List of Ramsar sites in Russia
List of Ramsar sites in Russia
Table:
Name[1]

Image

Location

Area (km2)

Wetland Type(s) *

Other Des.

Description

Area between the Pura River & Mokoritto River

Taymyria
72°32′N 85°30′E﻿ / ﻿72.533°N 85.500°E﻿ / 72.533; 85.500﻿ (Pura River)
Borders (PP)

11,250

Vt,Tp,O,Ts,M,N
(PDF)

IBA[2]

Hilly plains with diverse network of streams, rivers and lakes distinguish this area from surrounding flat tundra in the central Russian Arctic, in Taymyr Autonomous Okrug.[3] Overlaps the Purinsky Zakaznik. Supports the vulnerable Red-breasted Goose. RAMSAR map (pdf)

Beryozovye Islands

Leningrad Oblast
60°19′48″N 28°33′36″E﻿ / ﻿60.33000°N 28.56000°E﻿ / 60.33000; 28.56000﻿ (Beryozovye Islands)
Borders (IBA)

120

G,A,D
(PDF)

IBA[4]

"Birch Islands", on the north coast of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, on the southeast of Vyborg Bay. 300,000 to 500,000 birds migrate through in the spring - gulls, ducks, geese and swans. Indented shores with many inlets.[5] Ramsar wetland type classifications: G,A,D.(PDF)

Brekhovsky Islands

[toggle view]

Taymyr Autonomous Okrug
70°30′N 82°45′E﻿ / ﻿70.500°N 82.750°E﻿ / 70.500; 82.750﻿ (Brekhovsky Islands in the Yenisei delta)
Borders (PP)

14,000

L,Ts,U,W,O,M
(PDF)

IBA[6]

Brekhovsky Islands in the Yenisei estuary; wetlands and tundra in northern Siberia. Habitat for whitefish (Coregonus) and the endangered Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii).[7]

Chany Lake

Novosibirsk Oblast
55°2′N 77°40′E﻿ / ﻿55.033°N 77.667°E﻿ / 55.033; 77.667﻿ (Chany Lakes)
Borders (PP)

3,648

Q,O,R,Tp,M
(PDF)

Chany Lake area is a network of Lacustrine plain wetlands characteristic of West Siberian forest-steppe. Enclosed fresh water systems, 100 km north of Kazakhstan border. Mire, meadows, reedbeds, forest-steppe floral communities.[8]

Gorbita River Delta

Taymyria
73°00′00″N 94°55′00″E﻿ / ﻿73.00000°N 94.91667°E﻿ / 73.00000; 94.91667﻿ (Gorbita River Delta)
Borders (IBA)

750

Vt,Tp,O,Ts,M,N
(PDF)

IBA[9]

Lower valley of the Gorbita River, and adjacent mire complex. Important breeding ground for geese on the Taymyr Peninsula.[10]

Islands in Ob River Estuary

Yamalo-Nenetsia
66°40′N 70°58′E﻿ / ﻿66.667°N 70.967°E﻿ / 66.667; 70.967﻿ (Islands in Ob River)
Borders (PP)

1,280

F
(PDF)

Large floodplain islands where the Ob River opens to Ob Gulf; the Kara Sea is still 500 km to the north. 40% of the islands surfaces are covered with temporary bodies of water (sors). Breeding birds with a density of 500 to 2,000 birds per 10 km2. One of the world's richest habitats for whitefish.[11]

Islands in Onega Bay, White Sea

Karelia
64°56′N 35°10′E﻿ / ﻿64.933°N 35.167°E﻿ / 64.933; 35.167﻿ (Islands in Onega Bay)
Borders (PP)

36

A,D,E,U,Xp
(PDF)

IBA[12]

Kuzov Islands at the mouth of Onega Bay, the southernmost bay of the White Sea, 150 km west of Arkhangelsk. The islands are rocky and of glacial origin, covered in dward forests with stunted pine-birch communities, crowberry, moss and lichen. Supports rare plant and bird species, including the near-threatened Razorbill (Alca torda), and the Black guillemot (Cepphus grylle).[13]

Kama-Bakaldino Mires

Nizhny Novgorod Oblast
56°24′N 45°20′E﻿ / ﻿56.400°N 45.333°E﻿ / 56.400; 45.333﻿ (Kama-Bakaldino Mires)
Borders (PP)

2,265

U,Xp,O
(PDF)

Located just north of the Volga River as it flows east, 100 km east of Nizhny-Novgorod. The largest peatland south of the northern European taiga zone. Bogs, fens, raised mires, streams and other wetlands intermixed with stands of pine, birch, and aspen. Important stopover sight for migrating birds.[14]

Kandalaksha Bay

Murmansk Oblast
66°46′0″N 33°8′0″E﻿ / ﻿66.76667°N 33.13333°E﻿ / 66.76667; 33.13333﻿ (Kandalaksha Bay)
Borders (PP)

2,080

A,B,G,D,H
(PDF)

IBA[15]

The northwestern bay of the White Sea, Kandalaksha divides the Kola peninsula from Karelia. Over 850 rocky islands dot the shallow waters, whose rich benthic (sediment-dwelling) sealife support large flocks of migratory waterfowl. Much of the upper bay is protected by the Kandalaksha Nature Reserve, which was formed in 1932 to protect the Sea duck.[16]

Karaginsky Island

Kamchatka Krai
58°47′N 163°52′E﻿ / ﻿58.783°N 163.867°E﻿ / 58.783; 163.867﻿ (Karaginsky Island)
Borders (PP)

1,936

A,D,F,G,E,M,O
(PDF)

IBA[17]

Karaginsky is a 2,404 km2 island located 40 km east of the northeast coast of the Kamchatka peninsula in the western Bering Sea. The island is covered with elfin forests (stunted birch and dwarf pine), meadows, and low-bush alpine tundra. The numerous bays and inlets support large populations of diving ducks, gulls, terns, and cormorants; the island is on an important migration route for sea birds.[18]

Khingano-Arkharinskaya Lowland

Amur Oblast
49°10′N 130°0′E﻿ / ﻿49.167°N 130.000°E﻿ / 49.167; 130.000﻿ (Khingano)
Borders (PP)

2,000

Ts,Tp,O,M
(PDF)

IBA[19]

A "wet forest-steppe" (prairie) ecosystem along the Amur River on the Russian/Chinese border in the Russian Far East, between the Bureya River and the Khingan River. The landscape is an extensive floodplain, with streams, oxbow lakes, marshes, and other wetlands. Grass meadows and reed-beds are extensive, supporting aquatic wildlife that attracts migratory waterfowl (ducks, geese). A large portion is protected by the Khingan Nature Reserve.[20]

Kuban River Delta: Akhtaro-Grivenskaya group of limans

Krasnodar Krai
44°50′N 38°30′E﻿ / ﻿44.833°N 38.500°E﻿ / 44.833; 38.500﻿ (Kuban River Delta)
Borders (PP)

846

F, O, Q, J, Ts, M, 6,

1, 3, 4, 2, 9.
(PDF)

IBA[21]

Extensive delta of the Kuban River and adjacent areas to the Protoka River, on the southeast coast of the Sea of Azov in the southwest of Russia. The land forms are bars and islands of fluvial sediments (limans) in brackish water. Because of the wide variety of wetland types (including freshwater, brackish, and saline areas), there is abundant aquatic life. This supports very large populations of migratory waterfowl (1 - 12 million per year), and large breeding colonies (500,000 individuals).[22]

Kurgalsky Peninsula

Leningrad Oblast
44°50′N 38°30′E﻿ / ﻿44.833°N 38.500°E﻿ / 44.833; 38.500﻿ (Kurgalsky Peninsula)
Borders (PP)

650

A,U,O,E,D
(PDF)

IBA[23]

The Kurgalsky peninsula is located 125 km west of St. Petersburg on the south shore of the Gulf of Finland; it borders Estonia to the south. The site is surrounded by shallow waters, and covered with mires (un-forested land with living peat-growing plants) and stands of pine. Kurgalsky hosts large populations of migratory birds, including Whooper swans, Bewick's swans, and Greylag goose.[24]

Lake Bolon & the mouths of the Selgon River & Simmi Rivers

Khabarovsk Krai
49°35′N 136°5′E﻿ / ﻿49.583°N 136.083°E﻿ / 49.583; 136.083﻿ (Lake Bolon)
Borders (PP)

538

O,L,Ts,U,Xp
(PDF)

IBA[25]

Lake Bolon is a large, complex floodplain lake in the Lower Amur River region. It is fed by the Selgon and Simmi Rivers in the Khabarovosk region of the Russian Far East. 80% of birds migrating through the Lower Amur region stop at Lake Bolon area, approximately 1 million per year. A wide variety of habitats are supported, including meadows, sedge and reedbeds, peat bogs, and birch forests. Rare fish are also supported.[26]

Lake Khanka

Primorsky Krai
45°17′N 132°32′E﻿ / ﻿45.283°N 132.533°E﻿ / 45.283; 132.533﻿ (Lake Khanka)
Borders (PP)

3,100

O,Tp,1-9,W,Xf
(PDF)

IBA[27]

Lake Khanka is the largest lake in the Lower Amur River region of the Russian Far East. The site is a cross-border area on the northeast border of China. On the Chinese side it is called "Xingkai Lake National Nature Reserve"; on the Russian side it is protected by the Khanka Nature Reserve. The area provides a stopover point for 1.5 - 2 million birds migrating each year between East Asia and the southeast to Australia. .[28]

Lake Manych-Gudilo

Kalmykia & Rostov Oblast
45°42′N 42°50′E﻿ / ﻿45.700°N 42.833°E﻿ / 45.700; 42.833﻿ (Lake Manych-Gudilo)
Borders (PP)

1,126

Q
(PDF)

IBA[29]

