What is the climate in the Caspian lowland. Physical and geographical characteristics of the Caspian lowland. Where is the Caspian lowland on the physical map

BLACK LAND OF THE CASPIAN DEPRESSION
The Black Lands (Kalmyk. "Khar gazr") is a semi-desert territory, deprived of continuous snow cover in winter due to strong winds. Black sagebrush and brown semi-desert soils reinforce the "color" meaning of the toponym, but the word "black" does not mean only color.

On aerial photographs, the Caspian depression (depression) looks like a crown crowning the northern coast of the Caspian Sea. This territory is a flat plain, the southern part of which lies below the level of the World Ocean by almost 30 m, and in the northern part the height rises to 150 m above the ocean level (mountains Indersky, Big and Small Bogdo). The Caspian lowland is located within the boundaries of the Caspian syneclise (from the ancient Greek “together” and “inclination”) - a gentle trough of the earth's crust that formed in the Paleozoic. The folded basement of the syneclise lies at a depth of 3000-4000 m and is covered with a layer of sedimentary deposits, the thickness of which reaches here the greatest depth for the Russian platform. In ancient times, the Caspian lowland was part of the World Ocean; the modern relief was influenced by numerous ups and downs of the Caspian Sea.

In the south of the northwestern sector of the Caspian lowland, between the Kumo-Manych depression,

The Ergeninsky Upland and the Volga (at the junction with the Sarpinskaya Lowland) are the so-called Black Lands. This waterless territory with uncomfortable climatic conditions and natural foci of plague, leprosy (the old name is leprosy) and other diseases is of little use for life. Here, the population density is extremely low - less than 4 people / km2. In the summer, dust storms rage here, up to 40 days a year. The only direction of agriculture in these places is transhumance. Having deprived the Black Lands of water, nature did not stint on minerals: over hundreds of millions of years sedimentary rocks accumulated here, and now the Black Lands are the region of the richest Caspian oil field, a place for the extraction of uranium, titanium, precious metals - gold, silver and platinum, rare earth elements - scandium, yttrium, rhenium, gallium.

Active development of deposits also has a negative effect: the surface of the Black Lands quickly turns into an anthropogenic desert (especially considering that soils began to form here only 4-5 thousand years ago, there is almost no turf). In order to preserve the local ecosystem, the state biosphere reserve "Chernye Zemli" was created.

In the northeast, "Khar Gazr" descends into the Volga delta, to the Caspian Sea, where strips of Baer hillocks stretch along the coast (first described in 1866 by academician K. M. Baer) - sandy ridges of regular shape from 6 to 45 m high, wide 200-300 m and up to several kilometers long, alternating with ilmens (small lakes overgrown with reeds). Human economic activity can lead to their complete destruction in the near future.

The Volga-Akhtuba floodplain with a vast delta of the Volga River crosses the Caspian lowland in the northwestern part. As it approaches the sea, the main branches of the Volga, 300-600 m wide, branch into numerous channels and eriki, about 30 m wide. At the confluence with the Caspian Sea, the river has about 800 mouths. The Volga water, saturated with industrial and agricultural effluents, poses a serious danger to the environment in the Caspian lowland. In 2000, to protect the ecosystem of swamps and nesting birds, the natural park "Volga-Akhtuba floodplain" was created: there are more than 200 species of them.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Location: in the extreme south-east of the Russian Plain, around the Caspian Sea from the north.
Administrative affiliation: Astrakhan region (Russia), Republic of Kalmykia (part of the Russian Federation), Republic of Dagestan (part of the Russian Federation), Republic of Kazakhstan.
Origin: tectonic, sedimentation.
Languages: Russian, Kazakh, Kalmyk, Dagestan, Tatar, Bashkir.
Ethnic composition: Russians, Kazakhs, Kalmyks, Dagestanis, Tatars, Bashkirs.
Religions: Orthodoxy, Islam.
Monetary units: Russian ruble, Kazakh tenge.
Large cities: Astrakhan (Russia), Aty pay (Kazakhstan).
The largest rivers: Volga, Terek, Sulak, Ural, Emba.
The largest lakes (salt): Baskunchak, Elton, Manych-Gudilo, Tinaki.
Natural borders: in the west it is bounded by the uplands of Stavropol, Ergen and Volga, in the north - by the General Syrt, in the northeast and east - by the Pre-Durap plateau, in the southeast - by the cliff of the Ustyurt plateau and the Mangyshlak peninsula, in the south - by the coast of the Caspian Sea.
FIGURES Area: about 200,000 km2.
Length: from north to south - up to 550 km, from west to east - up to 770 km.
Population: about 2 million people.
Population density: about 10 people/km2.
Lowest point: -28 m below sea level.
The highest point: Mount Bolshoye Bogdo (149.6 m a.s.l.).

CLIMATE
Sharply continental. Severe and little snowy winter, hot summer.
Average January temperature: -14°С in the north, -8°С on the coast of the Caspian Sea.
Average temperature in July: +22°С in the north, +24°С on the coast of the Caspian Sea.
Average annual precipitation: less than 200 mm.
Relative air humidity: 50-60%.

ECONOMY
Minerals: oil, natural gas, uranium, titanium, gold, silver, platinum, scandium, yttrium, rhenium, gallium, table salt.
Industry: mining (oil and gas, ore, salt mining).
Agriculture: plant growing (melon growing, gardening, vegetable growing), animal husbandry (pasture - sheep breeding).
Services: tourism (amateur fishing in the Volga delta), transport.
CURIOUS FACTS - The thickness of the surface deposits of salt on Lake Baskunchak reaches 10-18 m. Only certain types of bacteria live in brine (saturated saline solution). Today, the extremely pure salt of Lake Baskunchak accounts for up to 80% of the total salt production in Russia: from 1.5 to 5 million tons of salt are mined here annually. The Baskunchak railway was built for the export of salt.
- The Cordon tract is a natural monument of regional significance (status since 1995): here the Mexican prickly pear cactus grows under natural conditions, blooming with large yellow or pale pink flowers. The cactus was planted for experimental purposes by the scientists of the Khosheut station of the Republic of Armenia in 1904-1917.
- Big Bogdo was nicknamed the “singing mountain”: in the process of weathering, depressions similar to giant honeycombs formed on the rocky cliffs. If the wind blows, the holes make characteristic sounds of different heights.

