Animals of the Russian plain. Physical geography - Russian (East European) Plain Minerals of the East European Plain

For centuries, the Russian Plain served as a territory connecting Western and Eastern civilizations along trade routes. Historically, two busy trade arteries ran through these lands. The first is known as the “path from the Varangians to the Greeks.” According to it, as is known from school history, medieval trade in goods of the peoples of the East and Rus' with the states of Western Europe was carried out.

The second is the route along the Volga, which made it possible to transport goods by ship to Southern Europe from China, India and Central Asia and in the opposite direction. The first Russian cities were built along trade routes - Kyiv, Smolensk, Rostov. Veliky Novgorod became the northern gateway from the “Varangians”, protecting the security of trade.

Now the Russian Plain is still a territory of strategic importance. The capital of the country is located on its lands and Largest cities. The most important administrative centers for the life of the state are concentrated here.

Geographical position of the plain

The East European Plain, or Russian, occupies territories in eastern Europe. In Russia, these are its extreme western lands. In the northwest and west it is limited by the Scandinavian Mountains, the Barents and White Seas, the Baltic coast and the Vistula River. In the east and southeast it neighbors the Ural Mountains and the Caucasus. In the south, the plain is limited by the shores of the Black, Azov and Caspian seas.

Relief features and landscape

The East European Plain is represented by a gently sloping relief, formed as a result of faults in tectonic rocks. Based on relief features, the massif can be divided into three stripes: central, southern and northern. The center of the plain consists of alternating vast hills and lowlands. The north and south are mostly represented by lowlands with rare low altitudes.

Although the relief is formed in a tectonic manner and minor tremors are possible in the area, there are no noticeable earthquakes here.

Natural areas and regions

(The plain has planes with characteristic smooth drops)

The East European Plain includes all natural zones found in Russia:

• Tundra and forest-tundra are represented by the nature of the north of the Kola Peninsula and occupy a small part of the territory, slightly expanding to the east. The vegetation of the tundra, namely shrubs, mosses and lichens, is replaced by birch forests of the forest-tundra.
• Taiga, with its pine and spruce forests, occupies the north and center of the plain. On the borders with mixed broad-leaved forests, areas are often swampy. A typical Eastern European landscape - coniferous and mixed forests and swamps give way to small rivers and lakes.
• In the forest-steppe zone you can see alternating hills and lowlands. Oak and ash forests are typical for this zone. You can often find birch and aspen forests.
• The steppe is represented by valleys, where oak forests and groves, forests of alder and elm grow near the river banks, and tulips and sages bloom in the fields.
• In the Caspian lowland there are semi-deserts and deserts, where the climate is harsh and the soil is saline, but even there you can find vegetation in the form of various varieties of cacti, wormwood and plants that adapt well to sudden changes in daily temperatures.

Rivers and lakes of the plain

(River on a flat area of ​​the Ryazan region)

The rivers of the “Russian Valley” are majestic and slowly flow their waters in one of two directions - north or south, to the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, or to the southern inland seas of the continent. Northern rivers flow into the Barents, White or Baltic seas. Rivers in the southern direction - into the Black, Azov or Caspian Seas. The largest river in Europe, the Volga, also “flows lazily” through the lands of the East European Plain.

The Russian Plain is the kingdom of natural water in all its manifestations. A glacier that passed through the plain thousands of years ago formed many lakes on its territory. There are especially many of them in Karelia. The consequences of the presence of the glacier were the emergence in the North-West of such large lakes as Ladoga, Onega, and the Pskov-Peipus reservoir.

Under the thickness of the earth in the localization of the Russian Plain, reserves of artesian water are stored in the amount of three underground basins of huge volumes and many located at shallower depths.

Climate of the East European Plain

(Flat terrain with slight drops near Pskov)

The Atlantic dictates the weather regime on the Russian Plain. Western winds, air masses that move moisture, make summers on the plain warm and humid, winters cold and windy. During the cold season, winds from the Atlantic bring about ten cyclones, contributing to variable heat and cold. But air masses from the Arctic Ocean also tend to the plain.

Therefore, the climate becomes continental only in the interior of the massif, closer to the south and southeast. The East European Plain has two climatic zones - subarctic and temperate, increasing continentality to the east.

The soil-vegetation cover and fauna of the Russian Plain show a clearly defined zonation. Here there is a change in natural zones from tundra to deserts. Each zone is characterized by certain types of soil, peculiar vegetation and associated fauna.

Soils. In the northern part of the plain, within the tundra zone, tundra coarse humus gley soils are most common, in the upper horizon of which there is an accumulation of weakly decomposed mosses and strong gleyization. The degree of gleying decreases with depth. In well-drained areas, tundra gleyic soils with a lower degree of gleyization are found. Where the flow of atmospheric precipitation is difficult, tundra peat- and peat-gley soils are formed.

Under the forests of the Russian Plain, soils of the podzolic type are common. In the north, these are gley-podzolic soils combined with bog-podzolic peat and peaty-gley soils; in the middle taiga there are typical podzolic soils of varying degrees of podzolization, and to the south there are soddy-podzolic soils, developed not only in the southern taiga, but also in the zone of mixed and deciduous forests. Under broad-leaved, predominantly oak forests, i.e., mainly in the forest-steppe zone, gray forest soils are formed.

Chernozems are common under the steppe vegetation. In more humid conditions, leached and podzolized chernozems are developed, which, as dryness increases, are replaced by typical, ordinary and southern chernozems. In the southeast of the plain there are chestnut and brown desert-steppe soils. It was here that they became most widespread in Russia. Chestnut, light chestnut and brown soils are often solonetzic. Among these soils in dry steppes, semi-deserts and deserts of the Caspian region, solonetzes and solonchaks are common.

The vegetation of the Russian Plain differs from the vegetation cover of other large regions of our country in a number of very significant features. Only here are mixed coniferous-deciduous and broad-leaved forests, semi-deserts and deserts with their grass-wormwood, wormwood and wormwood-saltweed vegetation widespread. Only on the Russian Plain, spruce dominates in the sparse forests of the forest-tundra, and in the forest-steppe the main forest-forming species is oak. The taiga of the plain is distinguished by its amazing monotony: all subzones are dominated by spruce forests, which give way to pine forests on a sandy substrate. In the eastern part of the plain, the role of Siberian conifers in the taiga is increasing. The steppe here occupies the largest area in Russia, and the tundra is a relatively small area and is represented mainly by southern shrub tundras of dwarf birch and willows.

In the fauna of the East European Plain there are western and eastern species of animals. Tundra, forest, steppe and, to a lesser extent, desert animals are common here. Forest animals are the most widely represented. Western species of animals gravitate towards mixed and broad-leaved forests (pine marten, black polecat, hazel and garden dormouse, etc.). The western border of the range of some eastern animal species (chipmunk, weasel weasel, Ob lemming, etc.) passes through the taiga and tundra of the Russian Plain. From the Asian steppes, the saiga antelope, which is now found only in the semi-deserts and deserts of the Caspian region, the marmot and the reddish ground squirrel entered the plain. Semi-deserts and deserts are inhabited by inhabitants of the Central Asian subregion of the Palaearctic (jerboas, gerbils, a number of snakes, etc.).

The following natural zones are clearly defined on the East European Plain: tundra and forest-tundra, taiga, zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe, steppe, semi-desert and desert.

