The Medvezhyi Islands, or Bear Islands (russian: Медве́жьи острова́; sah, Эhэлээх арыылар, ''Eheleex Arıılar'') is an uninhabited group of islands at the western end of the

Kolyma Gulf The Kolyma Gulf ( Yakut: Халыма хомото, ''Xalıma xomoto''; Russian: Колымский залив, ''Kolymskiy Zaliv'') is the largest gulf of the East Siberian Sea. Geography The gulf is more than 300 km wide. Its limits are th ...

of the

East Siberian Sea The East Siberian Sea ( rus, Восто́чно-Сиби́рское мо́ре, r=Vostochno-Sibirskoye more) is a marginal sea in the Arctic Ocean. It is located between the Arctic Cape to the north, the coast of Siberia to the south, the New ...

History

The first recorded European to report the existence of the Medvezhyi Islands was Russian explorer

Yakov Permyakov Yakov Permyakov (russian: Яков Пермяков; died 1712) was a Russian seafarer, explorer, merchant, and Cossack. In 1710, while sailing from the Lena River to the Kolyma River, Permyakov observed the silhouette of two unknown island group ...

in 1710. While sailing from the

Lena Lena or LENA may refer to: Places * Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso * Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada * Lena, Norway, a village in ...

to the

Kolyma River The Kolyma ( rus, Колыма, p=kəlɨˈma; sah, Халыма, translit=Khalyma) is a river in northeastern Siberia, whose basin covers parts of the Sakha Republic, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, and Magadan Oblast of Russia. The Kolyma is froz ...

, Permyakov observed the silhouette of the unknown island group in the then little explored East Siberian Sea. In 1820-1824, during Ferdinand Wrangel's Arctic expedition to the East Siberian Sea and the

Chukchi Sea Chukchi Sea ( rus, Чуко́тское мо́ре, r=Chukotskoye more, p=tɕʊˈkotskəjə ˈmorʲɪ), sometimes referred to as the Chuuk Sea, Chukotsk Sea or the Sea of Chukotsk, is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is bounded on the west ...

, Arctic explorer Fyodor Matyushkin surveyed and mapped Chetyryokhstolbovoy Island in the Medvezhyi group. On September 3, 1878,

Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld Nils Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (18 November 183212 August 1901) was a Finland-Swedish aristocrat, geologist, mineralogist and Arctic explorer. He was a member of the Fenno-Swedish Nordenskiöld family of scientists and held the title of a friher ...

recorded that he sailed close to the island group in the steamship ''Vega''. This report was made during the famous expedition that made the whole length of the

Northeast passage The Northeast Passage (abbreviated as NEP) is the Arctic shipping routes, shipping route between the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, Pacific Oceans, along the Arctic coasts of Norway and Russia. The western route through the islands o ...

for the first time in history. The group was also explored during the

Arctic Ocean Hydrographic Expedition The Arctic Ocean Hydrographic Expedition (GESLO) (1910–1915) was a scientific expedition organized by Russia for the purpose of the development of the Northern Sea Route. This expedition accomplished its goal of exploring the uncharted areas ...

of 1910–1915.

Geography

The Medvezhyi Islands are located about north of the mouths of the

. They are part of the

East Siberian Lowland The East Siberian Lowland ( rus, Восточно-Сибирская низменность), also known as Yana-Kolyma Lowland,Oleg Leonidovič Kryžanovskij, ''A Checklist of the Ground-beetles of Russia and Adjacent Lands.'' p. 16 is a vast plai ...

.Oleg Leonidovič Kryžanovskij, ''A Checklist of the Ground-beetles of Russia and Adjacent Lands.'' p. 16 The coast of

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...

is about southwest of Krestovsky, the largest island, which is about in length. The sea surrounding the Medvezhyi Islands is covered with fast ice in the winter and the climate is severe. The surrounding sea is obstructed by pack ice even in the summer months. There is commercial fishing in the area of the islands during the summer. This island group is a part of the territory of the

Sakha Republic Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),, is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of roughly 1 million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far E ...

of Russia. As their name indicates, these islands are a refuge and breeding ground for

polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear spec ...

Islands

There are six islands in the group: Krestovsky, Leontyev, Pushkarev, Lysova, Andreev and Chetyryokhstolbovoy, where there is a

polar station A number of governments maintain permanent research stations in the Arctic. Also known as Arctic bases, polar stations or ice stations, these bases are widely distributed across the northern polar region of Earth. Historically few research sta ...

which was inaugurated in 1933. The islands are formed of stacked granite, clay and shale. They are mostly covered with

tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless mou ...

vegetation.Geography

Climate

Features of the islands

File:Chetyrekstolbovoy 1 2014-08-22.jpg, Chetyrokhstolbovoy Island (70°37‘50‘‘N, 162°22’30’’E) File:Chetyrokhstolbovoy 2 2014-08-22.jpg,

Kigilyakh Kigilyakh or kisiliyakh ( rus, кигиляхи; sah, киһилээх, meaning "stone person") are tall, pillar-like natural rock formations looking like tall monoliths standing more or less isolated. Usually they are composed of granite or ...

stone pillars on Chetyrokhstolbovoy Island. Kigilyakh means "stone man" in Yakut. File:Chetyrokhstolbovoy 3 2014-08-22.jpg, Kigilyakhs on Chetyrokhstolbovoy Island File:Chetyrokhstolbovoy 4 2014-08-22.jpg, Chetyrokhstolbovoy Island (Polar Station) File:Chetyrokhstolbovoy 5 2014-08-22.jpg, Chetyrokhstolbovoy Island File:Krestovsky 1 2014-08-22.jpg, Krestovsky Island
(70°48’N, 160°40’E)

References