The Caspian lowland occupies the northern coast of the Caspian Sea, and is a flat plain with an inclination to the sea, among which mountains up to 150 meters high rise.

The lowland is represented by steppe, semi-desert and desert landscapes, which are of scientific and environmental value. The unique water body of the Caspian Sea is the largest salt lake in Europe, Baskunchak, taken under protection in the Bogdinsko-Baskunchak Reserve.

In the west, the Caspian lowland is crossed by the Volga.
The Volga Delta is the largest and most environmentally friendly in Europe. It begins to the north of Astrakhan, where a large branch, the Buzan, separates. Throughout the entire journey from Astrakhan to the rumbles of the Caspian Sea, the delta is extremely diverse, the main branches 300 - 600 meters wide branch into numerous channels and eriki - small watercourses up to 30 meters wide. At the confluence with the Caspian, the Volga has about 800 mouths.

About 500 plant species belonging to 82 families have been identified on the territory of the Volga delta. The richest among these families are the genera of wormwood, pondweed, astragalus, sedge, milkweed and salt.
About 260 species of birds can be found within the Astrakhan region. Some, settled, can be found all year round, others - migratory and nomadic, during migrations. The conditions for birdwatching are especially favorable in the Astrakhan Nature Reserve, where you can go to watch the spring and autumn bird migrations.

Astrakhan region, Kamyzyaksky and Volodarsky districts

History of creation
The Astrakhan Nature Reserve was established in 1919 to preserve the unique flora and fauna of the Volga Delta. The protected area consists of three sections in the western (Damchiksky), central (Trekhizbinsky) and eastern (Obzhorovsky) parts of the Volga delta with a total area of 63,000 hectares.
The Astrakhan Nature Reserve not only protects species in a limited area, but also serves as a source of animal settlement throughout the Volga Delta.

The natural complex of the reserve is a classic example of a delta of a large flat river. The protected area is located on the Caspian lowland, lying 27 meters below sea level. The relief is almost perfectly flat.
The Volga delta is characterized by large and small channels, oxbow lakes, ilmens - delta lakes in the form of saucer-shaped depressions inside the islands, kultuks - vast shallow bays, bankchins and furrows - channels of future channels, foredelta - vast open shallow water up to 1 meter deep with a smoothed bottom topography, stretching towards the sea for almost 50 km.
The climate is temperate continental, with hot summers and cold winters. The average temperature in January is -9ºС, in July +27ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
Among the vegetation of the reserve, in the first place, the lotus stands out, which is also called the Caspian rose. From mid-July to September, when the lotus blossoms, vast seas of blue-green leaves and pink flowers exude a delicate fragrance. Among the Eastern peoples, the lotus is a symbol of purity and nobility.
There are few mammals in the reserve. These are mainly wild boars, wolves, foxes, otters, field mice, baby mice.
But the variety of birds in the protected area is simply amazing. It is not for nothing that the Astrakhan Nature Reserve is called the "bird hotel" - at different times of the year in the reserve you can meet more than 250 species of birds, many of which are listed in the Red Book. Here you can see the white-tailed eagle, pink flamingo, osprey, spoonbill, mute swan, curly and pink pelicans. Siberian Crane, Peregrine Falcon and other rare birds are encountered on migration. There are a lot of herons in the reserve: white (large and small), gray, red, yellow and even grayish-bluish (night herons). Many birds stop in the Volga delta to eat. They rest here, gaining strength before a long and difficult flight to warmer climes.
The ichthyofauna of the reserve is of great value. These are sturgeon (beluga, sturgeon, stellate sturgeon), herring (Caspian shad, Volga herring, blackback), carp (roach, bream, carp, rudd, asp, sabrefish, golden crucian carp), pike, pike perch, perch, gobies, stickleback and others .

What to watch
It is worth going to the Astrakhan Nature Reserve to get acquainted with the protected nature of the region: to see the unique landscapes of the Volga Delta, to smell the scent of a blossoming lotus and to watch the birds that live here or stop to rest.
The reserve has developed a number of routes, most of which are water. On excursions along the channels of the Volga delta, tourists are accompanied by highly qualified staff of the reserve, who will not only answer all the questions of inquisitive tourists, but will also help you see a hidden heron or an eagle soaring high in the sky.

Astrakhan region, Akhtubinsky district

History of creation
The Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky Nature Reserve was established in 1997 with an area of 18.5 thousand hectares to protect intact semi-desert communities and the unique largest in Russia drainless salt lake Baskunchak. This lake has been supplying all of Russia with salt for several centuries.
There is a military training ground near the reserve. This, of course, can have a negative impact on protected nature, but, on the other hand, the closed nature of the territory in the past helped to keep valuable ecosystems intact.

Physical and geographical features
The territory of the reserve in the Permian period was flooded with the waters of a warm salty ocean, later, during the Khvalyn transgression, there was a sea here. Only Mount Bogdo, with all the changes in the water level, remained an island on which relict species were preserved.
The second part of the name of the reserve is connected with the name of the largest salt lake in Europe and Russia - Baskunchak. Its area is 106 km², and the surface is located below sea level. The salt of the lake is almost pure sodium chloride.
There is another unique water body in the reserve - the endorheic lake Karasun. It is located in a large karst funnel. Its shores go gently into the steppe, only the southern shore is high and steep. The bottom of the lake is covered with black silt with a pronounced smell of hydrogen sulfide. By the end of summer, the water level is greatly reduced, and the lake almost completely dries up.
The climate of the area of the reserve is temperate continental, typical for the northern desert. In January-February, the average air temperature is -8ºС, in July - almost +25ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
The harsh conditions of the semi-desert are suitable only for species adapted to endure dryness and high air temperatures. But at the same time, there are still areas in the reserve that are suitable for habitation of species that are not typical for the open semi-desert.
The flora of the reserve is quite poor in terms of species composition, but there are many endemic (not found anywhere else), rare and on the border of their distribution plant species.
The rare ones include Gesner's (Schrenk's) Red Book tulip, crimson larkspur and feathery feather grass. Endemics are eversmannia almost prickly, Inder onion, four-pronged four-pronged, small plantain and a number of other species.
The reserve is characterized by a large number of rodents, such as small and yellow ground squirrels, jerboas and hamsters. Their abundance creates a good food base for predatory mammals and birds. Fox, corsac and wolf make their lairs in numerous beams and funnels.
Of the reptiles, the squeaky gecko is very interesting - a species listed in the Red Book of Russia, and found only on Mount Bogdo.
In the Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky reserve, 22 species of birds listed in the Red Book of Russia are registered, including the Dalmatian pelican, white-eyed pochard, steppe harrier and others.