In general, the tundra and forest-tundra zones - humid, moderately cold - occupy the coast Barents Sea on a moraine-marine plain in the subarctic climate zone

European tundra and forest-tundra are warmer and wetter than Asian ones. Frequent winter cyclones originating on the Barents Sea branch of the Arctic front associated with the trough of the Icelandic low bring quite warm temperatures from the Atlantic and the non-freezing part of the Barents Sea. sea ​​air. This is reflected in the distribution of winter temperatures (the average January temperature on the Kanin Peninsula is -10°C, and on the Yugorsky Peninsula -20°C), annual precipitation (about 600 mm in the west of the tundra, and 500 mm in the east), and the highest perennial temperatures permafrost (from 0 to -3°C).

In the European tundra, only two subzones are expressed: typical, moss-lichen, and southern, or shrub. Typical tundra is especially widely represented in the area from the Timan Ridge to the Urals. The southern subzone is characterized by a predominance of shrub (dwarf birch and willow) and shrub communities in the vegetation cover in combination with moss, sphagnum and lichen-sphagnum bogs.

Along the southern edge of the tundra there is a transition zone of forest-tundra. The forests here are open woodlands consisting of Siberian spruce 5-8 m high, joined by birch and Sukachev larch. Low-lying areas are occupied by swamps or dense thickets of bushes - small willows and birch dwarf. Lots of crowberries, blueberries, blueberries, herbs, lichens. In the north of the forest-tundra, open spaces are common, which are characterized by single scattered oppressed crooked trees. Tall forests penetrate deep into the territory only along river valleys due to the warming influence of river waters and protection from strong winds. In the south of the forest-tundra, in open birch forests, bird cherry appears with the latest flowering on the plain (June 30) and mountain ash (blooms around July 5).

Mossy tundras contain large reserves of green fodder and serve as a valuable food source for reindeer husbandry.

The fauna of the tundra is monotonous and characterized by a poverty of forms. Typical mammals are the domestic reindeer and the polar wolf. Rodents are represented by pieds - the Ob lemming. The arctic fox is widespread everywhere. It enters the forest-tundra and even the northern taiga. Ermine and mountain hare are often found in river valleys. A common animal in the forest-tundra is the wolverine, but in the summer it goes into the tundra to the shores of the Barents Sea.

The taiga zone extends south of the forest-tundra. Its southern border runs along the line St. Petersburg - Novgorod - Yaroslavl - Nizhny Novgorod - Kazan. In the southwest, the taiga merges with the zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests, and in the southeast - with the forest-steppe zone.

The taiga of the Russian Plain differs from the Siberian one in its geographical location and history of development of the territory, and they determined the modern appearance of its nature. The European taiga receives more cages than the West Siberian taiga. Their annual quantity on the plains is more than 600 mm, and on the hills - up to 800 mm. The entire zone of excess moisture, since precipitation exceeds evaporation by 200 mm. There are many lakes in the Onega and Volga basins, and East End The taiga is poor in lakes, but rich in swamps.

Podzolic soils are developed on moraine and fluvioglacial deposits of the taiga. The flat topography of the northern part of the forest zone, as well as the waterproof properties of the soils, contribute to severe swamping and development to the east of Northern Dvina bog-podzolic peaty and peaty-gley soils. Typical podzolic soils are characteristic of the middle part of the taiga. The podzol formation process is weakened in the north, where low temperatures and waterlogging prevent the formation of podzol, as well as in the south due to a decrease in moisture content.

The European taiga is characterized by dark coniferous spruce forests: only here are Norway spruce (common spruce) and Siberian spruce found together. Norway spruce moves east only to the Urals, while Siberian spruce enters the Kola Peninsula and eastern Karelia. Siberian fir, Sukachev larch and Siberian cedar crossed the Urals to the west. There are many pine forests along the river valleys and outwash. A secondary role in forests belongs to deciduous trees: birch, aspen, alder. Lots of sphagnum bogs. Dry and floodplain meadows are widespread in the zone.

Typical animals for the taiga are reindeer, wolverine, lynx, wolf, squirrel, and white hare. The Siberian weasel and the Siberian rodent, the chipmunk, came to the northeast of the taiga and settled west to the Northern Dvina and the White Sea. Mink, otter, and water shrew live along the river banks. There are many birds in the taiga. Capercaillie and hazel grouse are found everywhere, and white partridge is found in moss swamps.

The European taiga is divided into three subzones: northern, middle and southern. The northern taiga is characterized by excessive moisture. In its western part the winters are snowy and moderately cold, and in the eastern part the winters are cold and quite snowy. The forests here are low-growing and sparse of spruce and pine (green moss, long moss, sphagnum and lichen).

The middle taiga is characterized by excessive moisture, moderately cold and cold snowy winters. Here, blueberry spruce forests predominate (from European and Siberian spruce).

The southern taiga is also quite humid, but has significant differences in winter temperatures (the average January temperature in the west is -6°C, in the east -13°C), the depth of soil freezing in the west is 30 cm, in the east 60 cm or more.

Here the highest snow cover height on the Russian Plain is observed - 70-90 cm. Summer is cool, with cloudy, often rainy weather. The average temperature in July is 14-16°C; annual precipitation is 600-800 mm, gradually increasing to the east, approaching the Urals. The rivers of the province are full of water. The large thickness of the snow cover determines their high floods, which occur in May. There are many lakes in the lowlands. They are often found among swamps.

The Pechora province lies in the northern taiga subzone, only its extreme south falls into the middle taiga. The vegetation cover is dominated by sparse spruce and pine forests. Siberian conifers are common in the tree stand: cedar, fir, larch. Forests are usually swampy. Gleyic-podzolic soils develop under them. Only in the valley areas and on the slopes of the hills do non-marsh spruce forests grow. In the northern part, primary birch forests are quite widespread and are also largely swampy. There are a lot of swamps in the province. Hilly ones predominate, and in the southern part - sphagnum ridge-hollows. Floodplain meadows with high grass stand are developed along the rivers. The taiga is home to European and Siberian animal species.

The province is rich in oil and gas deposits. The population of the taiga is engaged in fur farming.

The zone of mixed and deciduous forests is located in the western part of the plain between the taiga and forest-steppe and extends from the western borders of Russia to the confluence of the Oka and the Volga. The territory of the zone is open to the Atlantic Ocean and its impact on the climate is decisive.

The zone is characterized by a mild, moderately warm climate. The relief exhibits a combination of hills (200 m or more) and lowlands. The strata plains are overlain by moraine, lacustrine-alluvial, fluvioglacial and loess rocks. Within the zone, under conditions of a moderately humid and moderately warm Atlantic-continental climate, soddy-podzolic and gray forest soils will form.

The climate of the zone is favorable for the growth of conifers tree species along with broadleaf trees. Depending on the relief conditions and the degree of moisture, meadows and swamps are also formed. European coniferous-deciduous forests are heterogeneous. Among the broad-leaved species in the zone, linden, ash, elm, and oak are common. As you move east, due to the increasing continentality of the climate, the southern border of the zone shifts significantly to the north, the role of spruce and fir increases, while the role of broad-leaved species decreases. The most widespread of the broad-leaved species in the zone is linden, which forms the second tier in mixed forests.

Typical animals of the zone are wild boar, elk, bison, black or forest polecat, badger, etc. In recent decades, the number of wild boar, river beaver and elk has increased significantly.