Lake Manych-Gudilo is a connected series of shallow salt lakes with many islands, located in the flat depression between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea about 200 km southeast of Rostov-on-Don. Situation among black-earth grasslands, the zooplankton and benthic aquatic life are abundant, supporting an important staging area for migrating birds, particularly geese and shorebirds. Much of the site is protected by the federal Chyornye Zemli Nature Reserve.[30]

Lake Udyl & the mouths of the Bichi Bitki & Pilda Rivers

[toggle view]

Khabarovsk Krai
52°9′N 139°51′E﻿ / ﻿52.150°N 139.850°E﻿ / 52.150; 139.850﻿ (Lake Udyl)
Borders (PP)

576

O,L,Ts,U,Xp
(PDF)

IBA[31]

Lake Udyl is a 330 km2 freshwater lake, 200 km upstream from the mouth of the Amur River on the Sea of Okhotsk in the Russian Far East. The lake is shallow (2–3 meters in summer), with adjacent wet meadows and mires. It supports the largest population of the Swan goose and Stellar's Sea Eagle in the Amur region.[32]

Lower Dvuobje

Khanty–Mansi & Yamalo-Nenetsia
64°32′N 65°46′E﻿ / ﻿64.533°N 65.767°E﻿ / 64.533; 65.767﻿ (Dvuobje)
Borders (PP)

5,400

Ts,P,O,W,Tp,M
(PDF)

Located on the Ob River floodplain, the largest floodplain in northern Eurasia, 100 km south of where the Ob opens into the Ob Gulf. The Ramsar site is split into three sectors to cover the mouths of tributary rivers. The extensive wetlands are an important breeding and molting ground for ducks and swans, and is an important feeding ground for sturgeon and whitefish.[33]

Moroshechnaya River

Kamchatka Krai
56°21′N 156°15′E﻿ / ﻿56.350°N 156.250°E﻿ / 56.350; 156.250﻿ (Moroshechnaya)
Borders (PP)

2,190

U,J,O,Tp,W,M
(PDF)

IBA[34]

Located on the west-central coast of the Kamchatka peninsula. The site covers the Moroshechnaya River valley, with many oxbow lakes and a saline lagoon on the Okhotsk Sea. The terrain is peat soil on loose Neogene rocks. Among the many breeding and molting birds is the largest population of the Bean goose (Anser fabalis).[35][36]

Mshinskaya Wetland system

Leningrad Oblast
59°3′0″N 30°13′0″E﻿ / ﻿59.05000°N 30.21667°E﻿ / 59.05000; 30.21667﻿ (Mshinskaya Wetland)
Borders (PP)

751

U,Xp,O,M
(PDF)

A bird sanctuary. Rare species of birds include osprey, golden eagle, white stork, black stork, black-throated loon, whooper swan, Eurasian curlew, Eurasian eagle-owl, and Eurasian bittern.[37]

Leveraging the provided table along with the passages listed at the end.

Give the answer to the question: What species of bird has specialized salt glands and inhabits the site with shallow waters reaching 300 meters ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}.

Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets Autonomous Okrug ( Russian : Таймы́рский Долга́но-Не́нецкий автоно́мный о́круг , Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky avtonomny okrug ) , or Taymyria ( Таймырия , Taymyriya ) , was a federal subject of Russia ( an autonomous okrug of Krasnoyarsk Krai ) , the northernmost in mainland Russia ( and thus Asia ) . It was named after the Taymyr Peninsula . It was also called Dolgan-Nenets Autonomous Okrug ( Долгано-Ненецкий автономный округ ) , by the name of the indigenous people , Dolgans and Nenetses . With an area of 862,100 km² ( ranked 4th ) and a population of 39,786 ( 2002 Census ) , the autonomous okrug was one of the least densely populated areas of Russia as of 2006 . Dudinka , with more than half of Taymyria 's inhabitants , was the administrative center . Following a referendum on the issue held on April 17 , 2005 , Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs were merged into Krasnoyarsk Krai effective January 1 , 2007 . Taymyria was given a special status within Krasnoyarsk Krai and incorporated as Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District .
Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets Autonomous Okrug ( Russian : Таймы́рский Долга́но-Не́нецкий автоно́мный о́круг , Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky avtonomny okrug ) , or Taymyria ( Таймырия , Taymyriya ) , was a federal subject of Russia ( an autonomous okrug of Krasnoyarsk Krai ) , the northernmost in mainland Russia ( and thus Asia ) . It was named after the Taymyr Peninsula . It was also called Dolgan-Nenets Autonomous Okrug ( Долгано-Ненецкий автономный округ ) , by the name of the indigenous people , Dolgans and Nenetses . With an area of 862,100 km² ( ranked 4th ) and a population of 39,786 ( 2002 Census ) , the autonomous okrug was one of the least densely populated areas of Russia as of 2006 . Dudinka , with more than half of Taymyria 's inhabitants , was the administrative center . Following a referendum on the issue held on April 17 , 2005 , Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs were merged into Krasnoyarsk Krai effective January 1 , 2007 . Taymyria was given a special status within Krasnoyarsk Krai and incorporated as Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District .
The red-breasted goose ( Branta ruficollis ) is a brightly marked species of goose in the genus Branta from Eurasia . It is currently classified as vulnerable by the IUCN .
Beryozovye Islands ( Russian : Берёзовые острова , Finnish : Koivisto , Swedish : Björkö ; literally : Birch Islands ) , alternatively spelled Berezovye Islands , is an island group in Leningrad Oblast , Russia . The islands are situated at the head of the Gulf of Finland , just outside the town of Primorsk on the Karelian Isthmus . There are 15 islands in the group , the largest is Bolshoy Beryozovy ( Large Berezovy , Finnish : Koivistonsaari ) . Other islands include Zapadny Beryozovy ( West Beryozovy , Finnish : Tiurinsaari ) and Severny Beryozovy ( North Beryozovy , Finnish : Piisaari ) . The total area of the group , stretching along the coast for 200 km , is 92 km² . They are protected by the state as a seabird sanctuary and one of the Ramsar sites in Russia . Before the third Swedish crusade , the islands paid tax to Novgorod ; after the crusade they became Swedish . In 1721 they became part of Russia , and in 1812 they were restored to the Grand Duchy of Finland with the province of Vyborg . In independent Finland they belonged to the parish then called Koivisto ( Swedish : Björkö ) . The main settlement on the islands was then called Saarenpää ( Krasnoostrovskiy ) . After World War II , they were ceded by Finland to the Soviet Union . The whole historical Finnish population was expelled and replaced by a population of Soviet origin from September 1944 onwards .
Leningrad Oblast ( Russian : Ленингра́дская о́бласть , tr . Leningradskaya oblast , IPA : [ lʲɪnʲɪnˈgratskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ ] ) is a federal subject of Russia ( an oblast ) . It was established on August 1 , 1927 , although it was not until 1946 that the oblast 's borders had been mostly settled in their present position . The oblast was named after the city of Leningrad ( now Saint Petersburg ) . Unlike the city , the oblast retains the name of Leningrad . The oblast overlaps the historic region of Ingria and is bordered by Finland ( Kymenlaakso and South Karelia ) in the northwest and Estonia ( Ida-Viru County ) in the west , as well as five federal subjects of Russia : the Republic of Karelia in the northeast , Vologda Oblast in the east , Novgorod Oblast in the south , Pskov Oblast in the southwest , and the federal city of Saint Petersburg in the west . The first governor of Leningrad Oblast was Vadim Gustov ( in 1996-1998 ) . The current governor , since 2012 , is Aleksandr Drozdenko . The oblast has an area of 84,500 square kilometers ( 32,600 sq mi ) and a population of 1,716,868 ( 2010 Census ) ; up from 1,669,205 recorded in the 2002 Census . The most populous town of the oblast is Gatchina , with 88,659 inhabitants ( as of the 2002 Census ) . Leningrad Oblast is highly industrialized .
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention . The Convention on Wetlands , known as the Ramsar Convention , is an intergovernmental environmental treaty established in 1971 by UNESCO , which came into force in 1975 . It provides for national action and international cooperation regarding the conservation of wetlands , and wise sustainable use of their resources . Ramsar identifies wetlands of international importance , especially those providing waterfowl habitat . As of 2016 [ update ] , there were 2,231 Ramsar sites , protecting 214,936,005 hectares ( 531,118,440 acres ) , and 169 national governments are currently participating .
Siberia ( /saɪˈbɪəriə/ ; Russian : Сибирь , tr . Sibír ' , IPA : [ sʲɪˈbʲirʲ ] ( listen ) ) is an extensive geographical region spanning much of Eurasia and North Asia . Siberia has been part of modern Russia since the 17th century . The territory of Siberia extends eastwards from the Ural Mountains to the watershed between the Pacific and Arctic drainage basins . The Yenisei River conditionally divides Siberia into two parts , Western and Eastern . Siberia stretches southwards from the Arctic Ocean to the hills of north-central Kazakhstan and to the national borders of Mongolia and China . With an area of 13.1 million square kilometres ( 5,100,000 sq mi ) , Siberia accounts for 77% of Russia 's land area , but it is home to approximately 33 million people - 23% of the country 's population . This is equivalent to an average population density of about 3 inhabitants per square kilometre ( 7.8/sq mi ) ( approximately equal to that of Australia ) , making Siberia one of the most sparsely populated regions on Earth . If it were a country by itself , it would still be the largest country in area , but in population it would be the world 's 35th-largest and Asia 's 14th-largest . Worldwide , Siberia is well-known primarily for its long , harsh winters , with a January average of −25 °C ( −13 °F ) , as well as its extensive history of use by Russian and Soviet governments as a place for prisons , labor camps , and internal exile .
Coregonus is a diverse genus of fish in the salmon family ( Salmonidae ) . The Coregonus species are known as whitefishes . The genus contains at least 68 described extant taxa , but the true number of species is a matter of debate . The type species of the genus is Coregonus lavaretus . Most Coregonus species inhabit lakes and rivers , and several species , including the Arctic cisco ( C. autumnalis ) , the Bering cisco ( C. laurettae ) , and the least cisco ( C. sardinella ) are anadromous , moving between salt water and fresh water . The genus was previously subdivided into two subgenera Coregonus ( true whitefishes ) and Leucichthys ( ciscoes ) , Coregonus comprising taxa with sub-terminal mouth and usually a benthic feeding habit , Leucichthys those with terminal or supra-terminal mouth and usually a pelagic plankton-feeding habit . This classification is not natural however : based on molecular data , ciscoes comprise two distinct lineages within the genus . Moreover , the genus Stenodus is not phylogenetically distinct from Coregonus . Many whitefish species or ecotypes , especially from the Great Lakes and the Alpine lakes of Europe , have gone extinct over the past century or are endangered . Among 12 freshwater fish considered extinct in Europe , 6 are Coregonus . All Coregonus species are protected under appendix III of the Bern Convention .
The Siberian sturgeon ( Acipenser baerii ) is a species of sturgeon in the family Acipenseridae . It is most present in all of the major Siberian river basins that drain northward into the Kara , Laptev and East Siberian Seas , including the Ob , Yenisei ( which drains Lake Baikal via the Angara River ) Lena , and Kolyma Rivers . It is also found in Kazakhstan and China in the Irtysh River , a major tributary of the Ob . The species epithet honors the German Russian biologist Karl Ernst von Baer .
Lake Chany ( Russian : озеро Чаны ) is one of the largest lakes in Russia . It is a shallow , hyposaline lake that has a fluctuating water level , which can change from season to season and year to year . A variety of ecosystems that surround the lake include a mixture of wetlands , salt marshes , and a mixture of birch and aspen forests . Lake Chany in particular is critically important for the migratory birds of Siberia , and is listed as a Ramsar Site of International Importance . The depth of the lake is mainly 1-2 m , but it can reach 8 m in some places . The lake is located in five districts of the Novosibirsk Oblast : Zdvinsky , Barabinsky , Chanovsky , Kupinsky and Chistoozyorny .
Novosibirsk Oblast ( Russian : Новосиби́рская о́бласть , Novosibirskaya oblast ) is a federal subject of Russia ( an oblast ) located in southwestern Siberia . Its administrative and economic center is the city of Novosibirsk . The population was 2,788,849 as of the 2018 Census .
A lacustrine plain or lake plain is a plain formed due to the past existence of a lake and its accompanying sediment accumulation . Lacustrine plains can be formed through one of three major mechanisms : glacial drainage , differential uplift , and inland lake creation and drainage . Lake plains can have various uses depending on where and how they form .
Kazakhstan , [ b ] officially the Republic of Kazakhstan , [ c ] is a transcontinental country largely located in Central Asia with the most western parts of it being located in Eastern Europe . It is the world 's largest landlocked country , and the ninth largest country in the world , with an area of 2,724,900 square kilometres ( 1,052,100 sq mi ) . Kazakhstan is the most dominant nation of Central Asia economically , generating 60% of the region 's GDP , primarily through its oil and gas industry . It also has vast mineral resources . Kazakhstan is officially a democratic , secular , unitary , constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage . Kazakhstan shares borders with Russia , China , Kyrgyzstan , Uzbekistan , and Turkmenistan , and also adjoins a large part of the Caspian Sea . The terrain of Kazakhstan includes flatlands , steppe , taiga , rock canyons , hills , deltas , snow-capped mountains , and deserts . Kazakhstan has an estimated 18.3 million people as of 2018 [ update ] . Its population density is among the lowest , at less than 6 people per square kilometre ( 15 people per sq mi ) . Since 1997 and independence , the capital is Nur-Sultan , formerly known as Astana . It was moved from Almaty , the country 's largest city . The territory of Kazakhstan has historically been inhabited by nomadic groups and empires .
The Ob River ( Russian : Обь , IPA : [ opʲ ] ) , also Ob ' , is a major river in western Siberia , Russia , and is the world 's seventh-longest river . It forms at the confluence of the Biya and Katun Rivers which have their origins in the Altay Mountains . It is the westernmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean ( the other two being the Yenisei River and the Lena River ) . The Gulf of Ob is the world 's longest estuary .