What to watch
The reserve has developed two routes that will allow you to get acquainted with the local nature. The first one goes from Lake Kordon to the canyon in the lower part of the Surikovskaya beam, then to Mount Bogdo, from which you will see Lake Baskunchak and the Sharbulak tract. Descending then along the eastern slope, one can observe interesting forms of weathering and Paleozoic rocks.
The second route starts from the southwestern slope of Mount Bolshoye Bogdo, where you can see outcrops of rocks of the Permian period and characteristic forms of wind erosion - “Singing Rocks”. Further, the route runs along the eastern slope of the mountain to the Surikovskaya beam, along it to the Baskunchak lake and further along the lake shore to the Kordonskaya beam.

Republic of Dagestan, Tarumovsky and Buynaksky districts

Founding history
The Dagestan Reserve was organized to preserve in its natural state the most typical section of the Kizlyar Bay for the northwestern coast of the Caspian Sea, as well as to preserve a rare natural formation - the Sarykum dune. A special role is assigned to the study and protection of an important migratory route of rare bird species, their nesting and wintering areas.

Physical and geographical features
Both sections of the reserve are located within the plains of Dagestan. The part of the Terek-Kuma Plain adjacent to the Kizlyar Bay lies 28 meters below sea level, and until relatively recently it was the seabed.
The dune Sarykum, 262 meters high, is located at the foot of the foothills on the Tersko-Sulak plain.
The climate in the area of the Kizlyar Bay is arid continental with a positive average annual temperature. The coldest month is January with an average temperature of -1ºС, the warmest is July. At this time, the average temperature is about +31ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
There are several rare species in the flora of the Kizlyar area: common sword grass, water chestnut (both are listed in the Red Book of Russia), common pemphigus, salvinia floating.
The Kizlyar Bay is rich in aquatic vegetation. Underwater meadows are dense and often completely cover the bottom. Shallow waters are overgrown with sea tubers, closer to the shore - narrow-leaved cattail, lake reeds and common reeds.
The top of the dune is devoid of vegetation due to the constant movement of the sands. In the upper part of the slopes on the moving sands, the first to appear are giant grate, sandy wormwood, and leafless dzhuzgun. At the foot of the dune there are thickets of black and Italian poplars, narrow-leaved sucker, white acacia.
On the territory of the Kizlyar site, among mammals in reed supports, wild boar, raccoon dog, jungle cat, coypu, muskrat, water rat live. In the steppes, fox, wolf, steppe polecat are common; in severe and snowy winters, herds of saigas appear.
On the Sarykum site, on the dune and in its environs, a hare, a gray hamster, a fox are common; there are an eared hedgehog, a shaggy jerboa, a midday gerbil.
On the Western Caspian migration route, rare species of birds listed in the Red Book of Russia were noted: flamingos, curly and pink pelicans, Sultan's hen, red-breasted goose, little bustard, bustard and others.

Rostov region, Orlovsky and Remontnensky districts

Founding history
Proposals to create a reserve in the Rostov region were raised as early as the beginning of the 20th century, but the plans were only realized in 1995, when the Rostovsky state steppe reserve was created, consisting of four separate sites with a total area of 9465 hectares.
The reserve was created to protect the few remaining areas of indigenous steppe vegetation, and, along with the Chernye Zemli reserve, it protects part of the Manych-Gudilo Lake wetland, which is a place of massive nesting, molting and migratory accumulations of waterfowl.

Physical and geographical features
Lake Manych-Gudilo stretches in a narrow ribbon in the Kumo-Manych depression. It is the largest of the chain of brackish water lakes, occupying the lowest part of the Manych hollow. In the geological past, this hollow was a strait connecting the Caspian and Black Seas.
The largest section of the reserve - Ostrovnoy - is located in the northwestern part of the lake and includes the Vodny (South) and Gorely Islands, the adjacent water area of the lake and 10 hectares of the mainland shore. The islands and the mainland coast are covered with steppe. Tsagan-Khak (990 ha) consists of the tract of the same name, which is a salt marsh flooded in spring with small islands and headlands protruding into the lake.
The area of the reserve has a temperate continental climate, cold winters with little snow, hot and dry summers. The average monthly temperature in January is -5.5ºС, the minimum is -35ºС, in July +24ºС, the maximum is +42ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
The reserve is located in the West Manych natural region of the fescue-feather grass steppe zone. The herbage is dominated by fescue, feather grass and wheatgrass. Halophyte communities are dominated by hairy thrush, splayed saline, yarrow chamomile, prickly thorn, yarrow - noble and bristly, and in more saline habitats - Gmelin's kermek, camphorosma, warty quinoa.
Of the rare plants in the reserve, Zalessky's feather grass, Schrenk's tulip, colchicum merry and others are noted.
The fauna of the reserve is diverse. Of the mammals, the corsac, the steppe polecat, the wolf live, the saiga and the elk come in. A free herd of feral horses lives on the Island site. Wolves have been observed in the Starikovsky area.
The composition of the avifauna is dominated by nesting waterfowl and near-water birds - great grebe, gray-cheeked, black-necked and little grebe, curly and pink pelican, great cormorant and others. Within the limits of the reserve there are colonies of semiaquatic birds, in which several dozen "Red Book" spoonbills nest every year. One of the largest flyways of anseriformes passes through the area of the reserve, forming here mass concentrations during the periods of spring and autumn migration. In addition to the most massive white-fronted goose, huge accumulations of the red-breasted goose, a species listed in the Red Book, form here every year.

What to watch
It is better to start acquaintance with the territory of the reserve along one of the trails developed by the reserve: "Azure Flower" or "Mysteries of the Manych Valley". During the tour "Azure Flower" you will learn the history of the creation of the reserve, get acquainted with its flora and fauna, features of strip afforestation, see the largest body of water in this place - Lake Manych-Gudilo, hear a story about a herd of feral horses.
During the second excursion you will learn about the origin of the Manych Valley, about the rare plant species of the reserve, about the birds that are found here. You will also visit Lake Gruzskoye, one of the famous healing areas of the Rostov region, where you will be told about the properties of therapeutic mud and mineral springs.

