лесной заповедник) (also, Tsentralno-Lesnoi) is ''

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 which ...

'' (strict ecological reserve) in the north-west of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, located in Andreapolsky and Nelidovsky Districts of

Tver Oblast Tver Oblast (russian: Тверска́я о́бласть, ''Tverskaya oblast'', ), from 1935 to 1990 known as Kalinin Oblast (), is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inh ...

, in the upper course of the Mezha River. It was established on 4 May 1930. The nature reserve is created to protect the conifer forest in the upper course of the

Western Dvina River , be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna , image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png , image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava , source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia , mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...

. Since 1985, it is classified as UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.

Geography

The nature reserve is located at the south-western part of the

Valdai Hills The Valdai Hills (russian: Валда́йская возвы́шенность, Valdáyskaya vozvýshennost'), sometimes referred to as just Valdai (russian: Валда́й, Valdáy), are an upland region in the north-west of central European Ru ...

, close to the divide between the drainage basins of the Atlantic (the Western Dvina and the Lovat) and the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...

(the

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchm ...

). It includes a part of the lake district which is formed at the divide. The landscape within the nature reserve is mainly hilly, with a large area occupied by swamps. The altitude varies between to .

Ecoregion and climate

The reserve is in the ''

Sarmatic mixed forests The Sarmatic mixed forests constitute an ecoregion within the temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature classification (ecoregion PA0436). The term comes from the word "Sarmatia". Distribution This e ...

'' ecoregion, a band of mixed oak/spruce/pine forests stretching from southern Sweden to the Ural Mountains. The climate is '' Humid continental climate, cool 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 and fauna

The area is covered by forest, with spruce being the most common tree, followed by

silver birch ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...

, common aspen, and grey alder. The latter three species mainly grow in the areas damaged from timber logging in the 1950s. The reserve lies at the southernmost limit of the area where

dwarf birch ''Betula nana'', the dwarf birch, is a species of birch in the family Betulaceae, found mainly in the tundra of the Arctic region. Description It is a monoecious, deciduous shrub growing up to high. The bark is non-peeling and shiny red-coppe ...

grows. As of 1988, 55 mammal species could be found in the reserve. These include

Eurasian brown bear The Eurasian brown bear (''Ursus arctos arctos'') is one of the most common subspecies of the brown bear, and is found in much of Eurasia. It is also called the European brown bear, common brown bear, common bear, and colloquially by many othe ...

, lynx, red fox,

moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...

, and

roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

Eurasian beaver The Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber'') or European beaver is a beaver species that was once widespread in Eurasia, but was hunted to near-extinction for both its fur and castoreum. At the turn of the 20th century, only about 1,200 beavers survi ...

was reintroduced in 1936. There were 195 species of birds, 6 species of amphibians, and several reptile species as well.

History

Field research aimed at establishing a nature reserve in Central Russia started in 1926. The area south of the current location of the nature reserve was designated, however, the nature reserve was not established, and timber companies quickly cut all the forest there, so that the nature reserve had to be established in the upper course of the Mezha. The nature reserve was established on 4 May 1930 and opened on 31 December 1931. It contained two parts, one at the current location and another one close to the Zemtsy railway station. The total area of the reserve was . In 1951, the nature reserve was abolished, and timber production started. As a result, the whole southern part was destroyed, and about of woods were cut in the northern part. On 1 April 1960 the nature reserve was re-established, with the area of . In 1981, a protected area was created around the borders of the nature reserve. Timber logging is prohibited in this protected area.

References

External links

Relief Map of the Reserve (Central Forest Official Web Site

Map of Tsentralno-Lesnoi Nature Reserve, OpenStreetmap.org

Map of Tsentralno-Lesnoi Nature Reserve, ProtectedPlanet.net
{{Russian Zapovedniks Geography of Tver Oblast Nature reserves in Russia Protected areas established in 1930 Protected areas established in 1960 1930 establishments in Russia Zapovednik