The zone of coniferous-deciduous forests has long been densely populated and developed, so its nature has been greatly changed by human activity. For example, forests occupy only 30% of the zone's territory; the most convenient areas are plowed or used for pastures;

The forest-steppe zone, moderately humid and moderately warm, is located in the south of the Atlantic-continental climate region of the temperate zone of the East European Plain. Its southern border runs approximately south of Voronezh, Saratov, rises along the Volga valley to the north and runs along the Samara valley. The European forest-steppe is characterized by the main natural features of the entire zone, but at the same time it differs in its natural appearance from the forest-steppe of the West Siberian Plain, since it has differences in geographical location and the history of the formation of the territory. The forest-steppe extends from southwest to northeast, i.e. it occupies the southernmost position in the west of the plain. This determined its bioclimatic features: its western part, up to the Voronezh meridian, has a semi-humid climate and richer vegetation, while the eastern part is semi-arid with depleted vegetation cover.

Winter in the east is colder and snowier, the average temperature is -12°...-16°С. Summer in the European forest-steppe can be moderately warm with sufficient moisture. Then the vegetation and soils receive a lot of moisture, groundwater is replenished with a sufficient amount of moisture, its level rises and becomes accessible to plant roots in many places, and the flow of spring water in ravines, gullies and river valleys increases. In such a summer, steppe, forest and cultivated vegetation develops luxuriantly (abundantly). Summer can be hot with droughts and dry winds. This type of weather has a detrimental effect on the development of natural and cultivated vegetation. An important bioclimatic zero band of the ratio of precipitation and evaporation passes through the forest-steppe zone: to the north of it there is 100-200 mm more precipitation than evaporation, and to the south there is 100-200 mm less evaporation.

The East European forest-steppe formed on highlands and lowlands in the regional region of the Dnieper glaciation, covered with loess-like loams. The relief is characterized by erosional dissection, which creates a certain diversity of soil cover. The soils of watershed elevated areas under oak groves are characterized by significant podzolization. Along high river terraces with loess-like covers, tongues of degraded and leached chernozems extend to the north. The most typical for the northern part of the zone are gray forest soils, slightly podzolized, developed on loess-like loams. Leached and podzolized chernozems are typical for the southern strip of forest-steppe. Gray forest soils are developed in small areas along watersheds. Of the intrazonal soils, common in depressions - steppe saucers, malt is characteristic.

The natural vegetation of the forest-steppe has hardly been preserved. The forests here are found in small islands. The forest-steppe of the Russian Plain is oak, which distinguishes it from the more eastern regions of Russia.

Steppe areas in the forest-steppe, once covered primarily with forbs (V.V. Alekhin called them northern colorful forbs), have been plowed. Small patches of virgin steppes remain along ravines and incremental slopes that are inconvenient for plowing, as well as in nature reserves.

The fauna of the zone consists of inhabitants of forests and steppes. There are no species of our own here. Due to the intense plowing of the zone, the animal world is now dominated by animals of open spaces and human companions.

Semi-desert and desert zones within Russia are located in the southwestern part of the Caspian Lowland and on the Turan Plain. They adjoin the coast of the Caspian Sea, adjacent to the semi-deserts and deserts of Kazakhstan in the east and Eastern Ciscaucasia in the southwest.

The climate of semi-deserts and deserts is moderately dry and very warm with an annual precipitation of 300-400 mm. Evaporation exceeds precipitation by 400-700 mm. Winters are quite cold, with negative temperatures prevailing. The average January temperature in the southwest is 7°C, and in the northeast it is 1°C. In winter, a snow cover is formed, the height of which reaches 10-15 cm. The snow lies for 60-80 days. In the extreme south of the Caspian lowland, stable snow cover does not form every year. It usually forms 15-30 days after the average daily temperature passes through 0°C. This contributes to seasonal freezing of the soil to a depth of 80 cm (about the same amount as in the middle taiga).

Semi-desert and desert are characterized by an abundance of salt lakes, salt marshes and solonetzes. Therefore, light chestnut solonetzic soils are developed there, the absorption complex of which contains sodium. The thickness of humus horizons is 30-40 cm, and the humus content is only 1.3%. In the north of the semi-desert zone, vegetation of the wormwood-grass type is developed with the dominance of feather grass (tyrsa) and Lessing, as well as Tauric wormwood and Lerch. To the south, the number of cereals decreases, wormwood begins to predominate and the number of saltworts increases. The low-growing grass cover consists of white and black wormwood, fescue, thin-legged grass, xerophytic feather grass, and isen shrub (Kochia prostrata). In spring, tulips, buttercups, and rhubarb appear. White wormwood grows on slightly saline loams. Clayey, more saline soils are covered with black wormwood. On the salt licks, in addition to black wormwood, biyurgun and kermek saltworts and tamarix shrubs grow.

For the fauna of semi-deserts and deserts, ground squirrels and many jerboas are common, of which the small one, the ground hare, and the woolly-footed hare are typical. There are numerous gerbils - combed, southern, or midday, inhabiting mainly sands. Common species include ermine, weasel, steppe ferret, badger, wolf, common fox and small corsac fox, and many reptiles.

URAL

The Ural mountainous country stretches from north to south for more than 2000 km from 69°30" N to 50° 12" N. It crosses five natural zones of Northern Eurasia - tundra, forest-tundra, taiga, forest-steppe and steppe. The width of the mountain belt is less than 50 km in the north, and over 150 km in the south. Together with the foothill plains that are part of the country, its width varies from 50-60 km in the northern part of the region to 400 km in the southern part.

The Urals have long been considered the border between two parts of the world - Europe and Asia. The border is drawn along the axial part of the mountains, and in the southeast along the Ural River.

Shaded out. In the Pacific part of Russia, the influence of the ocean is felt, which disrupts the patterns of zonal distribution of vegetation cover. The zoning structure is manifested in regional complexes. Each regional complex differs in its set of subzonal vegetation categories. Vegetation categories of the same type in latitudinal position in different sectors have different species composition.

Tundra-type vegetation forms the cover of the Far North of the country, which stretches in a strip along the sea coast and is found on the islands. The main features of the tundra type of vegetation include the absence of a tree layer, the large role of low-growing small-woody plants (from shrubs and dwarf trees to prostrate (creeping) shrubs and dwarf shrubs). Herbaceous perennials are widespread. The importance of mosses and lichens is great. The vegetation cover is characterized by perforation - the presence of spots of bare soil.

There are 5 regional complexes in the tundra. The westernmost, Atlantic, is represented only by southern ones with the participation of Betula nana, Calluna vulgaris, Empetrum hermaphroditum, Carex bigelowii, in which boreal species, such as blueberries, are constantly found. The Eastern European, Western Siberian and Central Siberian sectors have the most complete zonal spectrum from the High Arctic to the southern tundra. High Arctic tundras are found only on some islands in the Arctic Ocean. A significant area of ​​the islands is occupied by glaciers, and the vegetation cover is fragmentary. Grass-lichen-moss spotted tundras dominate. Lichen-moss and moss-lichen communities (with minor participation of flowering ones) are widespread, which are confined to highly gravelly and rocky soils. On the archipelago and Novaya Zemlya (East European–West Siberian sector), Deschampsia alpina, Cerastium arcticum, C. regelii ssp. are found in tundra communities. caespitosum, which are not found in the Central Siberian sector. The presence of Ranunculus sabinii, Cerastium bialynickii, C.regelii s.str., and Deschampsia brevifolia determine the specificity of the High Arctic tundra of the Central Siberian sector. There are no high Arctic tundras in the East Siberian and Chukotka regional complexes.