Republic of Kalmykia, Yashkul and Chernozemelsky districts

Founding history
The Black Earth Reserve is the only testing ground in Russia for studying steppe, semi-desert and desert landscapes, as well as for protecting and studying the Kalmyk saiga population. The reserve occupies two territories that differ from each other - in the main section "Chernye Zemli" the protection and restoration of the saiga population is carried out, and the site "Lake Manych-Gudilo" is a wetland of international importance, nesting and wintering grounds for many rare species of waterfowl and near-water birds.
The reserve was established in 1990, and three years later the territory received the status of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Its total area is 121.9 thousand hectares.

Physical and geographical features
The territory of the reserve is a slightly undulating low-lying plain, where vast massifs of hilly-ridged sands are widespread. They are deposits of the transgression periods of the Caspian Sea, so that they are saline almost everywhere. The Manych depression, where the site "Lake Manych-Gudilo" is located, is an ancient strait almost 500 km long, which once connected the Azov and Caspian lowlands. Prior to artificial flooding, Lake Manych-Gudilo was a shallow, highly mineralized reservoir; during dry periods, it almost completely dried up or remained in the form of a series of isolated or connected by channels of salt lakes. At present, the width of the lake ranges from 1.5 to 10 kilometers, the depth in the central part, where the maximum depression of the relief has been preserved, is 5-8 meters.
The climate of the territory is sharply continental: summers are hot and dry, winters are usually snowless. By the way, this explains the name of the reserve, and not the color of the soil - it is light brown. The average temperature in January is -6.5ºС, in July +24.5ºС degrees. The minimum temperature in January is -35ºС, the maximum temperature in July is +42ºС.

Diversity of flora and fauna
The territory of the reserve is located at the junction of two zones - dry steppe and desert, in the most arid region of the European part of Russia.
Dry steppe and desert change their colors according to the seasons. In spring, they are characterized by ephemeral flowers - Bibirstein and Schrenk tulips, irises; grey-green shades of overgrown wormwood are added to the greenery of cereals. At the beginning of summer, a brown-purple background of bulbous bluegrass and bonfire prevails, with silvery-whitish islands of flowering feathery feather grasses. By the end of summer, yellow-brown tones are most noticeable from some types of wormwood, flowering yellow alfalfa and drying wheatgrass, thin-legged. Autumn is characterized by a grayish-brown color, created by black sagebrush, dried grass vegetation and saltwort communities, changing from dark green to blood red.
On the site "Chernye Zemli" the main protected species is the saiga. Its numbers dropped sharply in the 1980s due to poaching, but thanks to the creation of a number of protected areas (the nature reserve itself, the Kharbinsky, Sarpinsky and Mekletinsky nature reserves), its numbers have recovered and now number 150,000 individuals.
Lake Manych-Gudilo with its 12 islands is extremely important for nesting of water birds. More than 190 species of birds nest on the reservoir, meet on the molt and migration. On the islands, adjacent to gulls, spoonbills, cormorants, the pink and curly pelicans form the only lake colonies in Europe. Against the background of the regression of water bodies of Kazakhstan, the lake becomes one of the largest recreation areas in Eurasia for goose migrating from wintering grounds: red-breasted goose, white-fronted and gray goose.

What to watch
During your stay in the reserve, you can get acquainted with the amazing nature of these places. So, the staff of the reserve will tell you about saigas, medium-sized mobile antelopes with a large head with a swollen humpbacked muzzle, ending like a small proboscis. Be sure to introduce you to the peculiarities of the feather grass steppe, and for lovers of birdwatching they will organize an excursion to Lake Manych-Gudilo.

The northern coast of the Caspian Sea is occupied by the Caspian lowland, part of which is located on the territory of Kazakhstan. The northern border of this region is the General Syrt, the Volga Upland limits the west, the eastern border is the Cis-Ural Plateau and the Ustyurt Plateau. The area of the territory is approximately 200 thousand square meters. km.

The lowland reaches its maximum height in the north - it is up to 100 m above sea level, in the south this figure drops to 28 m below sea level. The geological basis of the Caspian lowland consists of late Quaternary rocks. This region is crossed by several large rivers: Volga, Ural, Terek, Kuma. But there is no permanent hydrographic network in the region - small rivers dry up in summer. Some part forms basins that create lake overflows. An example of such reservoirs are Kamysh-Samarsky lakes and Sarpinsky lakes. On the territory of the lowland there are salt lakes, for example, Baskunchak and Elton. Lake Elton is considered one of the saltiest lakes in the world.

The Volga, the largest river flowing into the Caspian, lies in the west of the Caspian lowland, its source is located north of Astrakhan. The width of the main branches of the river is 300-600 m. The Volga branches into many channels and erics. In Europe, the Volga has the largest delta - the river is divided into 800 mouths.

The climate of the Caspian lowland is sharply continental. In the north of the region in January, the average temperature reaches -14 degrees, on the coast it fluctuates around -8 degrees. In July, the average temperature in the northern region is +22 degrees, in the south it rises to +24 degrees. Dry winds often occur in the region. The reason for this is the rapid evaporation of water. The precipitation is not enough to moisten the soil well, and the uneven amount of precipitation in the regions also contributes to the dry wind. In the southeast of the Caspian Lowland, precipitation is less than 200 mm, but in the northwest it is almost twice as much.

Typical for the Caspian lowland is the flora of steppes and semi-deserts. From north to south, the feather-grass-forb steppe is replaced by feather-grass-fescue steppe, the wormwood-cereal semi-desert becomes the end point of flora change. Large estuaries are covered with couch grass thickets - a representative of meadow grasses. In desert areas, the amount of vegetation is reduced.

A significant part of the region's vegetation cover is used as pasture for livestock. The Volga-Akhtuba floodplain is the main agricultural region. They are engaged in gardening, melon growing and vegetable growing.

Salt lakes of the Caspian lowland are the place where table salt is mined. Oil and gas are developed on the territory of the Ural-Emba region.

Fauna of the Caspian lowland

The Volga-Ural interfluve, located on the coast of the Caspian Sea, has the best pastures. Hunting and fish farming are well developed in this area. The Ural-Emba interfluve in the country is known for its rich oil and gas deposits.