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug ( Russian : Яма́ло-Не́нецкий автоно́мный о́круг , Yamalo-Nenetsky Avtonomny Okrug ; Nenets : Ямалы-Ненёцие автономной ӈокрук , Yamaly-Nenyotsiye avtonomnoj ŋokruk , ЯНАО ( YaNAO ) ) is a federal subject of Russia ( an autonomous okrug of Tyumen Oblast ) . Its administrative center is the town of Salekhard , and its largest city is Noyabrsk . Its population was counted to be 522,904 in the 2010 Census .
The Onega Bay ( Russian : Онежская губа , Онежский залив ) is located in the Republic of Karelia and Arkhangelsk Oblast in Northwestern Russia , west of the city of Arkhangelsk . It is the southernmost of four large bays and gulfs of the White Sea , the others being the Dvina Bay , the Mezen Bay , and the Kandalaksha Gulf . The area of the bay is 6,630 square kilometres ( 2,560 sq mi ) . The Onega Bay is 185 kilometres ( 115 mi ) long and 50 kilometres ( 31 mi ) -100 kilometres ( 62 mi ) wide . The average depth of the bay is 16 metres ( 52 ft ) , and the maximum depth is 36 metres ( 118 ft ) . The bay freezes in winter . Onega , Kem , and Vyg Rivers flow into the bay . The bay has numerous islands . Solovetsky Islands , which are the largest and the most famous , are located on the entrance to the bay and separate it from the main body of the White Sea . Along the west coast , there are hundreds of small islands ( Russian : луда , luda 's ) . The biggest of these are Shuyostrov Island , Russky Kuzov Island , Myagostrov Island , Kondostrov Island , and Sumostrov Island . The group of islands around Kondostrov Island are collectively known as the Sumsky Skerries .
Karelia ( Karelian , Finnish , and Estonian : Karjala ; Russian : Карелия , Kareliya , historically Корела , Koryela ; Swedish : Karelen ) , the land of the Karelian people , is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for Finland , Russia , and Sweden . It is currently divided among the northwestern Russian Federation ( the federal subjects of the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast ) and Finland ( the regions of South Karelia and North Karelia ) .
The razorbill or lesser auk ( Alca torda ) is a colonial seabird in the monotypic genus Alca of the family Alcidae , the auks . It is the closest living relative of the extinct great auk ( Pinguinis impennis ) . Wild populations live in the subarctic waters of the Atlantic Ocean . Razorbills are primarily black with a white underside . The male and female are identical in plumage ; however , males are generally larger than females . This agile bird , which is capable of both flight and diving , has a predominantly aquatic lifestyle and only comes to land in order to breed . It is monogamous , choosing one partner for life . Females lay one egg per year . Razorbills nest along coastal cliffs in enclosed or slightly exposed crevices . The parents spend equal amounts of time incubating , and once the chick has hatched , they take turns foraging for their young . In 1918 , the razorbill was protected in the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act . Presently , the major threat for the population is the destruction of breeding sites .
The black guillemot or tystie ( Cepphus grylle ) is a medium-sized seabird of the alcid family , Alcidae , native throughout northern Atlantic coasts and eastern North American coasts . It is resident in much of its range , but large populations from the high arctic migrate southwards in winter . The bird can be seen in and around its breeding habitat of rocky shores , cliffs and islands in single or smalls groups of pairs . They feed mainly by diving towards the sea floor feeding on fish , crustaceans or other benthic invertebrates . They are listed on the IUCN red list as a species of least concern . Both sexes have very similar appearances with black plumage and a large white patch on the upper side of their wings in summer . The bill is also black , being rather long and slender , while the feet are coral-red . In winter adult underparts are white and the upperparts are a pale grey with the back and shoulders exhibiting barred light grey and white patterning . The birds breed in solitary pairs or small groups during their breeding season starting in late February and early May . Breeding pairs will typically lay 2-egg clutches and raise 2 chicks to fledging . Incubation typically lasts 28 to 32 days , once hatched chicks receive care from the parents until they fledge aged 30 - 40 days . Once fledged chicks are totally independent and by age three or four years they will be begin to re-join their natal colony .
The Kama ( Russian : река́ Ка́ма , IPA : [ rʲɪˈka ˈkamə ] ; Tatar : Чулман/Çulman ; Udmurt : Кам ) is a river 1,805 kilometres ( 1,122 mi ) long in Russia . It is the longest left tributary of the Volga and the largest one in discharge . At their confluence , in fact , the Kama is even larger than the Volga . It starts in the Udmurt Republic , near Kuliga , flowing northwest for 200 kilometres ( 120 mi ) , turning northeast near Loyno for another 200 kilometres ( 120 mi ) , then turning south and west in Perm Krai , flowing again through the Udmurt Republic and then through the Republic of Tatarstan , where it meets the Volga .
Nizhny Novgorod Oblast ( Russian : Нижегородская область , Nizhegorodskaya oblast ) , also known as Nizhegorod Oblast , is a federal subject of Russia ( an oblast ) . Its administrative center is the city of Nizhny Novgorod . It has a population of 3,310,597 as of the 2010 Census . From 1932 to 1990 it was known as Gorky Oblast . The oblast is crossed by the Volga River . Apart from Nizhny Novgorod 's metropolitan area ( including Dzerzhinsk , Bor and Kstovo ) the biggest city is Arzamas . Near the town of Sarov there is the Serafimo-Diveyevsky Monastery , one of the largest convents in Russia , established by Saint Seraphim of Sarov . The Makaryev Monastery opposite of the town of Lyskovo used to be the location of the largest fair in Eastern Europe . [ citation needed ] Other historic towns include Gorodets and Balakhna , located on the Volga to the north from Nizhny Novgorod .
Nizhny Novgorod ( /ˌnɪʒni ˈnɒvɡərɒd/ NIZH-nee NOV-gə-rod ; Russian : Нижний Новгород , IPA : [ ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ] ) , colloquially shortened to Nizhny , is a city in Russia and the administrative center ( capital ) of Volga Federal District and Nizhny Novgorod Oblast . From 1932 to 1990 , it was known as Gorky ( Горький , IPA : [ ˈɡorʲkʲɪj ] ) , after the writer Maxim Gorky , who was born there . The city is an important economic , transportation , scientific , educational and cultural center in Russia and the vast Volga-Vyatka economic region , and is the main center of river tourism in Russia . In the historic part of the city there are many universities , theaters , museums and churches . Nizhny Novgorod is located about 400 km ( 250 mi ) east of Moscow , where the Oka River empties into the Volga . Population : 1,250,619 ( 2010 Census ) ; 1,311,252 ( 2002 Census ) ; 1,438,133 ( 1989 Census ) . The city was founded in 4 February 1221 by Prince Yuri II of Vladimir . In 1612 Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky organized an army for the liberation of Moscow from the Poles . In 1817 Nizhny Novgorod became a great trade center of the Russian Empire . In 1896 at a fair , an All-Russia Exhibition was organized . During the Soviet period , the city turned into an important industrial center . In particular , the Gorky Automobile Plant was constructed in this period .
The Kandalaksha Gulf ( Russian : Кандалакшский залив , Skolt Sami : Käddluhtt ) , Finnish : Kantalahti ) is located in the Republic of Karelia , and Murmansk Oblast in northwestern Russia . Forming the north-western corner of the White Sea , it is one of four large bays and gulfs of this sea , the others being the Onega Bay ( south-west ) , the Dvina Bay ( south ) , and the Mezen Bay ( south east ) . The Kola Peninsula lies north of the Kandalaksha Gulf . The city of Kandalaksha is located at the northern tip of the gulf ; the new oil port Vitino , some 10 km to the south . There are hundreds of skerries in the gulf . The gulf is shallow , reaching 300 meters on its western side . In 1976 , the upper reaches of the Gulf were designated a RAMSAR wetland of international importance , notably as a breeding ground for migratory waterfowl such as the sea duck . Kandalaksha Nature Reserve ( Кандалакшский заповедник ) includes parts of the coastline and many of the islands in the Gulf . It is one of Russia 's oldest nature reserves , established in 1932 .
Murmansk Oblast ( Russian : Му́рманская о́бласть , tr . Murmanskaya oblast , IPA : [ ˈmurmənskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ ] ) is a federal subject ( an oblast ) of Russia , located in the northwestern part of the country . Its administrative center is the city of Murmansk . As of the 2010 Census , its population was 795,409 .
The White Sea ( Russian : Белое море , Béloye móre ; Karelian and Finnish : Vienanmeri , lit . Dvina Sea ; Nenets : Сэрако ямʼ , Serako yam ) is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia . It is surrounded by Karelia to the west , the Kola Peninsula to the north , and the Kanin Peninsula to the northeast . The whole of the White Sea is under Russian sovereignty and considered to be part of the internal waters of Russia . Administratively , it is divided between Arkhangelsk and Murmansk oblasts and the Republic of Karelia . The major port of Arkhangelsk is located on the White Sea . For much of Russia 's history this was Russia 's main centre of international maritime trade , conducted by the Pomors ( seaside settlers ) from Kholmogory . In the modern era it became an important Soviet naval and submarine base . The White Sea-Baltic Canal connects the White Sea with the Baltic Sea . The White Sea is one of the four seas named in English after common colour terms - the others being the Black Sea , the Red Sea , and the Yellow Sea .
The Kola Peninsula ( Russian : Ко́льский полуо́стров , Kolsky poluostrov ; from Kildin Sami : Куэлнэгк нёаррк , Kuelnegk njoarrk ; Northern Sami : Guoládatnjárga ; Finnish : Kuolan niemimaa ; Norwegian : Kolahalvøya ) is a peninsula in the far northwest of Russia . Constituting the bulk of the territory of Murmansk Oblast , it lies almost completely inside the Arctic Circle and is bordered by the Barents Sea in the north and the White Sea in the east and southeast . The city of Murmansk is the most populous human settlement on the peninsula , with a population of over 300,000 as of the 2010 Census . While the north of the peninsula was already settled in the 7th-5th millennium BCE , the rest of its territory remained uninhabited until the 3rd millennium BCE , when various peoples started to arrive from the south . However , by the 1st millennium CE only the Sami people remained . This changed in the 12th century , when Russian Pomors discovered the peninsula 's game and fish riches . Soon after , the Pomors were followed by the tribute collectors from the Novgorod Republic , and the peninsula gradually became a part of the Novgorodian lands . No permanent settlements , however , were established by the Novgorodians until the 15th century . The Soviet period saw a rapid increase of the population , although most of it remained confined to urbanized territories along the sea coast and the railroads . The Sami people were subject to forced collectivization , including forced relocation to Lovozero and other centralized settlements , and overall the peninsula was heavily industrialized and militarized , largely due to its strategic position and the discovery of the vast apatite deposits in the 1920s . As a result , the ecology of the peninsula suffered major ecological damage , including contamination by military nuclear waste and nickel smelting . After the dissolution of the Soviet Union , the economy went into decline and the population quickly started to decrease .