Arctic tundras are found in all but the Atlantic complexes. Prostrate shrubs begin to play a major role in them. For the Eastern European - Western Siberian sector, the background species is Salix nummularia, in the Central Siberian sector the role of Salix polaris, S. reptans increases, and there are 2 types of Dryas vegetation - D. punctata and D. octopetala. In the East Siberian sector, Cassiope tetragona takes first place, while D. octopetala disappears. Arctic tundra communities are characterized by Salix rotundifolia, S. phlebophylla, Dryas integrifolia, and Carex lugens. Arctic tundras to the south are replaced by hypoarctic ones, which are represented by northern shrub-moss and southern shrub-moss-lichen subzonal categories. Their differences are also marked from sector to sector by geographically differentiating species (NN 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15)1.

Boreal (taiga) vegetation is located to the south of the tundra. Taiga occupies a leading position in the north. It stretched from to. Most of taiga vegetation of Eurasia is concentrated on the territory of Russia. Taiga forests are also characteristic of many mountain systems, forming mountain-taiga belts in them.

The boreal vegetation of the plains includes 5 subzonal categories: from pre-tundra open forests to sub-boreal forests. It is characterized by the dominance of dark coniferous, light coniferous, small-leaved and mixed forests. The dominant species of coniferous forest species: Picea abies, P. obovata, Abies sibirica, Larix sibirica, L. gmelinii, L. cajanderi, respectively, replace each other from west to east, forming 7 regional complexes.

The Eastern European sector () has a complete zonal range from birch-spruce woodlands (17) to sub-boreal forest (24, 25). Subzonal categories of vegetation are represented by spruce forests (18, 20, 22, 24) and, replacing them on soils of light mechanical composition, pine forests (19, 21, 23, 25). In subtaiga forests, the forest stand, which is dominated by spruce or pine, or in the form of undergrowth includes nemoral tree species: oak, linden, maple, hazel. This also includes coniferous broadleaf forests Kaliningrad region, in which Central European species are found - beech and hornbeam.

The forests of the Urals complex have features of the European and Siberian taiga. This regional complex is found on both sides of the Urals. A complete zonal range (26-32) is also expressed here, from spruce and larch-spruce open forests to broad-leaved fir-spruce subtaiga forests.

The Ob-Irtysh sector unites the forests of the largest taiga complex (33-42). The role of swamps in the structure of the vegetation cover of the West Siberian Plain is enormous. In terms of area, swamps here prevail over forests. The vegetation of the vast Ob floodplain plays a great role. (130).

In the north of the Ob-Irtysh region, larch woodlands predominate (33). Large area occupy hummocky swamps (124). To the south, the woodlands give way to the north, where larch (36) and larch-pine (35) forests dominate. The watersheds are occupied by hummocky and aapa swamps, huge raised systems with an abundance of lichens and large lakes (126 b). Larch-spruce-cedar forests are also typical (34). The middle taiga is dominated by spruce-cedar forests, sometimes with fir, and larch-pine forests are less common. In the middle taiga, the confinement of forests to river valleys is especially noticeable. There are many raised bogs on the watersheds.

The southern taiga of Western Siberia is dominated by dark coniferous cedar ovo-spruce-fir forests. The west is dominated by pine forests. The presence of linden is typical in southern taiga forests. Sphagnum raised bogs are common on watersheds, forming systems that include aapa, including the famous Vasyugan bog.

The transition from the southern taiga to the sub-taiga is gradual. Of the coniferous forests in the subtaiga, only pine forests are found on sand (41). Birch and aspen forests dominate (42); they usually grow in small groves (groves), alternating with damp meadows, swamps, and pine forests. Often birch stakes are confined to depressions with pronounced solod soils.

The Central Siberian (43-47) and East Siberian (45-51) sectors have a shortened zonal alignment. In Central Siberia there is no subtaiga; the latitudinal section ends with middle taiga forests. The boreal vegetation of these most continental sectors is formed by light coniferous, predominantly larch forests.

The boreal vegetation contains a peculiar Far Eastern complex. The features of its vegetation cover are associated with the originality of the floristic composition and complex physical and geographical conditions - the influence of the Pacific Ocean and monsoons in the southeast, and the seas of the Arctic Ocean in the north, the continentality of Siberia and Central Asia, the complexity of the terrain and. Northern taiga larch forests (52) are found in small areas along the coast Sea of ​​Okhotsk; significant areas are occupied by mid-taiga larch forests and sphagnum stands (53). The southern taiga forests are diverse: spruce-fir (Picea ajanensis, Abies nephrolepis), larch and pine-larch. Betula davurica, B. platyphylla are found sporadically in their forest stand; the undergrowth of Rhododendron dauricum, Duschekia manshurica, Lespedeza bicolor, and Corylus heterophylla is well developed. Particularly distinctive are the subtaiga forests of the Far East, represented by broad-leaved pine and broad-leaved larch with Mongolian oak and Manchurian birch (58,59), birch-pine (60) and spruce-fir-cedar with Pinus koraiensis, Picea ajanensis and Abies nephrolepis (57 ).

Nemoral vegetation is represented by broad-leaved forests, which grow in Russia only in the west (Eastern European regional complex) and in the east (Far Eastern complex). In western Europe, nemoral vegetation occupies almost its entire territory, and in eastern Asia it descends much further south than in Europe, which is certainly due to the influence of the Pacific Ocean. In the continental regions of Siberia, broad-leaved forests are absent and are geographically replaced by steppes.

Broad-leaved forests of the Eastern European sector are represented by linden-oak with the participation of ash (61) and linden with oak (63). On light soils they are replaced by pine-broadleaved forests (62) and steppe pine with oak (64).

The increasing continentality of the climate from west to east leads to a gradual reduction in European nemoral vegetation types, of which only half reaches the western slopes of the Urals. The role of South Siberian light-loving and cold-resistant species is becoming noticeable. An important boundary is the Volga, towards which many tree species, such as ash, shrubs and herbaceous species, gradually fall out from the west.

Small groves of oak forests are found quite far to the north in the subzone of the southern taiga (Leningrad, Novgorod, Pskov regions), and linden forests (probably derivatives that arose on the site of linden-spruce forests) are found even further north. In the south, broad-leaved forests along ravines and so-called ravine forests penetrate far into the steppe region.

In the Far East, broad-leaved forests are found in the south. In the southwestern part they are represented by oak (Quercus mongolica) and black-birch-oak. Some western oak forests have cryophilized grass cover. In the eastern part, oak and mixed oak-broad-leaved forests with the participation of a mesophilic group of trees are common: Amur velvet, linden (Tilia amurensis, T. mandshurica, T. taquetii) and lianas (65).

The steppe vegetation of Russia in the form of a strip extends from the western border of the country to the southern Siberian mountains. To the east, the steppes are found in isolated areas, mainly in intermountain basins. In European Russia this strip is very wide and in the south reaches the Caucasus, and in Asian Russia it reaches the state border and continues in the countries of Central and Central Asia (Kazakhstan, China).

Steppe vegetation unites communities of xerophilic microthermal turf herbaceous plants. The dominant biomorph in the region is turf grasses from the genera Stipa, Festuca, Agropyron, Koeleria, Poa, Cleistogenes, Helictotrichon, etc. In different environmental conditions communities of turf sedges, onions, forbs, subshrubs and shrubs are formed. Steppe communities are polydominant, their distribution is associated with chestnut.

In the steppe type of vegetation, 4 regional complexes are distinguished: Eastern European, Trans-Volga, Western Siberian and Trans-Baikal. The steppes of the Eastern European and Trans-Volga complexes are most fully represented and have a full zonal spectrum; The West Siberian sector is represented only by the northern part of the zonal spectrum, and its southern part is located in. The Transbaikalian complex unites isolated areas of steppes, found in intermountain basins and which are in flora-genetic relationship with the Central Asian (and Chinese) steppes.