The Caspian lowland is a habitat for fifty species of mammals, three hundred species of birds, twenty species of reptiles and amphibians. For migratory and wintering birds, the coast of the Caspian Sea is of high importance. According to biologists, about one and a half million waterfowl winter in the southern Caspian.

On the coasts of the north and northeast of the Caspian Sea there is a migration area of 3 million waders. In summer, half a thousand pairs of gray geese, 2 thousand pairs of ducks and 2.5 thousand pairs of mute swans settle in the reeds. Also in this area are nesting gulls, terns and pink pelicans.

Saigas are commercial ungulate mammals living in the Volga-Ural interfluve. In the early 2000s, this species was threatened with extinction, so a ban on saiga shooting was introduced in order to restore the population of these animals. It is noteworthy that monitoring the state of the abundance of this species is complicated by the constant migrations of saigas across different territories.

In the Caspian lowland, animals such as foxes, wolves and steppe polecats are numerous. In the man-made desert, called the Black Lands, there is a reserve of the same name that studies the landscapes of the steppe, semi-desert and desert.

The region is home to several endemic species that are on the verge of extinction. These animals include:

1. Long-tailed hedgehog. An insectivorous animal with a small body weight (up to 750 g), leading a nocturnal lifestyle. This species is protected in the reserves of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

2. The Turkmen mountain sheep (Ustyurt mouflon) is an artiodactyl mammal of the bovid family. Listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan.

3. Honey badger, a predator from the weasel family. On the territory of the Caspian Sea, it is distributed on the border with the Ustyurt plateau.

4. Caspian seal (Caspian seal), a representative of the family of true seals, which are distributed throughout the coastal region of the entire Caspian Sea. In winter, these animals migrate to the northern coast, forming colonies. These animals are listed in the Red Book as a species that is threatened with complete extinction.

5. Kozhanok Bobrinsky - a small bat, whose habitat is the deserts of Kazakhstan.

Representatives of small rodents - jerboas and gerbils - also have a low level of abundance and density. There are up to 6 individuals per 1 ha. Gophers are found twice as less.

Valuable fur animals and other commercial species play an important role in the economy of the region. Small rodents distribute plant seeds, while they are prey for predators. Due to the fact that rodents are simultaneously carriers of various infections, there is a natural control of the number of predators.

Environmental problems of the territory

The rise in the level of the Caspian Sea has led to a number of problems - the flooding of large areas of the lowland, the flooding of ports, settlements, transport facilities, etc. The anthropogenic factor plays a significant role in the environmental problems of the region. Active human activity contributed to the pollution of rivers and the saturation of the environment with waste from large industries. Misuse and overuse of land have caused accelerated development of soil erosion.

On the territory of Kalmykia, oversaturated with pastures, unsystematic grazing has led to desertification of the area. To avoid aggravating this environmental problem, a number of measures have been taken to prevent desertification. In particular, the “Federal Program to Combat Desertification of the Territory” was introduced in the republic, with the help of which they were able to achieve the first successes.

Pollution of the waters of the Volga River, which flows into the Caspian Sea, is another environmental problem in the region. Since this river flows through the entire Russian Plain, all waste from enterprises located along its entire length gets into its water. As a result, the polluted waters of the Volga led to a reduction in species diversity and the spread of alien bacteria in the Caspian Sea.

Oil, which is the main pollutant, suppresses the development of phytoplankton and phytobenthos in the Caspian. Oil pollution interferes with normal heat and gas exchange, water begins to evaporate more slowly. Fish, shellfish and other marine life are adversely affected by alien organisms that have arrived due to seaborne transport. So, a real disaster was the settlement of the comb jelly Mnemiopsis in the waters of the Caspian Sea, which had previously managed to devastate the waters of the Azov and Black Seas. Reproducing rapidly and uncontrollably, the comb jelly destroys the stocks of zooplankton that Caspian fish feed on. Disruption of food chains has led to a reduction in the populations of the indigenous inhabitants of the Caspian Sea.

Oil pollution also has a negative impact on waterfowl. Their plumage is deprived of heat-insulating and water-repellent properties, for this reason many birds die. Oil spills lead to a reduction in the number of other animals in the region.

The construction of hydroelectric power plants on rivers leads to silting of the channel. The number of fish in the waters is decreasing due to the fact that the natural habitat of fish is undergoing strong changes. The zones of reserves located in the north of the Caspian lowland regulate the conduct of geophysical work, which contributes to the conservation of species diversity.

Environmental problems can be mitigated or even completely eliminated by investing impressive sums of money. Unfortunately, most businesses, in pursuit of their own profit, are rather neglectful of environmental protection. The Caspian Sea and its coastal areas continue to be polluted.

Caspian lowland 47°32′ N. sh. 49°01′ E d. / 47.533° N sh. 49.017° E d. / 47.533; 49.017 (G) (I)Coordinates : 47°32′ N. sh. 49°01′ E d. / 47.533° N sh. 49.017° E d. / 47.533; 49.017 (G) (I) Atyrau Oblast, West Kazakhstan Oblast, Mangistau Oblast, Dagestan, Kalmykia, Astrakhan Oblast

Caspian lowland(kaz. Caspian many oypaty, emergency Kaspiyalukh listen)) is found on the East European Plain in Kazakhstan and Russia, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea.

Geographical position

The Caspian lowland is surrounded in the north by the Common Syrt, in the west by the Volga Upland and Ergeni, in the east by the Cis-Ural Plateau and Ustyurt. The area of the lowland is about 200 thousand km². The height above sea level is up to 149 m, the southern part of the lowland lies below sea level (up to −28 m). The northwestern part of the lowland between the Ergeninsky Upland, the Kumo-Manych Depression and the Volga is called the Black Lands.

The Caspian lowland is a flat surface, gently inclined towards the sea, among which rise individual hills - the Inder Mountains, Big Bogdo, Small Bogdo and others.

The Caspian lowland is crossed by the rivers Volga, Ural, Emba, Kuma, Terek and others. Small rivers (Big and Small Uzen, Wil, Sagiz) dry up in summer or break up into a series of basins, forming lake overflows - Kamysh-Samarsky lakes, Sarpinsky lakes. There are many salt lakes (Baskunchak, Elton, Inder, Botkul, etc.).

Geological structure

The Caspian lowland includes several large tectonic structures (the Caspian syneclise, the Ergenin uplift, the Nogai and Terek depressions). In the Quaternary, the lowland was repeatedly flooded by the sea, which left clayey and loamy deposits in the northern part, and sandy deposits in the southern part.