Kandalaksha Nature Reserve ( Russian : Кандалакшский заповедник ) ( also Kandalakshsky ) is a Russian 'zapovednik ' ( strict ecological reserve ) on the south shore of Kandalaksha Bay in the Murmansk and Karelia regions on the opening to the White Sea . The reserve also includes two small sectors on the northern coast of the Kola peninsula on the Barents Sea ; notably , the warm Atlantic current causes the northern sectors on the Barents Sea to be warmer than the more southerly White Sea sectors . Over 550 islands are covered in the boundaries of the reserve . It is one of the oldest nature reserves in Russia , created in 1932 to protect the marine habitats and waterfowl of the region , particularly the eider . The reserve is situated in the Kandalakshsky District , Kolsky District , and Lovozersky District of Murmansk Oblast . The nearest city , Kandalaksha , is at the northwest entrance to the Kandalaksha Gulf , about 5 km from the nearest point in the reserve . Since 1976 , the reserve has been part of the RAMSAR wetland site of international importance Kandalaksha Bay . It covers an area of 70,530 ha ( 272.3 sq mi ) .
The seaducks ( Mergini ) are a tribe of the duck subfamily of birds , the Anatinae . The taxonomy of this group is incomplete . Some authorities separate the group as a subfamily , others remove some genera from the group and keep others . Most species within the group spend their winters near coastal waters . Many species have developed specialized salt glands to allow them to tolerate salt water but these are poorly developed in juveniles . Some of the species prefer riverine habitats . All but two of the 20 species in this group live in far northern latitudes . The fish-eating members of this group , such as the mergansers and smew , have serrated edges to their bills to help them grip their prey and are often known as sawbills . Other seaducks forage by diving underwater , taking molluscs or crustaceans from the sea floor . The Mergini take on the eclipse plumage during the late summer and molt into their breeding plumage during the winter .
Karaginsky Island or Karaginskiy Island ( Russian : Карагинский остров ) is an island in the Karaginsky Gulf of the Bering Sea . The 40 km-wide strait between the Kamchatka Peninsula and this island is called Litke Strait . Karaginsky Island is a Ramsar site . Even though the island is uninhabited , the Karagin Koryaks have traditionally lived in Karaginskiy Island . Migrant reindeer herders still live in temporary shelters on the island . The island is 101 km long and up to 27 km wide , with an area of 2,404 km² . The highest peak of the island is 912 m. Karaginsky Island is covered with tundra vegetation and cedar underwood . In the summer there are many flowers . 45 km north of Karaginsky Island 's northern tip lies the small and narrow Verkhoturov Island ( Ostrov Verkhoturova ) . It is 3.5 km long and has an average width of 0.5 km .
Kamchatka Krai ( Russian : Камча́тский край , tr . Kamchatsky kray , IPA : [ kɐmˈtɕatskʲɪj kraj ] ) is a federal subject ( a krai ) of Russia . It is geographically located in the Far East region of the country , and it is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District . Kamchatka Krai has a population of 322,079 ( 2010 ) . Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is the largest city and capital of Kamchatka Krai , and home to over half of the krai 's population . Kamchatka Krai was formed on July 1 , 2007 , as a result of the merger of Kamchatka Oblast and Koryak Autonomous Okrug , based on the voting in a referendum on the issue on October 23 , 2005 . The okrug retains the status of a special administrative division of the krai , under the name of Koryak Okrug . The Kamchatka Peninsula forms the majority of the krai 's territory , separating the Sea of Okhotsk and the Bering Sea in the Pacific Ocean . The remainder is formed by a minor northern mainland portion , Karaginsky Island and the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea . It is bordered by Magadan Oblast to the west and Chukotka to the north . Kamchatka Krai is an active volcanic zone which is home to Kluchevskaya , the largest volcano in Eurasia , and the Decade Volcanoes of Avachinsky and Koryaksky .
The Kamchatka Peninsula ( Russian : полуо́стров Камча́тка , Poluostrov Kamchatka , IPA : [ pəlʊˈostrəf kɐmˈt͡ɕætkə ] ) is a 1,250-kilometre-long ( 780 mi ) peninsula in the Russian Far East , with an area of about 270,000 km2 ( 100,000 sq mi ) . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula 's eastern and western coastlines , respectively . Immediately offshore along the Pacific coast of the peninsula runs the 10,500-metre ( 34,400-ft ) deep Kuril-Kamchatka Trench . The Kamchatka Peninsula , the Commander Islands , and Karaginsky Island constitute the Kamchatka Krai of the Russian Federation . The vast majority of the 322,079 inhabitants are ethnic Russians , although about 13,000 are Koryaks ( 2014 ) . More than half of the population lives in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky ( 179,526 in 2010 ) and nearby Yelizovo ( 38,980 ) . The Kamchatka peninsula contains the volcanoes of Kamchatka , a UNESCO World Heritage Site .
The Bering Sea ( Russian : Бе́рингово мо́ре , tr . Béringovo móre ) is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean . It forms , along with the Bering Strait , the divide between the two largest landmasses on Earth : Eurasia and The Americas . It comprises a deep water basin , which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves . The Bering Sea is separated from the Gulf of Alaska by the Alaska Peninsula . It covers over 2,000,000 square kilometers ( 770,000 sq mi ) and is bordered on the east and northeast by Alaska , on the west by Russian Far East and the Kamchatka Peninsula , on the south by the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands and on the far north by the Bering Strait , which connects the Bering Sea to the Arctic Ocean 's Chukchi Sea . Bristol Bay is the portion of the Bering Sea which separates the Alaska Peninsula from mainland Alaska . The Bering Sea is named for Vitus Bering , a Danish navigator in Russian service , who in 1728 was the first European to systematically explore it , sailing from the Pacific Ocean northward to the Arctic Ocean . The Bering Sea ecosystem includes resources within the jurisdiction of the United States and Russia , as well as international waters in the middle of the sea ( known as the Donut Hole ) . The interaction between currents , sea ice , and weather makes for a vigorous and productive ecosystem .
Khingan Nature Reserve ( Russian : Хинганский заповедник Khinganskiy zapavyednik ) ( also Khingansky ) is a Russian 'zapovednik ' ( strict nature reserve ) , located in the extreme south-east of the Amur River region of the Russian Far East . The reserve covers two types of habitat : the flat Arkharinskaya lowlands with abundant wetlands , and forested spurs of the Lesser Hinggan mountains . In particular , Khingan Reserve was created to protect steppe and forest-steppe landscapes , and nesting sites of the endangered Red-crowned crane ( Ussuri crane ) and the vulnerable White-naped crane . The reserve is situated in the Arkharinsky District of Amur Oblast .
Amur Oblast ( Russian : Аму́рская о́бласть , tr . Amurskaya oblast , IPA : [ ɐˈmurskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ ] ) is a federal subject of Russia ( an oblast ) , located on the banks of the Amur and Zeya Rivers in the Russian Far East . The administrative center of the oblast , the city of Blagoveshchensk , is one of the oldest settlements in the Russian Far East , founded in 1856 . It is a traditional center of trade and gold mining . The territory is accessed by two railways : the Trans-Siberian Railway and the Baikal-Amur Mainline . As of the 2010 Census , the oblast 's population was 830,103 . Amur Krai ( Аму́рский край ) or Priamurye ( Приаму́рье ) were unofficial names for the Russian territories by the Amur River used in the late Russian Empire that approximately correspond to modern Amur Oblast .
The Amur River ( Russian : река́ Аму́р , IPA : [ ɐˈmur ] or Heilong Jiang ( Chinese : 黑龙江 ; pinyin : Hēilóng Jiāng , Black Dragon River , IPA : [ xéi.lʊ̌ŋ tɕjáŋ ] ; ) is the world 's tenth longest river , forming the border between the Russian Far East and Northeastern China ( Inner Manchuria ) . The largest fish species in the Amur is the kaluga , attaining a length as great as 5.6 metres ( 18 ft ) . The river basin is home to a variety of large predatory fish such as northern snakehead , Amur pike , taimen , Amur catfish , predatory carp and yellowcheek , as well as the northernmost populations of the Amur softshell turtle and Indian lotus .
The Russian Far East ( Russian : Дальний Восток России , tr . Dal'niy Vostok Rossii , IPA : [ ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ ] , literally The distant East of Russia ) is a region in North Asia which includes the Russian part of the Far East , the easternmost territory of Russia , between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean . The Far Eastern Federal District shares land borders with Mongolia , the People 's Republic of China and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea to its south , and shares maritime borders with Japan to its southeast and with the United States to its northeast . Although occasionally considered part of Siberia , the Russian Far East is categorized separately from the Siberian Federal District to its west in Russian geographical schemes .
The Bureya River ( Russian : Бурея ) is a 623-kilometre ( 387 mi ) long south-flowing tributary of the Amur River . Its name comes from the Evenk word birija , meaning river .
The Kuban River ( Russian : Куба́нь , IPA : [ kʊˈbanʲ ] ; Circassian : Псыжъ , Psyẑ [ psəʐ ] or Псыжь , Psyź IPA : [ psəʑ ] ; Abaza : Къвбина , Q̇vbina IPA : [ qʷʼbina ] ; Karachay-Balkar : Къобан , Qoban ; Nogai : Кобан , Qoban ) is a river in the Northwest Caucasus region of European Russia . It flows mostly through Krasnodar Krai for 660 kilometres ( 410 mi ) but also in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic , Stavropol Krai and the Republic of Adygea . The Kuban flows 870 kilometres ( 540 mi ) north and west from its source near Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus Mountains , eventually reaching Temryuk Bay in the Sea of Azov . It is navigable up to Krasnodar . Major cities along the Kuban are Karachayevsk , Cherkessk , Nevinnomyssk , Armavir , Ust-Labinsk , Krasnodar and Temryuk . Despite its name , Slavyansk-na-Kubani lies not on the Kuban River , but on its distributary the Protoka .
Liman is defined in Bulgarian , Ukrainian , Russian ( лиман ) and Romanian ( liman ) as an enlarged estuary formed as a lagoon at the widening mouth of one or several rivers , where flow is blocked by a bar of sediments , as in the Dniester Liman or the Razelm liman . A liman can be maritime ( the bar being created by the current of a sea ) or fluvial ( the bar being created by the flow of a bigger river at the confluence ) . The term is usually used in place of the more universal delta , with its implication of landform , to describe wet estuaries in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov ; a synonymous term guba ( губа ) is used in Russian sources for estuaries of the Russian shores in the north . Water in a liman is brackish with a variable salinity : during periods of low fresh-water intake , it may become significantly more saline as a result of evaporation and inflow of sea water . Such features are found in places with low tidal range , for example along the western and northern coast of the Black Sea , in the Baltic Sea ( Vistula Lagoon , the Curonian Lagoon ) , as well as along the lowest part of the Danube . Examples of limans include Lake Varna in Bulgaria , Lake Razelm in Romania , the Dniester Liman in Ukraine and the Anadyrskiy Liman and Amur Liman in Siberia .
Krasnodar Krai ( Russian : Краснода́рский край , tr . Krasnodarsky kray , IPA : [ krəsnɐˈdarskʲɪj kraj ] ) is a federal subject of Russia ( a krai ) , located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and administratively a part of the Southern Federal District . Its administrative center is the city of Krasnodar . The third most-populous federal subject , the krai had a population of 5,226,647 as of the 2010 Census . Krasnodar Krai is formally and informally referred to as Kuban ( Russian : Кубань ) , a term denoting former Kuban People 's Republic and historic region of Kuban situated between the Sea of Azov and the Kuban River which is mostly composed of the krai 's territory . It is bordered by Rostov Oblast to the north , Stavropol Krai to the east , Karachay-Cherkessia to the south-east , and Adygea is an enclave entirely within the krai . Krasnodar Krai shares an international border with Georgia to the south , and a disputed border with Crimea across the Kerch Strait . The northern part of the krai belongs to the Don Steppe , while southern region 's Mediterranean climate has made it a popular tourist location . Novorossiysk is Russia 's main port on the Black Sea , one of the few cities awarded the title of the Hero City , and Sochi was host of the XXII Olympic Winter Games in 2014 . Krasnodar Krai is home to significant infrastructure of the Russian Navy 's Black Sea Fleet .