There are 4 subzonal latitudinal categories of steppe vegetation: northern, middle and southern. The latitudinal differentiation of steppes from north to south is associated with an increase in the degree of climate aridity, and its regional differentiation is associated with increased continentality.

Meadow steppes are the northernmost type of steppes. They are characterized by the dominance of forb-grass communities with a predominance of mesoxerophilic and xeromesophilic species, mainly loose bush and rhizomatous grasses, rhizomatous sedges and forbs. Meadow steppes are common in the south of the nemoral region in the European part of Russia and the boreal region in Siberia. Together with forests (oak and oak-linden in the west and birch and aspen in Siberia) they form the forest-steppe subzone. Typologically, meadow steppes are considered within the steppe type of vegetation, but from a botanical and geographical point of view they do not belong to the steppe zone, but are closely connected with forests and without anthropogenic intervention (haymaking, grazing), meadow steppes turn into forests.

The northern steppes begin the zonal series of the steppe zone. They are characterized by the dominance of fescue-feather grass steppes, i.e. dominance of turf grasses, with the participation of abundant xeromesophilic and mesoxerophilic forbs.

The middle steppes are also characterized by the dominance of fescue-feather grass steppes, but the herbs in them are much poorer and are represented by much more xerophilous species.

The southern steppes are distinguished by the participation of subshrubs as codominants in fescue-feather grass communities.

Throughout their range, steppe communities, especially within one subzonal category, have a large number common types. The identification of mappable categories of steppes within regional complexes is therefore based on a small number of geographically differentiating species.

The Eastern European regional complex includes rich forb-grass meadow steppes with Bromopsis riparia, Carex humilis, Peucedanum macrophyllum; forb-turfgrass northern steppes with Stipa ucrainica; turfgrass middle steppes with Stipa ucrainica; wormwood-turfgrass southern steppes with Stipa lessingiana, Artemisia taurica, A lercheana.

The Trans-Volga regional complex unites rich forb-grass meadow steppes with Bromopsis riparia, Bromopsis inermis, Carex humilis, C. pediformis, Peucedanum alsaticum; forb-turfgrass northern steppes with Stipa zalesskii, S. korshinskyi; turfgrass middle steppes with Stipa lessingiana; wormwood-turfgrass southern steppes with Stipa sareptana, Artemisia lercheana.

The Western Siberian sector, the western border of which runs along the Ishim River, includes only 2 northern latitudinal categories: rich forb-grass meadow steppes with Bromopsis inermis, Stipa zalesskii, Carex pediformis, C. supina, Peucedanum morisonii and forb-turf-grass northern steppes with Stipa capillata, S zalesskii, Helictotrichon desertorum. The steppe soils of this sector are characterized by salinity.

The Transbaikal regional complex is characterized by a great uniqueness of the species composition of steppe communities, since it is florogenetically connected with the Central Asian steppes, and is separated from the European-West Siberian steppes, which represent part of the Black Sea-Kazakhstan steppes, not only botanically and geographically, but also territorially by the South Siberian mountain ranges. It includes 3 latitudinal categories: rich forb-grass meadow steppes with Filifolium sibiricum, Peucedanum baicalense; forb-turfgrass northern steppes with Stipa baicalensis, Leymus chinensis and middle turfgrass steppes with Stipa krylovii.

Steppe communities and their fragments penetrate far to the north of Eastern Siberia, which is associated with the sharp continental climate, but primarily with the historical paleogeographical events that took place in this territory in .

Desert vegetation completes the zonal series of plains vegetation types. The desert type includes communities dominated by xerophilic, hyperxerophilic micro- and mesothermic plants of various life forms, mainly subshrubs, subshrubs and shrubs, and semi-trees. In desert communities, ephemeroids and hemiephemeroids - perennial short-growing plants - are often abundant; annual herbaceous plants of summer-autumn growing season and ephemerals - annual herbaceous plants of spring, autumn-spring or autumn-winter growing season. Russia contains only a small portion of a vast desert region. It is represented by the Caspian sector of temperate deserts, which belong to the northern latitudinal category: wormwood (79) and sandy wormwood (80) northern deserts. Their distribution is associated with brown soils. In the Caspian region, soils of light mechanical composition, sandy and sandy loam are widespread, therefore, along with wormwood, the grass Poa bulbosa is often found here.

§40. the East European Plain

Geographical position. The East European Plain is one of the largest on Earth. Since she takeseasternpart of all of Europe, it is called EasternVEuropean, or Russian, plain. On the territory of Kazakhstan there is only south-eastern part of this plain. In the east it borders with the Mugalzhar mountains, in the south with the Ustirt plateau, and in the south with the mountains. angst. To the East European Plain in KazakhstanelevationGeneral Syrt,Zhaiyk-Zhemskoeplateau and P Caspian lowland.

Relief and geological structure. In my own wayrco. ioiand to what development and tectonic structure the plain belongs to the East European Platform. The ancient base of the platform is covered with sedimentary deposits of the Pazoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. After the retreat of the sea post-spc, the modern relief was formed. When continental. Its development resulted in the formation of relief, soil and vegetation cover characteristic of each region. and the Zhemsky plateau arose at the end of the Upper Cretaceous era, General Syrt - after the retreat of the sea in the PaleogeneiRiod. The Caspian lowland was formedonly at the end of the Ice Age. The highest point is about 300 m above sea level. The climate is dry continental, which is due to a decrease in cyclonic activity.

General Syrtis a vast flat hill located between the Volga and the lower reaches of the Zhaiyk. Only a small part of Kazakhstan belongs to South part. The relief is cut by the riverbeds of Derkol, Shagan, Elek, Rostosh and others, flowing from the right side into Zhaiyk. General Syrt is composed of limestone, chalk and other sedimentary rocks, collected in short, low folds in a northwestern direction. They decrease from north (100-150 m) to south (60-70 m). The Kazakhstan part is more smoothed out.

Zhaiyk Zhemskoe plateauoccupies the territory between the Caspian lowland and Mugalzhar. Its northeastern side is elevated (up to 400-450 m), the southwestern side gradually decreases (up to 100-150 m). The plateau is irrigated by the waters of the rivers Zhem, Kainar, Sagiz, Oyil, Elek, Or, Ulken Khobda and others.

Caspian lowlandlocated between the Obshchiy Syrt hill in the north, the Zhaiyk-Zhemsky plateau in the east and the Volga River in the west. This lowland is a wide flat steppe with isolated hilly areas, salt lakes, and sandy deposits along rivers. The modern relief developed at the end of the Paleogene from sandy-clayey and clayey deposits. The northern part of the lowland is located above sea level, the southern part - the flat steppe - lies below sea level. At the base of the hill lie layers of rock salt that form salt domes. Compared to the northern hourThere are more saline and saline soils here. The Zhaiyk River and its tributaries flow through the lowland - Derkol, Kushum, Karaozen, Saryozen, Shiderty, Zhympity, Kaldykaity, etc. In summer, some of them dry up or break up into reaches. In the lowlands there are lakes such as Shalkar, Balykty, Aralsor, Besoba, Inder.

The Caspian lowland was once the bottom of the sea. Back in the 70s of the 19th century, the basin of the salt lake Tentek, on which the Dossor and Makat oil wells were located, was also under water.