The surface of the Caspian lowland is characterized by micro- and mesoforms in the form of depressions, estuaries, spits, hollows, in the south - eolian forms, and along the coast of the Caspian Sea - a strip of Baer hillocks.

Climate and vegetation

In the north - sagebrush-cereal steppes on light chestnut soils, in the south - semi-deserts and deserts on brown and sandy soils with a predominance of sagebrush.

Economic importance

In the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain, melon growing, horticulture, and vegetable growing are widespread.

Write a review on the article "Caspian lowland"

Literature

Grigoriev A.A. Brief geographical encyclopedia. Volume 3. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1962. - S. 580.
Southeast of the European part of the USSR, M., 1971; Kazakhstan, M., 1969 (Natural conditions and natural resources of the USSR).

Notes

An excerpt characterizing the Caspian lowland

Where, how, when she sucked in herself from that Russian air that she breathed - this countess, brought up by a French emigrant, this spirit, where did she get these techniques that pas de chale should have long been forced out? But these spirits and methods were the same, inimitable, not studied, Russian, which her uncle expected from her. As soon as she stood up, she smiled solemnly, proudly and cunningly cheerfully, the first fear that gripped Nikolai and all those present, the fear that she would do something wrong, passed and they were already admiring her.
She did the same thing, and did it so exactly, so quite exactly, that Anisya Fyodorovna, who immediately handed her the handkerchief necessary for her work, burst into tears through laughter, looking at this thin, graceful, so alien to her, educated countess in silk and velvet. who knew how to understand everything that was in Anisya, and in Anisya's father, and in her aunt, and in her mother, and in every Russian person.
“Well, the countess is a pure march,” said the uncle, laughing joyfully, having finished the dance. - Oh yes, niece! If only you could choose a good fellow for you, - march is a clean business!
“Already chosen,” said Nikolai smiling.
- ABOUT? said the uncle in surprise, looking inquiringly at Natasha. Natasha nodded her head in the affirmative with a happy smile.
- Another one! - she said. But as soon as she said this, another, new line of thoughts and feelings arose in her. What did Nikolai's smile mean when he said: "already chosen"? Is he happy about it or not? He seems to think that my Bolkonsky would not have approved, would not have understood our joy. No, he would understand. Where is he now? thought Natasha, and her face suddenly became serious. But it only lasted for one second. “Don’t think about it, don’t dare to think about it,” she said to herself, and smiling, she sat down again with her uncle, asking him to play something else.
Uncle played another song and a waltz; then, after a pause, he cleared his throat and sang his favorite hunting song.
Like powder from the evening
Turned out good...
Uncle sang the way the people sing, with that complete and naive conviction that in a song all meaning lies only in the words, that the melody comes by itself and that there is no separate melody, but that the melody is only for the warehouse. Because of this, this unconscious tune, like the song of a bird, was unusually good with my uncle. Natasha was delighted with her uncle's singing. She decided that she would no longer study the harp, but would only play the guitar. She asked her uncle for a guitar and immediately picked up the chords for the song.
At ten o'clock a line, a droshky, and three riders arrived for Natasha and Petya, sent to look for them. The count and countess did not know where they were and were very worried, as the messenger said.
Petya was taken down and laid like a dead body in a ruler; Natasha and Nikolai got into the droshky. Uncle wrapped up Natasha and said goodbye to her with a completely new tenderness. He escorted them on foot to the bridge, which had to be bypassed into a ford, and ordered the hunters to go ahead with lanterns.
“Farewell, dear niece,” his voice shouted out of the darkness, not the one that Natasha had known before, but the one that sang: “Like powder since the evening.”
The village we passed had red lights and a cheerful smell of smoke.
- What a charm this uncle is! - said Natasha, when they drove out onto the main road.
“Yes,” said Nikolai. - Are you cold?
- No, I'm fine, fine. I feel so good, - Natasha even said with bewilderment. They were silent for a long time.
The night was dark and damp. The horses were not visible; all you could hear was their paddling through the invisible mud.
What was going on in this childish, receptive soul, which so greedily caught and assimilated all the most diverse impressions of life? How did it fit into her? But she was very happy. Already approaching the house, she suddenly sang the motive of the song: “Like powder from the evening,” a motive that she caught all the way and finally caught.
- Got it? Nikolay said.
“What are you thinking now, Nikolenka?” Natasha asked. They liked to ask each other that.
- I? - said Nikolai remembering; - you see, at first I thought that Rugay, the red dog, looked like an uncle and that if he were a man, he would still keep the uncle with him, if not for the jump, then for the frets, he would keep everything. How good he is, uncle! Is not it? - Well, what about you?
- I? Hold on, hold on. Yes, at first I thought that here we are going and we think that we are going home, and God knows where we are going in this darkness and suddenly we will arrive and see that we are not in Otradnoye, but in a magical kingdom. And then I thought… No, nothing more.

The Caspian lowland is located in the southeastern part of the Russian Plain, adjacent to the Caspian Sea. In the west, the lowland is bordered by the eastern slopes of the Stavropol plateau and the Ergeni, in the north by the slopes of the Common Syrt. In the east, the border coincides with the Cis-Ural Plateau and the Northern Chink of the Ustyurt Plateau. In the southern part, significant areas lie below sea level by 27m.

Most of the lowland is administratively part of the Kazakh SSR - the West Kazakhstan Territory and partly in the Volgograd, Saratov, Astrakhan and Kalmyk Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics.

The Caspian lowland is located within a deep tectonic basin - the Caspian syneclise, laid down in the Paleozoic and representing a complex and heterogeneous section of the Russian platform. The syneclise is complicated by a number of tectonic structures IIorder. Crystalline rocks lie here at a depth of more than 3000 m and overlain by Paleozoic and Meso-Cenozoic deposits. Within the lowland, Permian deposits of Kungur age are developed from ancient rocks, at the base of which are stocks of rock salt. Triassic deposits overlie the Permian rocks. They are overlain by Jurassic, Cretaceous and Paleogene sediments. The end of the Paleogene is characterized by orogenic movements that covered large areas. They are associated with the lowering of the lowlands and the penetration of the seas into its territory. The most extensive was the Akchagyl basin, which occupied almost the entire territory of the modern Caspian, the Caspian lowland and penetrated to the north. The long arm of this basin also went towards the Black Sea. In the north, the deposits of this basin are represented by thin, thick-layered clays, and near the coast, by sands; in some places there are small layers of oil shale. The total thickness of the Akchagyl deposits reaches 80-100 m. The Absheron basin, which replaced the Akchagyl basin, was smaller. He left sands, conglomerates, clays with a thickness of more than 400 m. Quaternary deposits are represented by rocks of marine and continental origin with a thickness of more than 30 m. Marine sediments consist of clayey, sandy-clayey and sandy strata with marine fauna left by the Baku, Khazar, Lower and Upper Khvalynian transgressions. They alternate with continental deposits - loess-like loams, sands, peat bogs, silts.