The Sea of Azov ( Russian : Азо́вское мо́ре , Azóvskoje móre ; Ukrainian : Азо́вське мо́ре , Azóvśke móre ; Adyghe : Хы МыутӀэ ; Crimean Tatar : Azaq deñizi , Азакъ денъизи , ازاق دﻩﯕىزى ) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow ( about 4 km or 2.5 mi ) Strait of Kerch , and is sometimes regarded as a northern extension of the Black Sea . The sea is bounded in the northwest by Ukraine , in the southeast by Russia . The Don River and Kuban River are the major rivers that flow into it . There is a constant outflow of water from the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea . The Sea of Azov is the shallowest sea in the world , with the depth varying between 0.9 and 14 metres ( 2 ft 11 in and 45 ft 11 in ) . The sea is largely affected by the inflow of numerous rivers , which bring sand , silt , and shells , which in turn form numerous bays , limans , and narrow spits . Because of these deposits , the sea bottom is relatively smooth and flat with the depth gradually increasing toward the middle . Also , due to the river inflow , water in the sea has low salinity and a high amount of biomass ( such as green algae ) that affects the water colour . Abundant plankton result in unusually high fish productivity . The sea shores and spits are low ; they are rich in vegetation and bird colonies .
The Kurgalsky Peninsula ( Russian : Кургальский полуостров ) is a peninsula that divides the southern part of the Gulf of Finland into the Narva Bay ( to the west ) and the Luga Bay ( to the east ) . The northernmost spot is Cape Pitkenen-Nos . The peninsula is rather swampy and contains several lakes . About 650 km² of wetland are protected as a Ramsar site . The port of Ust'-Luga is situated on the peninsula . There are many Izhorian villages in the district .
Saint Petersburg ( Russian : Санкт-Петербу́рг , tr . Sankt-Peterburg , IPA : [ ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk ] ( listen ) ) , formerly and still commonly known as Leningrad ( Russian : Ленинград ) is a city situated on the Neva River , at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea . It is Russia 's second-largest city after Moscow . With over 5,351,935 million inhabitants as of 2018 , it is the fourth-most populous city in Europe . An important Russian port on the Baltic Sea , it has a status of a federal subject ( a federal city ) . The city was founded by Tsar Peter the Great on 27 May [ O.S . 16 May ] 1703 , on the site of a captured Swedish fortress . It served as a capital of Russian Tsardom and the subsequent Russian Empire from 1713 to 1918 ( being replaced by Moscow for a short period of time between 1728 and 1730 ) . After the October Revolution , the Bolsheviks moved their government to Moscow . In modern times , Saint Petersburg is considered the Northern Capital and serves as a home to some federal government bodies such as the Constitutional Court of Russia and the Heraldic Council of the President of the Russian Federation . It is also a seat for the National Library of Russia and a planned location for the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation . The Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site , so it 's also referred to as Russia 's Culture Capital .
The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish : Suomenlahti ; Estonian : Soome laht ; Russian : Фи́нский зали́в , tr . Finskiy zaliv , IPA : [ ˈfʲinskʲɪj zɐˈlʲif ] ; Swedish : Finska viken ) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea . It extends between Finland ( to the north ) and Estonia ( to the south ) all the way to Saint Petersburg in Russia , where the river Neva drains into it . Other major cities around the gulf include Helsinki and Tallinn . The eastern parts of the Gulf of Finland belong to Russia , and some of Russia 's most important oil harbours are located farthest in , near Saint Petersburg ( including Primorsk ) . As the seaway to Saint Petersburg , the Gulf of Finland has been and continues to be of considerable strategic importance to Russia . Some of the environmental problems affecting the Baltic Sea are at their most pronounced in the shallow gulf .
A mire , peatland or quagmire is a wetland type , dominated by living peat-forming plants . Mires arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter , usually litter from vegetation , due to water-logging and subsequent anoxia . All types of mires share the common characteristic of being saturated with water at least seasonally with actively forming peat , while having its own set of vegetation and organisms . Like coral reefs , mires are unusual landforms in that they derive mostly from biological rather than physical processes , and can take on characteristic shapes and surface patterning . A quagmire is a floating ( quaking ) mire , bog or any peatland being in a stage of hydrosere or hydrarch ( hydroseral ) succession , resulting in pond-filling yields underfoot . Ombrotrophic types of quagmire may be called quaking bog ( quivering bog ) . Minerotrophic types can be named with the term quagfen . There are four types of mire : bog , fen , marsh and swamp . A bog is a mire that due to its location relative to the surrounding landscape obtains most of its water from rainfall ( ombrotrophic ) , while a fen is located on a slope , flat , or depression and gets most of its water from soil- or groundwater ( minerotrophic ) . Thus while a bog is always acidic and nutrient-poor , a fen may be slightly acidic , neutral , or alkaline , and either nutrient-poor or nutrient-rich . Although marshes are wetlands within which vegetation is rooted in mineral soil , some marshes form shallow peat deposits : these should be considered mires . Swamps are characterised by their forest canopy and , like fens , are typically of higher pH and nutrient availability than bogs .
A pine is any conifer in the genus Pinus ( /ˈpiːnuːs/ ) of the family Pinaceae . Pinus is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae . The Plant List compiled by the Royal Botanic Gardens , Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts 126 species names of pines as current , together with 35 unresolved species and many more synonyms .
The whooper swan ( Cygnus cygnus ) , also known as the common swan , pronounced hooper swan , is a large northern hemisphere swan . It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan , and the type species for the genus Cygnus . Francis Willughby and John Ray 's Ornithology of 1676 referred to this swan as the Elk , Hooper , or wild Swan . :23 The scientific name is from cygnus , the Latin for swan .
The tundra swan ( Cygnus columbianus ) is a small Holarctic swan . The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific , but are also sometimes split into two species : Bewick 's swan ( Cygnus bewickii ) of the Palaearctic and the whistling swan ( C. columbianus ) proper of the Nearctic . Birds from eastern Russia ( roughly east of the Taimyr Peninsula ) are sometimes separated as the subspecies C. c. jankowskii , but this is not widely accepted as distinct , with most authors including them in C. c. bewickii . Tundra swans are sometimes separated in the subgenus Olor together with the other Arctic swan species . Bewick 's swan was named in 1830 by William Yarrell after the engraver Thomas Bewick , who specialised in illustrations of birds and animals . Cygnus is the Latin for swan , and columbianus comes from the Columbia River , the type locality .
The greylag goose ( Anser anser ) is a species of large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae and the type species of the genus Anser . It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and pink legs . A large bird , it measures between 74 and 91 centimetres ( 29 and 36 in ) in length , with an average weight of 3.3 kilograms ( 7.3 lb ) . Its distribution is widespread , with birds from the north of its range in Europe and Asia migrating southwards to spend the winter in warmer places . It is the type species of the genus Anser and is the ancestor of the domestic goose , having been domesticated at least as early as 1360 BC . The genus name is from anser , the Latin for goose . Greylag geese travel to their northerly breeding grounds in spring , nesting on moorlands , in marshes , around lakes and on coastal islands . They normally mate for life and nest on the ground among vegetation . A clutch of three to five eggs is laid ; the female incubates the eggs and both parents defend and rear the young . The birds stay together as a family group , migrating southwards in autumn as part of a flock , and separating the following year . During the winter they occupy semi-aquatic habitats , estuaries , marshes and flooded fields , feeding on grass and often consuming agricultural crops . Some populations , such as those in Southern England and in urban areas across the species ' range , are primarily resident and occupy the same area year-round .
Lake Bolon ( Russian : Болонь ) is a large freshwater lake in the Khabarovsk Krai , Russia . It has an area of 338 km² ; it is 70 km long and 20 km wide , and has a maximum depth of about 4 m. It is located on the broad west-bank flood plain of the Amur River about 80 km south of Komsomolsk and drains into the Amur by a 9 km channel . Lake Bolon is an important stopping place for migratory birds . The south end of the lake is a nature preserve .
Khabarovsk Krai ( Russian : Хаба́ровский край , tr . Khabarovsky kray , IPA : [ xɐˈbarəfskʲɪj kraj ] ) is a federal subject ( a krai ) of Russia . It is geographically located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of the Far Eastern Federal District . The administrative centre of the krai is the city of Khabarovsk , which is home to roughly half of the krai 's population and the largest city in the Russian Far East ( just ahead of Vladivostok ) . Khabarovsk Krai is the fourth-largest federal subject by area , with a population of 1,343,869 as of the ( 2010 Census ) . The southern region lies mostly in the basin of the lower Amur River , with the mouth of the river located at Nikolaevsk-on-Amur draining into the Strait of Tartary , which separates Khabarovsk Krai from the island of Sakhalin . The north occupies a vast mountainous area along the coastline of the Sea of Okhotsk , a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean . Khabarovsk Krai is bordered by Magadan Oblast to the north , Amur Oblast , Jewish Autonomous Oblast and the Sakha Republic to the west , Primorsky Krai to the south , and Sakhalin Oblast to the east . The population is mostly ethnic Russians , but indigenous people of the area are various Tungusic peoples ( Evenks , Negidals , Ulchs , Nanai , Oroch , Udege ) and Amur Nivkhs and Ainu .
Lake Khanka ( Russian : о́зеро Ха́нка ) or Lake Xingkai ( simplified Chinese : 兴凯湖 ; traditional Chinese : 興凱湖 ; pinyin : Xīngkǎi Hú ) , is a freshwater lake on the border between Primorsky Krai , Russia and Heilongjiang province , Northeast China ( at 45°0′N 132°25′E / 45.000°N 132.417°E / 45.000 ; 132.417 ) .
Primorsky Krai ( Russian : Примо́рский край , tr . Primorsky kray , IPA : [ prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj ] ) is a federal subject ( a krai ) of Russia , located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of the Far Eastern Federal District . The city of Vladivostok is the administrative center of the krai , as well as the largest city in the Russian Far East . The krai has the largest economy among the federal subjects in the Russian Far East , and a population of 1,956,497 as of the 2010 Census . The name of the krai is derived from the Russian words приморский ( primorsky ) , meaning littoral or coastal , and край ( kray ) , meaning region or area . It is informally known as Primorye ( Примо́рье , IPA : [ prʲɪˈmorʲjɪ ] ) in Russian , and is occasionally translated as Coastal Territory in English . The krai shares Russia 's only border with North Korea , along the Tumen River in Khasansky District in the southwestern corner of the krai . Peter the Great Gulf , the largest gulf in the Sea of Japan , is located along the south coast . Historically part of Manchuria , Primorsky Krai was ceded to the Russian Empire by Qing China in 1860 as part of a region known as Outer Manchuria , forming most of the territory of Primorskaya Oblast . During the Russian Civil War it became part of the Far Eastern Republic before joining the Soviet Union , going through numerous changes until reaching its current form in 1938 . Primorsky Krai is home to the Russian Navy 's Russian Pacific Fleet .