Water left the Kaydak and Komsomolets bays only in the 30s of the last century. The sea gradually retreated, became shallow, and so did its bottom. drying out, it turned into a lowland. This is how the modern type of relief, soil and vegetation cover of the lowland was formed. Continental climate negatively affects development flora. In the south of the Caspian lowland there is a sandy area occupying 60 thousand km 2 - these are the sands of Naryn, Taisoigan, Kosdaulet, Mynteke, Bozanay, etc. Despite the youth of the territory, weathering has turned it into a desert with sparse vegetation. Sandy mounds alternate with shallow depressions.

Minerals. Basic Wealth Eastern European the plains are concentrated in the Caspian lowland and contain oil and gas. They accumulated in cracks in the earth's crust, which appeared as a result of the simultaneous uplift of salt domes and river sediments of the Permian-Triassic, Middle Jurassic, Cretaceous and Paleogene periods. Oil and gas wells have been drilled in Teniz, Karashyganak, and Zhanazhol. Table salt, chalk, and building materials (sand, clay, etc.) are also mined.

Climate. The Kazakh part of the East European Plain is characterized by dry continental climate. Winter here is cold, the average January temperature in the north is -15*C, in the south 8*C. With the penetration of Arctic air masses and the Siberian anticyclone, the temperature drops to -40’C. There are frosts in spring and autumn. Summer is hot, the average temperature in July is 22-24*C. Dry winds often blow. The average annual precipitation in the north is 350 mm, in the south - 140 mm.

Rivers and lakes. The largest rivers of the Kazakh part of the East European Plain are Zhaiyk. Oyil, Zhem.

Zhaiyk(1082 km) originates from the Ural Mountains and flows into the Caspian Sea. The power source is melted snow water. In the Caspian lowland, the Zhaiyk becomes a flat river with a wide valley (300-500 m). In the spring, during high water, the river overflows its banks and spreads widely over tens of kilometers, forming flooded floodplains and small lakes. Forests grow along the river and there are many flooded hay meadows.

Oyil(800 km) - one of the tributaries of the Zhaiyk - begins in the Ural Mountains. It feeds mainly on melted snow waters. The river waters are used to irrigate crops and meadows. In recent years, the river has become shallow in the summer, often dries up, and its flow does not reach the mouth of the Zhaiyk.

Zhem(712 km) begins in the northwest of Mugal Zhara and flows into the Caspian Sea. The main source of nutrition is melted snow water. In recent years, the river has had little water and dries up in the sands before reaching the sea.

In the south of the East European Plain there is the largest inland lake -Caspian Sea,which is also the largest endorheic lake globe. The territory of Kazakhstan includes the northern and northeastern parts of the sea. The Caspian Sea is fed mainly by the waters of the rivers flowing into it and freezes in winter. The sea is rich in valuable species of commercial fish.

Remember the characteristics of the Caspian Sea on the topic “Internalwaters of Kazakhstan".

Natural areas. Flora and fauna. Natural complexes of the Kazakh part of the East European Plain are presentedsteppe, semi-desert And desert areas.Each zone has its own flora and fauna.

The flat territories of General Syrt and Zhaiyk-Zhemsky plateau are feather grass steppes. To the north of the Caspian Sea there are wormwood steppes. There are manyfescue, feather feather grassetc. They grow in lowlands and gulliesbirch, poplar, steppe acacia, meadowsweet.

In the northern part of the Caspian lowland and on the Zhaiyk-Zhem plateau there is a semi-desert zone. The main soils of semi-deserts are light chestnut. Grow upThe body cover consists of steppe grasses, wormwood and solyanka plants.

In the south of the Caspian lowland there is a desert zone. Saline and solonchak soils predominate here.

Vegetation is representedwormwood, barnyard grass, quinoa, tamarisk.IN sandy deserts growing wildcereals, feathery feather grass. zhuzgun. Teresken. sand acacia, black saxauland etc.

To the fauna of the area strong influence rendered by European fauna. In the north of the Caspian Sea along with western species(woodchucks, black ferrets, raccoons, water voles)Animals native only to the Kazakh steppes live here. The Caspian Sea ranks first in the world in commercial fish production:sturgeon, sturgeonetc. Considered a valuable animalCaspian seal.Along the banks of rivers and in tugai thickets there are a lot of birds. They live in deserts and semi-desertsgoitered gazelles, foxes, eared hedgehogs. jerboas, mice, larks.

The development of oil and gas fields has led to complications environmental situation in the region. To solve this problem, it is necessary to improve clean technologies for oil and gas production, which will reduce the level of water and air pollution, organize the treatment of industrial wastewater and its reuse, increase the area of ​​forests planted to combat dry winds, increase the fertility of crop lands, improve vegetation cover of pastures, etc.

5.Does the development of oil fields affect the ecological state of the territory? What measures need to be taken to protect them and use them rationally?

1. Geographical location.

2. Geological structure and relief.

3. Climate.

4. Inland waters.

5. Soils, flora and fauna.

6. Natural areas and their anthropogenic changes.

Geographical position

The East European Plain is one of the largest plains in the world. The plain faces the waters of two oceans and extends from Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains and from the Barents and White Seas - to the Azov, Black and Caspian Seas. The plain lies on the ancient East European platform, its climate is predominantly temperate continental and natural zoning is clearly expressed on the plain.

Geological structure and relief

The East European Plain has a typical platform topography, which is predetermined by platform tectonics. At its base lies the Russian plate with a Precambrian foundation and in the south the northern edge of the Scythian plate with a Paleozoic foundation. At the same time, the boundary between the plates is not expressed in the relief. On the uneven surface of the Precambrian basement lie strata of Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks. Their power is not the same and is due to the unevenness of the foundation. These include syneclises (areas of deep foundation) - Moscow, Pechersk, Caspian and anticlises (protrusions of the foundation) - Voronezh, Volga-Ural, as well as aulacogens (deep tectonic ditches, in place of which syneclises arose) and the Baikal ledge - Timan. In general, the plain consists of hills with heights of 200-300m and lowlands. The average height of the Russian Plain is 170 m, and the highest, almost 480 m, is on the Bugulma-Belebeevskaya Upland in the Ural part. In the north of the plain there are the Northern Uvals, the Valdai and Smolensk-Moscow stratal uplands, and the Timan Ridge (Baikal folding). In the center are the elevations: Central Russian, Privolzhskaya (stratal-tiered, stepped), Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya, General Syrt and lowlands: Oksko-Donskaya and Zavolzhskaya (stratal). In the south lies the accumulative Caspian Lowland. The formation of the plain's topography was also influenced by glaciation. There are three glaciations: Oka, Dnieper with the Moscow stage, Valdai. Glaciers and fluvioglacial waters created moraine landforms and outwash plains. In the periglacial (pre-glacial) zone, cryogenic forms were formed (due to permafrost processes). The southern border of the maximum Dnieper glaciation crossed the Central Russian Upland in the Tula region, then descended along the Don valley to the mouth of the Khopra and Medveditsa rivers, crossed the Volga Upland, the Volga near the mouth of the Sura, then the upper reaches of the Vyatka and Kama and the Ural in the region of 60°N. Deposits are concentrated in the foundation of the platform iron ores(KMA). The sedimentary cover is associated with reserves of coal (eastern part of Donbass, Pechersk and Moscow region basins), oil and gas (Ural-Volga and Timan-Pechersk basins), oil shale (northwestern and Middle Volga region), building materials (widespread), bauxite (Kola Peninsula), phosphorite (in a number of areas), salts (Caspian region).