The deposits of the Lower Khvalynsk transgression are represented by chocolate clays and partly by loams. The southern part was subjected to the Upper Khvalynian transgression. The consequence of the Upper Khvalynian transgression are sands and sandy loams of Upper Khvalynian age. The boundary between the two indicated transgressions runs approximately along the zero horizontal.

Many researchers synchronize the Caspian transgressions with the epochs of glaciation of the Russian Plain, but due to insufficient data, the synchronization scheme has not yet been sufficiently substantiated.

The Caspian lowland is characterized by peculiar structures - salt domes, characteristic of salt tectonics. The reason for their formation is associated with orogenic movements, due to which the horizontally lying layers of Permian, Mesozoic and Tertiary rocks are crumpled in many places into small brachianticlinal folds, which are based on a gypsum and salt core.

Due to tangential pressure, salt masses were squeezed out of the original deposit upwards and broke through the overlying rocks, forming domes. In view of the redistribution of salt masses, new places of their concentration were created. Salt domes are hills with a height of 100-150 m, in which gypsum and salts come to the surface (M. Bogdo, B. Bogdo, Bis-Chokho, Chapchagi, etc.). They are associated with the existence of self-sustaining lakes - Elton, Baskunchak, etc., which are fed by saline solutions coming from salt domes. In the Emba region, oil fields are also associated with domes composed of Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous rocks.

Orographically, the Caspian lowland is a lowland of large size, flat, gently sloping towards the sea. M. V. Karandeeva writes that the main type of lowland relief is the marine accumulative plain. Erosion, eolian, suffosion and other types and forms of relief are developed on it.

The northern part of the Caspian lowland is characterized by plain flat surfaces, the relative heights of which do not exceed 1.0-1.5 m. Marine flat plains are disturbed by depressions and numerous tubercles - marmots. Depressions are depressions with a depth of 0.3 to 2.0 m and diameters from 10 to 100 m. Their shape is usually round or oval. They stand out on the surface of the lowlands not so much in depth as in fresher and greener vegetation.

Among the flat sea plains in this part of the lowland, erosional landforms are developed, which are presented in the form of hollows. Hollows sometimes stretch for tens of kilometers, in several rows. They start in the northern part of the lowlands and end in estuaries, not reaching the Caspian Sea. Small hollows usually do not have clearly defined slopes, their width is 100 - 1000 m. An example of hollows is the Sarpinsko-Davanskaya, which stretches from Krasnoarmeysk to the south, along the Ergeni, and then splits into branches. The hollow is covered with a thin layer of alluvium; in the Ergenei region, it is currently covered with alluvium of beams, which divides the hollow into separate depressions - lakes. The formation of hollows is associated with the currents of the receding sea. The Sarpinsko-Davanskaya hollow once served as a branch of the Volga and was fed by its waters. After the Volga deepened its channel, the Sarpinsko-Davanskaya hollow separated from it, and its further existence was due to temporary flows from Ergeni. In addition to the landforms described above, coastal landforms have been preserved within the lowlands: estuaries, takyrs, etc., which are confined to the boundaries of the distribution of the Khvalyn seas.

Due to the fact that in the southern part of the lowland large areas are occupied by sands, the eolian relief prevails here. Between the Volga and Ergeny, as well as to the east on the Volga-Ural watershed, there are massifs of blown sands - Astrakhan and Ryn-Sands. Here the sands form in some places dunes 5-6 m, and sometimes 15 m, mounds, ridges and depressions. The basins have a depth of up to 8 m, and area - up to 3 km 2. Their shape is in most cases oval; the slopes facing the prevailing winds are steep on the windward side and gently sloping on the leeward side. Sand blown out of the basins is deposited in the form of mounds on the surfaces adjacent to their western and northwestern sides.

Along the shores of the Caspian Sea, from the river. Embas to the mouth of the river. Kuma, there are hillocks, elongated almost in the latitudinal direction, the so-called Baer hillocks. Their height - 7 - 10 m, width - 200-300 m and length - from 0.5 to 8 km. The width of inter-ridge depressions reaches 400-500 m. During the floods of the Volga, they are filled with water. The city of Astrakhan and all the villages within the Volga delta are built on these mounds.

There is still no consensus on the origin of the hillocks. Academician K.M. Baer suggested that they originated from a catastrophically fast runoff of water during a sudden drop in the level of the Caspian Sea. I. V. Mushketov explains the origin of the hillocks by various reasons: some hillocks were formed due to the dislocation of the main rocks on which the Caspian sediments were deposited (near Kamenny Yar), others are the product of erosional erosion (near Astrakhan), and others are overgrown valleys (near Enotavka). B. A. Fedorovich explains the origin of the Baer knolls by the corrosive and accumulative activity of the wind, the predominant direction of which coincides with the Voeikov axis, oriented latitudinally in the northern Caspian region.

Salt domes, the Volga-Akhtuba and Ural valleys add variety to the lowland relief. The Volga Valley is a blooming oasis against the backdrop of a semi-desert. The islands in the floodplain are green with groves of black poplars, silvery poplars, and willows. The Volga valley within the lowland is incised by 20-30 m in the Lower and Upper Khvalynsk marine sediments, which serve as the bedrock coast. The right bank is steep, sheer, strongly washed away by the river. The left root bank is at a great distance from the riverbed. In the left bank, a floodplain terrace (Volga-Akhtubinskaya) is well developed, which extends for tens of kilometers.