China ( Chinese : 中国 ; pinyin : Zhōngguó ) , officially the People 's Republic of China ( PRC ) , is a country in East Asia and is the world 's most populous country , with a population of around 1.428 billion in 2017 . Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometers ( 3,700,000 sq mi ) , it is the third largest country by area . [ j ] Governed by the Communist Party of China , the state exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces , [ k ] five autonomous regions , four direct-controlled municipalities ( Beijing , Tianjin , Shanghai , and Chongqing ) , and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau . China emerged as one of the world 's first civilizations , in the fertile basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain . For millennia , China 's political system was based on hereditary monarchies , or dynasties , beginning with the semi-mythical Xia dynasty in 21st century BCE . Since then , China has expanded , fractured , and re-unified numerous times . In the 3rd century BCE , the Qin reunited core China and established the first Chinese empire . The succeeding Han dynasty , which ruled from 206 BCE until 220 CE , saw some of the most advanced technology at that time , including papermaking and the compass , along with agricultural and medical improvements . The invention of gunpowder and movable type in the Tang dynasty ( 618-907 ) and Northern Song ( 960-1127 ) completed the Four Great Inventions . Tang culture spread widely in Asia , as the new Silk Route brought traders to as far as Mesopotamia and the Horn of Africa . Dynastic rule ended in 1912 with the Xinhai Revolution , when the Republic of China ( ROC ) replaced the Qing dynasty . China , as a whole , was ravaged by feudal warlordism and Japan during World War II .
Khanka Nature Reserve ( Russian : Ханкайский заповедник Khankaiskiy zapavyednik ) ( also Khankaisky ) is a Russian 'zapovednik ' ( strict nature reserve ) that covers portions of the shore and waters of Lake Khanka , the largest freshwater lake in the Russian Far East . It is an important area for nesting and migrating waterfowl and other birds . The reserve is divided into five distinct sectors on the southern and eastern shores of the lake . The reserve is situated in the Spassky District , in the southwest of Primorsky Krai . It was formally established in 1990 , and covers an area of 437 km2 ( 169 sq mi ) . It is part of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve .
Lake Manych-Gudilo ( Russian : Ма́ныч-Гуди́ло ) is a large saltwater reservoir lake in Kalmykia , Russia . Part of the lake lies also in Rostov Oblast and Stavropol Krai . It has an area of about 344 km² and average depth of only about 0.6 m. Lake Manych-Gudilo is the source of the West Manych River , which flows north-west , through a number of reservoirs , falling into the lower Don a short distance upstream from Rostov-on-Don and the Don 's fall into the Sea of Azov . Temperatures in the region through the year can range from −30 °C ( −22 °F ) in winter to 40 °C ( 104 °F ) in summer . The area is also home to many species of birds and is the site of the Chernye Zemli Biosphere Reserve .
The Republic of Kalmykia ( Russian : Респу́блика Калмы́кия , tr . Respublika Kalmykiya , IPA : [ rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə kɐlˈmɨkʲɪjə ] ; Kalmyk : Хальмг Таңһч , Haľmg Tañğç IPA : [ xɑɮʲˈməg ˈtʰɑŋɣət͡ʃʰə ] ) is a federal subject of Russia ( a republic ) . As of the 2010 Census , its population was 289,481 . Kalmykia is the only region in Europe where Buddhism is the most-practiced religion , with Buddhists constituting a plurality of the population . Elista , the capital of the republic , has gained an international reputation for international chess competitions .
Rostov Oblast ( Russian : Росто́вская о́бласть , tr . Rostovskaya oblast , IPA : [ rɐˈstofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ ] ) is a federal subject of Russia ( an oblast ) , located in the Southern Federal District . The oblast has an area of 100,800 square kilometers ( 38,900 sq mi ) and a population of 4,277,976 ( 2010 Census ) , making it the sixth most populous federal subject in Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Rostov-on-Don , which also became the administrative center of the Southern Federal District in 2002 .
The Black Sea is a body of water and marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean between Eastern Europe , the Caucasus , and Western Asia . It is supplied by a number of major rivers , such as the Danube , Dnieper , Southern Bug , Dniester , Don , and the Rioni . The watersheds of many countries drain into the Black Sea beyond the six that immediately border it . The Black Sea has an area of 436,400 km2 ( 168,500 sq mi ) ( not including the Sea of Azov ) , a maximum depth of 2,212 m ( 7,257 ft ) , and a volume of 547,000 km3 ( 131,000 cu mi ) . It is constrained by the Pontic Mountains to the south , Caucasus Mountains to the east , Crimean Mountains to the north , Strandzha to the southwest , Balkan Mountains to the west , Dobrogea Plateau to the northwest , and features a wide shelf to the northwest . The longest east-west extent is about 1,175 km ( 730 mi ) . Important cities along the coast include Odessa , Sevastopol , Samsun , and Istanbul . The Black Sea is bordered by Ukraine , Romania , Bulgaria , Turkey , Georgia , and Russia . It has a positive water balance ; that is , a net outflow of water 300 km3 ( 72 cu mi ) per year through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles into the Aegean Sea . There is a two-way hydrological exchange : the more saline and therefore denser , but warmer , Mediterranean water flows into the Black Sea under its less saline outflow . This creates a significant anoxic layer well below the surface waters . The Black Sea drains into the Mediterranean Sea , via the Aegean Sea and various straits , and is navigable to the Atlantic Ocean .
The Caspian Sea is the world 's largest inland body of water , variously classed as the world 's largest lake or a full-fledged sea . It is an endorheic basin ( a basin without outflows ) located between Europe and Asia , to the east of the Caucasus Mountains and to the west of the broad steppe of Central Asia . The sea has a surface area of 371,000 km2 ( 143,200 sq mi ) ( excluding the detached lagoon of Garabogazköl ) and a volume of 78,200 km3 ( 18,800 cu mi ) . It has a salinity of approximately 1.2% ( 12 g/l ) , about a third of the salinity of most seawater . It is bounded by Kazakhstan to the northeast , Russia to the northwest , Azerbaijan to the west , Iran to the south , and Turkmenistan to the southeast . The Caspian Sea is home to a wide range of species and may be best known for its caviar and oil industries . Pollution from the oil industry and dams on rivers draining into the Caspian Sea have had negative effects on the organisms living in the sea . The wide and endorheic Caspian Sea has a north-south orientation and its main freshwater inflow , the Volga River , enters at the shallow north end . Two deep basins occupy its central and southern areas . These lead to horizontal differences in temperature , salinity , and ecology . The Caspian Sea spreads out over nearly 1,200 kilometres ( 750 mi ) from north to south , with an average width of 320 km ( 200 mi ) . It covers a region of around 386,400 km2 ( 149,200 sq mi ) and its surface is about 27 m ( 89 ft ) below sea level .
Rostov-on-Don ( Russian : Росто́в-на-Дону́ , tr . Rostov-na-Donu , IPA : [ rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu ] ) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia . It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River , 32 kilometers ( 20 mi ) from the Sea of Azov . The southwestern suburbs of the city abut the Don River delta . The population is over one million people ( 1,125,000 ) .
Chornye Zemli Nature Reserve ( Russian : заповедник Чёрные земли ) ( also ) is a Russian 'zapovednik ' ( strict nature reserve ) . The name in Russian means Black Lands . The main part of the reserve is located in the Caspian Depression , northwest of the Caspian Sea . It was originally created in 1990 to protect the saiga antelope ( Saiga tatarica ) . In the meantime the economy of Kalmykia collapsed and the numbers of saiga have crashed due to poaching for meat and horns ( Chinese medicine ) and desertification caused by overgrazing by domestic animals . The reserve also has colonies of egrets , cormorants , and rare pelicans . The reserve is situated in the Chernozemelsky District of Republic of Kalmykia . It was created in 1990 , and covers 1,219 km² in two locations , with a 900 km² buffer zone . Since 1993 , Cherny Zemli Nature Reserve has been designated as one of UNESCO biosphere reserves .
Lake Udyl ( Russian : Удыль ) is a large freshwater lake in Khabarovsk Krai , Russia . It has an area of 330 square kilometres ( 130 sq mi ) . It is 50 miles ( 80 km ) long and 9 kilometres ( 5.6 mi ) wide . Maximum depth is about 5 metres ( 16 ft ) It lies near the left bank of the Amur River .
The swan goose ( Anser cygnoides ) is a large goose with a natural breeding range in inland Mongolia , northernmost China , and southeastern Russia . It is migratory and winters mainly in central and eastern China . Vagrant birds are encountered in Japan and Korea ( where it used to winter in numbers when it was more common ) , and more rarely in Kazakhstan , Laos , coastal Siberia , Taiwan , Thailand and Uzbekistan . While uncommon in the wild , this species has been domesticated . Introduced and feral populations of its domestic breeds occur in many places outside its natural range . The wild form is also kept in collections , and escapes are not unusual amongst feral flocks of other Anser and Branta geese .
Steller 's sea eagle ( Haliaeetus pelagicus ) is a large diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae . It was originally described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1811 . No subspecies are recognised . A sturdy eagle , it has dark brown plumage with white wings and tail , and yellow beak and talons . On average , it is the heaviest eagle in the world , at about 5 to 9 kg ( 11 to 20 lb ) , but may be below the harpy eagle ( Harpia harpyja ) and Philippine eagle ( Pithecophaga jefferyi ) in some standard measurements . It lives in coastal northeastern Asia and mainly preys on fish and water birds . The Kamchatka Peninsula in Far Eastern Russia is known for its relatively large population of these birds . Around 4,000 of these eagles live there . Steller 's sea eagle is listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature ( IUCN ) 's Red List of Threatened species .
Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug - Yugra or Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Yugra ( Russian : Ха́нты-Манси́йский автоно́мный о́круг - Югра́ , Khanty-Mansiysky avtonomny okrug - Yugra , often shortened to just Yugra ) , is a federal subject of Russia ( an autonomous okrug of Tyumen Oblast ) . Population : 1,532,243 ( 2010 Census ) . The peoples native to the region are the Khanty and the Mansi , known collectively as Ob-Ugric people , but today the two groups only constitute 2.1% of the region 's population . The local languages , Khanty language and Mansi language , enjoy special status in the autonomous okrug and along with their distant relative Hungarian are part of the hypothetical Ugric branch of the Finno-Ugric languages . Russian remains the only official language . In 2012 , the majority ( 51% ) of the oil produced in Russia came from Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug , giving the region great economic importance .