Climate

The climate of the plain is influenced by its geographical location, the Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Solar radiation changes dramatically with the seasons. In winter, more than 60% of radiation is reflected by snow cover. The western transport dominates over the Russian Plain all year. Atlantic air transforms as it moves east. During the cold period, many cyclones come from the Atlantic to the plain. In winter, they bring not only precipitation, but also warming. Mediterranean cyclones are especially warm when the temperature rises to +5˚ +7˚C. After cyclones from the North Atlantic, cold Arctic air penetrates into their rear part, causing sharp cold snaps all the way to the south. Anticyclones provide frosty, clear weather in winter. During the warm period, cyclones mix to the north; the northwest of the plain is especially susceptible to their influence. Cyclones bring rain and coolness in the summer. Hot and dry air forms in the cores of the spur of the Azores High, which often leads to droughts in the southeast of the plain. January isotherms in the northern half of the Russian Plain run submeridianally from -4˚C in the Kaliningrad region to -20˚C in the northeast of the plain. In the southern part, the isotherms deviate to the southeast, amounting to -5˚C in the lower reaches of the Volga. In summer, isotherms run sublatitudinally: +8˚C in the north, +20˚C along the Voronezh-Cheboksary line and +24˚C in the south of the Caspian region. The distribution of precipitation depends on westerly transport and cyclonic activity. There are especially many of them moving in the zone 55˚-60˚N, this is the most humidified part of the Russian Plain (Valdai and Smolensk-Moscow Uplands): the annual precipitation here is from 800 mm in the west to 600 mm in the east. Moreover, on the western slopes of the hills it falls 100-200 mm more than on the lowlands lying behind them. Maximum precipitation occurs in July (in the south in June). In winter, snow cover forms. In the northeast of the plain, its height reaches 60-70 cm and it lies for up to 220 days a year (more than 7 months). In the south, the height of the snow cover is 10-20 cm, and the duration of occurrence is up to 2 months. The humidification coefficient varies from 0.3 in the Caspian lowland to 1.4 in the Pechersk lowland. In the north, the moisture is excessive, in the upper reaches of the Dniester, Don and Kama rivers it is sufficient and k≈1, in the south the moisture is insufficient. In the north of the plain the climate is subarctic (the coast of the Arctic Ocean); in the rest of the territory the climate is temperate with varying degrees of continentality. At the same time, continentality increases towards the southeast

Inland waters

Surface waters are closely related to climate, topography, and geology. The direction of rivers (river flow) is predetermined by orography and geostructures. The flow from the Russian Plain occurs in the basins of the Arctic, Atlantic Oceans and into the Caspian basin. The main watershed passes through the Northern Uvals, Valdai, Central Russian and Volga Uplands. The largest is the Volga River (it is the largest in Europe), its length is more than 3530 km, and its basin area is 1360 thousand sq. km. The source lies on the Valdai Hills. After the confluence of the Selizharovka River (from Lake Seliger), the valley widens noticeably. From the mouth of the Oka to Volgograd, the Volga flows with sharply asymmetrical slopes. In the Caspian lowland, the Akhtuba branches are separated from the Volga and a wide strip of floodplain is formed. The Volga Delta begins 170 km from the Caspian coast. The main supply of the Volga is snow, so high water is observed from the beginning of April to the end of May. The height of the water rise is 5-10 m. 9 nature reserves have been created on the territory of the Volga basin. The Don has a length of 1870 km, the basin area is 422 thousand sq. km. The source is from a ravine on the Central Russian Upland. Flows into Taganrog Bay Sea of ​​Azov. The food is mixed: 60% snow, more than 30% groundwater and almost 10% rain. Pechora has a length of 1810 km, begins in the Northern Urals and flows into the Barents Sea. The basin area is 322 thousand km2. The nature of the flow in the upper reaches is mountainous, the channel is rapid. In the middle and low reaches, the river flows through a moraine lowland and forms a wide floodplain, and at the mouth a sandy delta. The diet is mixed: up to 55% comes from melted snow water, 25% from rainwater and 20% from groundwater. The Northern Dvina has a length of about 750 km, formed from the confluence of the Sukhona, Yuga and Vychegda rivers. Flows into the Dvina Bay. The basin area is almost 360 thousand sq. km. The floodplain is wide. At its confluence, the river forms a delta. Mixed food. The lakes on the Russian Plain differ primarily in the origin of the lake basins: 1) moraine lakes are distributed in the north of the plain in areas of glacial accumulation; 2) karst - in the basins of the Northern Dvina and Upper Volga rivers; 3) thermokarst - in the extreme northeast, in the permafrost zone; 4) floodplains (oxbow lakes) - in the floodplains of large and medium-sized rivers; 5) estuary lakes - in the Caspian lowland. Groundwater is distributed throughout the Russian Plain. There are three artesian basins of the first order: Central Russian, East Russian and Caspian. Within their boundaries there are artesian basins of the second order: Moscow, Volga-Kama, Pre-Ural, etc. With depth chemical composition water and the water temperature changes. Fresh waters lie at depths of no more than 250 m. Salinity and temperature increase with depth. At a depth of 2-3 km, the water temperature can reach 70˚C.

Soils, flora and fauna

Soils, like vegetation on the Russian Plain, have a zonal distribution. In the north of the plain there are tundra coarse humus gley soils, there are peat-gley soils, etc. To the south, podzolic soils lie under forests. In the northern taiga they are gley-podzolic, in the middle - typical podzolic, and in the southern - soddy-podzolic soils, which are also typical for mixed forests. Gray forest soils form under broad-leaved forests and forest-steppe. In the steppes, the soils are chernozem (podzolized, typical, etc.). In the Caspian lowland, the soils are chestnut and brown desert, there are solonetzes and solonchaks.

The vegetation of the Russian Plain differs from the cover vegetation of other large regions of our country. Broad-leaved forests are common on the Russian Plain and only here are semi-deserts. In general, the set of vegetation is very diverse, from tundra to desert. The tundra is dominated by mosses and lichens; to the south, the number of dwarf birch and willow increases. The forest-tundra is dominated by spruce with an admixture of birch. In the taiga, spruce dominates, to the east there is an admixture of fir, and on the poorest soils - pine. Mixed forests include coniferous-deciduous species; in broad-leaved forests, where they are preserved, oak and linden dominate. The same breeds are also typical for the forest-steppe. The steppe here occupies the largest area in Russia, where cereals predominate. The semi-desert is represented by cereal-wormwood and wormwood-hodgepodge communities.

In the fauna of the Russian Plain there are western and eastern species. The most widely represented are forest animals and, to a lesser extent, steppe animals. Western species gravitate towards mixed and deciduous forests (marten, black polecat, dormouse, mole, and some others). Eastern species gravitate towards the taiga and forest-tundra (chipmunk, wolverine, Ob lemming, etc.). Rodents (gophers, marmots, voles, etc.) dominate in the steppes and semi-deserts; the saiga penetrates from the Asian steppes.

