Sakhalin Isles

**Sakhalin Isles** are two large, Great Britain-sized islands off the coast of Russia. Big cats like Siberian tigers and Amur leopards are the dominant predators of the isles. The British and Russians decided to leave the Sakhalin Isles as nature reserves for the animals that were native or introduced since the 1890s.

## World War II

The Sakhalin isles had been a important base for the Russians and Britons in world war 2. In sometime around 1941, Germans supposedly attacked these islands with bombers and ships. They also landed in this island and tried to take the base. But they failed. That was called the battle of Sakhalin Isles.

Video of battle of Sakhalin

### Timeline of the Battle of Sakhalin.

-May 29, 1941: Germany launched first attack on Sakhalin isles. The Republic of Sakhalin tried to fight back but failed due to their weak military. So, they asked England and Russia for help.

-June 14, 1941: Germany’s army had taken half of Sakhalin. Britons and Russians build important bases, factories, fortifications and airstrips for military production. Meanwhile, the Sakhalin army buy some warships and armoured cars from several countries to strengthen their army And help the Britons and Russians.

-June 19 , 1941: Germany launched a blitzkrieg attack on the other half of Sakhalin isles. Britons and Russians didn’t know about this, so this was a ambush. The results are that the Allied Area is pushed far off into only quarter of the island.

-June 21-July 2, 1941: America e trees the war and helped Britain and Russia help take Sakhalin. The battle lasts for over than a month. Meanwhile, the Sakhalin Republic was devastated becuase of the Germans burning their buildings , destroying cities, and nearly killing native animals. This resulted in the republic of Sakhalin into only a small settlement .

- July 27, 1941: Germany was successfully defeated in Sakhalin. But the remaining people in the republic of Sakhalin were recruited to go to The Allied army or get away from the island due to the constant fear of the Axis attacking again. Now Sakhalin Republic was in ruins. It was abandoned and turned into a nature reserve.

## Republic of Sakhalin

The Republic of Sakhalin is a temporary government established after the Britons and Russians left the island. Their people are mostly indigenous tribes and settlers. The republic of Sakhalin was abandoned due to their extreme poverty, harsh conditions to live on, and war. Now, you can see the ruins of what appears to be a village, a small town and a ripped flag of the a Republic Of Sakhalin.

## Biomes of Sakhalin Isles

* Prairies
* Lowlands
* Highlands
* Taiga forests
* Boreal forests
* Snowy savannas
* Coniferous forests
* Mountainous regions
* Temperate grasslands

## Native species

* **Eurasian lynx** (*Lynx lynx*)
* **Snow sheep** (*Ovis nivicola*)
* **Eurasian wolf** (*Canis lupus lupus*)
* **Siberian roe deer** (*Capreolus pygargus*)
* **Tien Shan dhole** (*Cuon alpinus hesperius*)

## Introduced species

* **1. Gaur** (*Bos gaurus*)
* **2. Moose** (*Alces alces*)
* **3. Wild yak** (*Bos mutus*)
* **4. Chital deer** (*Axis axis*)
* **5. Wild boar** (*Sus scrofa*)
* **6. Sika deer** (*Cervus nippon*)
* **7. Fallow deer** (*Dama dama*)
* **8. Red deer** (*Cervus elaphus*)
* **9. Sambar deer** (*Rusa unicolor*)
* **10. Musk ox** (*Ovibos moschatus*)
* **11.** **Tundra wolf** (*Canis lupus albus)*
* **12. European bison** (*Bison bonasus*)
* **13. Wild water buffalo** (*Bubalus arnee*)
* **14. Ussuri dhole** (*Cuon alpinus alpinus*)
* **15. Siberian tiger** (*Panthera tigris altaica*)
* **16. Mongolian wolf** (*Canis lupus chanco*)
* **17. Japanese serow** (*Capricornis crispus*)
* **17. Tule elk** (*Cervus canadensis nannodes*)
* **18. Ussuri brown bear** (*Ursus arctos lasiotus*)
* **19. Amur leopard** (*Panthera pardus orientalis*)
* **20. Sumatran dhole** (*Cuon alpinus sumatrensis*)
* **21. Northwestern wolf** (*Canis lupus occidentalis*)
* **22. Himalayan black bear** (*Ursus thibetanus laniger*)