The hydrographic network of the lowlands is poor; three large transit rivers flow within its boundaries: the Volga, the Urals and the Terek, devoid of tributaries within the lowlands. Rivers drain only narrow, immediately adjacent coastal strips. In addition to these rivers, there are several small rivers - Big and Small Uzen, Uil, Sagiz, Kushum, which dry up or break up into separate

closed, more or less significant basins of stagnant water, forming lake overflows. An example is the Sarpinsky lakes, into which the waters flowing from the Ergeni are collected, in the central part - the Kamysh-Samarsky lakes, which receive the waters of the Big and Small Uzen, and others. The waters of the river. Kuma in dry years do not reach the Caspian Sea, and the waters of the river. Embas reach it only in high water. In the summer in the river Embe, as in all small rivers of the semi-desert, the water is brackish. Within the lowlands there are a lot of small and large saline and occasionally fresh lakes. Fresh lakes arise in depressions closed on all sides, in which melted snow waters collect.

The climate of the Caspian lowland is characterized by the greatest continentality in comparison with other regions of the Russian Plain. This is due to the remoteness from the Atlantic Ocean, with the predominance of continental air masses and with increased insolation.

In winter, the distribution of the spurs of the Siberian anticyclone and the associated cold easterly winds, the frequency of which reaches 50%, play a significant role in the formation of weather conditions. The temperatures of the winter months in the Caspian region are unusually low for this latitude (from -14 in the north to -8 ° on the coast of the Caspian Sea). The same temperature conditions are observed in Arkhangelsk and Leningrad in winter. In some cases frosts reach -30, -40°. The Caspian Sea, which freezes in the northern part, does not have a warming effect even on coastal areas. The snow cover lasts 4-5 months, but its height is small - 10-20cm.

Spring in the Caspian region is friendly and short - during the end of April and the beginning of May, the temperature rises rapidly due to the intensification of incoming radiation and the influx of warm air from the southern regions of Kazakhstan.

Summer is very hot and dry. The amount of total solar radiation for June-August reaches 50 kcal / cm 2, the same number as in the Crimea. The isotherms of the summer months are located in the latitudinal direction: in the northern part of the Caspian Sea, the average July temperature is about +22°, in the southern part +23, +24°. The absolute maximum temperature is above +40°.

The maximum precipitation falls in the first half of summer, most often in the form of short showers, and is only 20-30 mm per month. The annual precipitation decreases in the southeast direction from 350 to 200-150 mm. Evaporation is about 1000 mm, thus, the total moisture deficit reaches 800mm.

Droughts, which are typical for the southern and southeastern regions of the European territory of the USSR, have the highest intensity and frequency here (up to 30%). Dry winds blow very often, especially dry and hot, over the sandy semi-deserts of the southeast.

The Caspian lowland lies in the semi-desert zone, and it is characterized by light chestnut solonetsous soils, the absorbing complex of which contains sodium. Thickness of humus horizons - 30-40 cm, the amount of humus is small in the upper horizons - 1-3%, and it is unevenly distributed over the soil profile. The lower part of the soil profile is saline with soluble salts. The soil cover of the semi-desert is variegated: it consists of light chestnut solonetsous soils, solonetzes and leached meadow chestnut soils of depressions. The semi-desert is characterized by an abundance of salt lakes, salt marshes and rivers carrying salt water. Salt marshes stretch in a wide strip along the shores of the Caspian Sea. Sands are widespread in the Astrakhan Trans-Volga region. A significant part of these sand massifs belongs to the category of moving ones.

In the north of the Caspian lowland, vegetation is represented by wormwood-cereal type; as you move south, the amount of cereals decreases and wormwood begins to predominate. Saltworts predominate in the south. The grass cover here is very sparse, the vegetation is stunted, due to which it suffers less from evaporation: the plants have a very well-developed root system, which allows them to intensively use soil moisture. On slightly saline loams, the following are predominant: white wormwood( Artemisia maritima), and on clayey, more saline soils - black wormwood ( Artemisia pauciflora); a lot of fescue ( Festuca sulcata), feather grass( Stipa capillata), thin-legged ( Koeleria gracilis). Lots of tulips in spring( Tulipa schrenkii), buttercup ( Ranunculus polyrhisus), bluegrass (Roa bulbosa var vivipara). On salt licks, in addition to black wormwood, biyurgun hodgepodge grows ( Anabasis salsa) and lichens ( Aspicilia); in rainy seasons, colonies of algae appear on solonetzes, which look like black, hair-like, threads more than 30 long pressed to the ground.cm.

Various saltworts, black wormwood and shrubs grow on salt marshes: tamarisk ( Tamarix romosissima), kermek ( Statice suffruticosa). The kiyak grass grows on the sands( Elymus giganteus), which is a sand binder. In wet basins among the sands there are willows( Salix rosmarinifolia), goof ( Elaeagnus angustifolia) and other shrubs. In depressions, among hilly sands, where fresh groundwater lies very close to the surface, white poplar grows.( Populus alba), speck (Ro pulus nigra), aspen, willow ( Salix rosmarinifaboutla), rose hip ( Rosa cinnamomea). In the floodplain of the Volga there are: oak( Quercus robur), elm ( Ulmuslaevis), speck.

Characteristic representatives of animals are: sandy gopher, or yellow( Citellus fulvus), jerboa ( Alactaga elates), gerbil ( Meriones tamariscinus), hamster ( Cricetus cricetus). Saiga is found in the sands between the Volga and the Urals( Saiga tatarica), ubiquitous corsac fox( Vulpes corsak).

Of the birds found: black lark( Melanocorypha yeltonieusis) and small ( Calandrella). Floodplains and river deltas, especially the Volga, abound in birds. The Volga Delta is characterized by: great cormorant( Phalacrocorax carbo), white-tailed eagle( Haliaetus albicilla), grey goose (apse rapseg), white heron ( Egretta alba), sultan chicken( Porphyrio polioephalus), pheasant ( Phasianus colchicus), whiskered tit ( Ponurus biarmicus).

The Caspian lowland is used as a pasture. The low depth of snow cover allows the use of pastures in winter. With firth irrigation it is possible to obtain high yields of wheat, millet and fodder grasses.

In the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain, melon growing, horticulture and horticulture, industrial crops and rice are flourishing.

In the Astrakhan Reserve there is a relic plant - lotus( Nelumbium caspicum).

The Emba oil field is being developed, table salt is being mined (Lakes Baskunchak, Elton).

- A source-

Davydova, M.I. Physical geography of the USSR / M.I. Davydova [and d.b.]. - M .: Education, 1966. - 847 p.

Post Views: 170