Natural areas

Natural zones on the East European Plain are especially clearly expressed. From north to south they replace each other: tundra, forest-tundra, taiga, mixed and broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe, steppes, semi-deserts and deserts. The tundra occupies the coast of the Barents Sea, covers the entire Kanin Peninsula and further east, to the Polar Urals. The European tundra is warmer and more humid than the Asian one, the climate is subarctic with marine features. The average January temperature varies from -10˚C near the Kanin Peninsula to -20˚C near the Yugorsky Peninsula. In summer about +5˚C. Precipitation 600-500 mm. The permafrost is thin, there are many swamps. On the coast there are typical tundras on tundra-gley soils, with a predominance of mosses and lichens; in addition, arctic bluegrass, pike, alpine cornflower, and sedges grow here; from bushes - wild rosemary, dryad (partridge grass), blueberry, cranberry. To the south, shrubs of dwarf birch and willow appear. The forest-tundra extends south of the tundra in a narrow strip of 30-40 km. The forests here are sparse, the height is no more than 5-8 m, dominated by spruce with an admixture of birch and sometimes larch. Low places are occupied by swamps, thickets of small willows or birch berries. There are a lot of crowberries, blueberries, cranberries, blueberries, mosses and various taiga herbs. Tall forests of spruce with an admixture of rowan (here its flowering occurs on July 5) and bird cherry (blooms by June 30) penetrate the river valleys. Of the animals in these zones, the most typical are reindeer, arctic fox, polar wolf, lemming, mountain hare, ermine, wolverine. In summer there are many birds: eiders, geese, ducks, swans, snow bunting, white-tailed eagle, gyrfalcon, peregrine falcon; many blood-sucking insects. Rivers and lakes are rich in fish: salmon, whitefish, pike, burbot, perch, char, etc.

The taiga extends south of the forest-tundra, its southern border runs along the line St. Petersburg - Yaroslavl - Nizhny Novgorod - Kazan. In the west and in the center, the taiga merges with mixed forests, and in the east with forest-steppe. The climate of the European taiga is moderate continental. Precipitation on the plains is about 600 mm, on the hills up to 800 mm. Excessive moisture. The growing season lasts from 2 months in the north and almost 4 months in the south of the zone. The depth of soil freezing is from 120 cm in the north to 30-60 cm in the south. The soils are podzolic, in the north of the zone they are peat-gley. There are many rivers, lakes, and swamps in the taiga. The European taiga is characterized by dark coniferous taiga of European and Siberian spruce. To the east fir is added, closer to the Urals cedar and larch. Pine forests form in swamps and sands. In clearings and burnt areas there are birch and aspen, along the river valleys there is alder and willow. Typical animals are elk, reindeer, brown bear, wolverine, wolf, lynx, fox, mountain hare, squirrel, mink, otter, chipmunk. There are many birds: capercaillie, hazel grouse, owls, in swamps and reservoirs ptarmigan, snipe, woodcock, lapwing, geese, ducks, etc. Woodpeckers are common, especially three-toed and black, bullfinch, waxwing, bee-eater, kuksha, tits, crossbills, kinglets and others. Of reptiles and amphibians - viper, lizards, newts, toads. In summer there are many blood-sucking insects. Mixed and, to the south, broad-leaved forests are located in the western part of the plain between the taiga and forest-steppe. The climate is moderate continental, but, unlike the taiga, softer and warmer. Winters are noticeably shorter and summers longer. The soils are soddy-podzolic and gray forest. Many rivers begin here: the Volga, Dnieper, Western Dvina, etc. There are many lakes, swamps and meadows. The boundary between forests is poorly defined. As you move east and north in mixed forests, the role of spruce and even fir increases, and the role of broad-leaved species decreases. There is linden and oak. In the direction to the southwest there appear maple, elm, ash, and conifers disappear. Pine forests are found only on poor soils. In these forests there is a well-developed undergrowth (hazel, honeysuckle, euonymus, etc.) and a herbaceous cover of honeysuckle, hoofed grass, chickweed, some grasses, and where conifers grow, there is sorrel, oxalis, ferns, mosses, etc. Due to the economic development of these forests, the fauna has sharply declined. Elk and wild boar are found, red deer and roe deer have become very rare, and bison are found only in nature reserves. The bear and lynx have practically disappeared. Foxes, squirrels, dormouse, polecats, beavers, badgers, hedgehogs, and moles are still common; preserved marten, mink, forest cat, muskrat; muskrat, raccoon dog, and American mink are acclimatized. Reptiles and amphibians include snakes, vipers, lizards, frogs, and toads. There are many birds, both resident and migratory. Woodpeckers, tits, nuthatch, blackbirds, jays, and owls are typical; finches, warblers, flycatchers, warblers, buntings, and waterfowl arrive in the summer. Black grouse, partridges, golden eagles, white-tailed eagle, etc. have become rare. Compared to the taiga, the number of invertebrates in the soil increases significantly. The forest-steppe zone extends south of the forests and reaches the Voronezh-Saratov-Samara line. The climate is temperate continental with an increasing degree of continentality to the east, which affects the more depleted floristic composition in the east of the zone. Winter temperatures vary from -5˚C in the west to -15˚C in the east. The annual amount of precipitation decreases in the same direction. Summer is very warm everywhere +20˚+22˚C. The moisture coefficient in the forest-steppe is about 1. Sometimes, especially in recent years, droughts occur in the summer. The relief of the zone is characterized by erosional dissection, which creates a certain diversity of soil cover. The most typical gray forest soils are on loess-like loams. Leached chernozems are developed along the river terraces. The further south you go, the more leached and podzolized chernozems, and gray forest soils disappear. Little natural vegetation has been preserved. Forests here are found only in small islands, mainly oak forests, where you can find maple, elm, and ash. Pine forests have been preserved on poor soils. Meadow herbs were preserved only on lands that were not suitable for plowing. The fauna consists of forest and steppe fauna, but in Lately Due to human economic activity, the steppe fauna began to predominate. Steppe zone extends from the southern border of the forest-steppe to the Kuma-Manych depression and the Caspian lowland in the south. The climate is moderate continental, but with a significant degree of continentalism. Summer is hot, average temperatures +22˚+23˚C. Winter temperatures vary from -4˚C in the Azov steppes, to -15˚C in the Volga steppes. Annual precipitation decreases from 500 mm in the west to 400 mm in the east. The humidification coefficient is less than 1, and droughts and hot winds are frequent in summer. The northern steppes are less warm, but more humid than the southern ones. Therefore, the northern steppes have forbs and feather grasses on chernozem soils. The southern steppes are dry on chestnut soils. They are characterized by solonetzity. In the floodplains of large rivers (Don, etc.) floodplain forests of poplar, willow, alder, oak, elm, etc. grow. Among the animals, rodents predominate: gophers, shrews, hamsters, field mice etc. Among the predators are ferrets, foxes, weasels. Birds include larks, steppe eagle, harrier, corncrake, falcons, bustards, etc. There are snakes and lizards. Most of the northern steppes are now plowed. The semi-desert and desert zone within Russia is located in the southwestern part of the Caspian lowland. This zone adjoins the Caspian coast and borders the deserts of Kazakhstan. The climate is continental temperate. Precipitation is about 300 mm. Winter temperatures are negative -5˚-10˚C. The snow cover is thin, but remains for up to 60 days. The soil freezes up to 80 cm. Summer is hot and long, average temperatures are +23˚+25˚C. The Volga flows through the zone, forming a vast delta. There are many lakes, but almost all of them are salty. The soils are light chestnut, in some places desert brown. The humus content does not exceed 1%. Salt marshes and solonetzes are widespread. The vegetation cover is dominated by white and black wormwood, fescue, thin-legged grass, and xerophytic feather grass; to the south the number of saltworts increases, tamarisk bushes appear; In spring, tulips, buttercups, and rhubarb bloom. In the floodplain of the Volga - willow, white poplar, sedge, oak, aspen, etc. The fauna is represented mainly by rodents: jerboas, gophers, gerbils, many reptiles - snakes and lizards. Typical of predators steppe ferret, fox - corsac, weasel. There are many birds in the Volga delta, especially during migration seasons. All natural zones of the Russian Plain have experienced anthropogenic impacts. The zones of forest-steppes and steppes, as well as mixed and deciduous forests, are especially strongly modified by humans.