The Sea of Okhotsk ( Russian : Охо́тское мо́ре , tr . Okhótskoye móre , IPA : [ ɐˈxot͡skəjə ˈmorʲe ] ; Japanese : オホーツク海 , romanized : Ohōtsuku-kai ) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean , between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east , the Kuril Islands on the southeast , the island of Hokkaido to the south , the island of Sakhalin along the west , and a long stretch of eastern Siberian coast along the west and north . The northeast corner is the Shelikhov Gulf . The sea is named after Okhotsk , the first Russian settlement in the Far East .
The bean goose is a goose that breeds in northern Europe and Asia . It has two distinct varieties , one inhabiting taiga habitats and one inhabiting tundra . These are recognised as separate species by the American Ornithologists ' Union and the IOC ( taiga bean goose and tundra bean goose ) , but are considered a single species by other authorities , such as the British Ornithologists ' Union . It is migratory and winters further south in Europe and Asia .
Mshinskoye Boloto Zakaznik ( Russian : заказник Мшинское болото ) is a federal zakaznik , a nature protected area , in the northwest of Russia , located in Gatchinsky and Luzhsky Districts of Leningrad Oblast , in the basin of the Luga River . It was established in 1982 to protect the swampy ecosystems including pine forests . From 1994 , it is a Ramsar Wetland .
The osprey or more specifically the western osprey ( Pandion haliaetus ) - also called sea hawk , river hawk , and fish hawk - is a diurnal , fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range . It is a large raptor , reaching more than 60 cm ( 24 in ) in length and 180 cm ( 71 in ) across the wings . It is brown on the upperparts and predominantly greyish on the head and underparts . The osprey tolerates a wide variety of habitats , nesting in any location near a body of water providing an adequate food supply . It is found on all continents except Antarctica , although in South America it occurs only as a non-breeding migrant . As its other common names suggest , the osprey 's diet consists almost exclusively of fish . It possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey . As a result of these unique characteristics , it has been given its own taxonomic genus , Pandion and family , Pandionidae . Three subspecies are usually recognized ; one of the former subspecies , cristatus , has recently been given full species status and is referred to as the eastern osprey .
The golden eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos ) is one of the best-known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere . It is the most widely distributed species of eagle . Like all eagles , it belongs to the family Accipitridae . These birds are dark brown , with lighter golden-brown plumage on their napes . Immature eagles of this species typically have white on the tail and often have white markings on the wings . Golden eagles use their agility and speed combined with powerful feet and massive , sharp talons to snatch up a variety of prey , mainly hares , rabbits , and marmots and other ground squirrels . Golden eagles maintain home ranges or territories that may be as large as 200 km2 ( 77 sq mi ) . They build large nests in cliffs and other high places to which they may return for several breeding years . Most breeding activities take place in the spring ; they are monogamous and may remain together for several years or possibly for life . Females lay up to four eggs , and then incubate them for six weeks . Typically , one or two young survive to fledge in about three months . These juvenile golden eagles usually attain full independence in the fall , after which they wander widely until establishing a territory for themselves in four to five years .
The white stork ( Ciconia ciconia ) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae . Its plumage is mainly white , with black on its wings . Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks , and measure on average 100-115 cm ( 39-45 in ) from beak tip to end of tail , with a 155-215 cm ( 61-85 in ) wingspan . The two subspecies , which differ slightly in size , breed in Europe ( north to Finland ) , northwestern Africa , southwestern Asia ( east to southern Kazakhstan ) and southern Africa . The white stork is a long-distance migrant , wintering in Africa from tropical Sub-Saharan Africa to as far south as South Africa , or on the Indian subcontinent . When migrating between Europe and Africa , it avoids crossing the Mediterranean Sea and detours via the Levant in the east or the Strait of Gibraltar in the west , because the air thermals on which it depends for soaring do not form over water . A carnivore , the white stork eats a wide range of animal prey , including insects , fish , amphibians , reptiles , small mammals and small birds . It takes most of its food from the ground , among low vegetation , and from shallow water . It is a monogamous breeder , but does not pair for life . Both members of the pair build a large stick nest , which may be used for several years . Each year the female can lay one clutch of usually four eggs , which hatch asynchronously 33-34 days after being laid . Both parents take turns incubating the eggs and both feed the young .
The black stork ( Ciconia nigra ) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae . It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae . Measuring on average 95 to 100 cm ( 37 to 39 in ) from beak tip to end of tail with a 145-to-155 cm ( 57-to-61 in ) wingspan , the adult black stork has mainly black plumage , with white underparts , long red legs and a long pointed red beak . A widespread but uncommon species , it breeds in scattered locations across Europe ( predominantly in Spain , and central and eastern parts ) , and Asia to the Pacific Ocean . It is a long-distance migrant , with European populations wintering in tropical Sub-Saharan Africa , and Asian populations in the Indian subcontinent . When migrating between Europe and Africa , it avoids crossing the Mediterranean Sea and detours via the Levant in the east or the Strait of Gibraltar in the west . An isolated , non-migratory , population occurs in Southern Africa . Unlike the closely related white stork , the black stork is a shy and wary species . It is seen singly or in pairs , usually in marshy areas , rivers or inland waters . It feeds on amphibians , small fish and insects , generally wading slowly in shallow water stalking its prey . Breeding pairs usually build nests in large forest trees - most commonly deciduous but also coniferous - which can be seen from long distances , as well as on large boulders , or under overhanging ledges in mountainous areas . The female lays two to five greyish-white eggs , which become soiled over time in the nest .
The black-throated loon ( Gavia arctica ) , also known as the Arctic loon and the black-throated diver , is a migratory aquatic bird found in the northern hemisphere , primarily breeding in freshwater lakes in northern Europe and Asia . It winters along sheltered , ice-free coasts of the north-east Atlantic Ocean and the eastern and western Pacific Ocean . This loon was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 . It has two subspecies . It was previously considered to be the same species as the Pacific loon , of which it is traditionally considered to be a sister species , although this is debated . In a study that used mitochondrial and nuclear intron DNA , the black-throated loon was found to be sister to a clade consisting of the Pacific loon and two sister species , the common loon and the yellow-billed loon . The black-throated loon measures about 70 cm ( 28 in ) in length and can weigh anywhere from 1.3 to 3.4 kilograms ( 2.9 to 7.5 lb ) . In breeding plumage , the adult of the nominate subspecies has mostly black upperparts , with the exception of some of the mantle and scapulars , which have white squares . The head and hindneck are grey , and the sides white and striped black . Most of the throat is also black , giving this bird the name black-throated loon . The colour of the throat patch can be used to distinguish the two subspecies ; the throat patch of the other subspecies , G. a. viridigularis , is green . The underparts are mostly white , including the bottom of the throat .
The Eurasian curlew or common curlew ( Numenius arquata ) is a wader in the large 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 to just as the curlew , and in Scotland known as the whaup in Scots . This is the largest wader in its range , at 50-60 cm ( 20-24 in ) in length , with an 89-106 cm ( 35-42 in ) wingspan and a body weight of 410-1,360 g ( 0.90-3.00 lb ) . It is mainly greyish brown , with a white back , greyish-blue legs and a very long curved bill . Males and females look identical , but the bill is longest in the adult female . It is generally not possible to recognize the sex of a single Eurasian curlew , or even several ones , as there is much variation ; telling male and female of a mated pair apart is usually possible however . The familiar call is a loud curloo-oo . The only similar species over most of the curlew 's range is the Eurasian whimbrel ( N. phaeopus ) . The whimbrel is smaller and has a shorter bill with a kink rather than a smooth curve . Flying curlews may also resemble bar-tailed godwits ( Limosa lapponica ) in their winter plumages ; however , the latter have a smaller body , a slightly upturned beak , and legs that do not reach far beyond their tail tips . The Eurasian curlew 's feet are longer , forming a conspicuous point .
The Eurasian eagle-owl ( Bubo bubo ) is a species of eagle-owl that resides in much of Eurasia . It is also called the European eagle-owl and in Europe , it is occasionally abbreviated to just eagle-owl . It is one of the largest species of owl , and females can grow to a total length of 75 cm ( 30 in ) , with a wingspan of 188 cm ( 6 ft 2 in ) , males being slightly smaller . This bird has distinctive ear tufts , with upper parts that are mottled with darker blackish colouring and tawny . The wings and tail are barred . The underparts are a variably hued buff , streaked with darker colour . The facial disc is not very visible and the orange eyes are distinctive . The Eurasian eagle-owl is one of the largest living species of owl as well as one of the most widely distributed . The Eurasian eagle-owl is found in many habitats but is mostly a bird of mountain regions , coniferous forests , steppes and other relatively remote places . It is a mostly nocturnal predator , hunting for a range of different prey species , predominantly small mammals but also birds of varying sizes , reptiles , amphibians , fish , large insects and other assorted invertebrates . It typically breeds on cliff ledges , in gullies , among rocks or in other concealed locations . The nest is a scrape in which averages of two eggs are laid at intervals .
The Eurasian bittern or great bittern ( Botaurus stellaris ) is a wading bird in the bittern subfamily ( Botaurinae ) of the heron family Ardeidae . There are two subspecies , the northern race ( B. s. stellaris ) breeding in parts of Europe and Asia , as well as on the northern coast of Africa , while the southern race ( B. s. capensis ) is endemic to parts of southern Africa . It is a secretive bird , seldom seen in the open as it prefers to skulk in reed beds and thick vegetation near water bodies . Its presence is apparent in the spring , when the booming call of the male during the breeding season can be heard . It feeds on fish , small mammals , fledgling birds , amphibians , crustaceans and insects . The nest is usually built among reeds at the edge of bodies of water . The female incubates the clutch of eggs and feeds the young chicks , which leave the nest when about two weeks old . She continues to care for them until they are fully fledged some six weeks later . With its specific habitat requirements and the general reduction in wetlands across its range , the population is thought to be in decline globally . However the decline is slow , and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its overall conservation status as being of least concern . Nevertheless , some local populations are at risk and the population of the southern race has declined more dramatically and is cause for concern . In the United Kingdom it is one of the most threatened of all bird species .