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Established: 1987
Size: 12,186 ha (122 km2)
Buffer Zone: 9,159 ha (92
km2)
Contact information:
Fedotov, Yuri Petrovich, Director
Nerussa Station,
Suzemsky raion
Bryanskaya oblast, Russia 242181
Tel: (7-083-53) 2-57-74,
2-57-75
Email:
Shpilenok@mail.ru
zapole@online.debryansk.ru
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 Viewed
from space, Bryansk Forest appears as a dark green island of forest
in a sea of agricultural fields. The 150 km long belt of conifer
and broadleaf forest, which reaches into Ukraine, is one of the
last remaining intact forests in European Russia. Located at its
southern tip, the Bryansky Les Zapovednik is one of the smallest
nature reserves in Russia. Yet its small territory preserves an
abundance of wildlife in forests and bogs along the banks of the
Nerussa River. Rare animals and birds such as lynx, badger, Northern
eagle owl and black stork find refuge in this magical forest.
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Photo ©
1997 Robert
Glenn Ketchum
- Zapovednik Images
Zapovednik Facts
- Articles featuring this reserve in
Russian Conservation
News journal
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Zapovednik
Facts:
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Animals
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The Bryansk Forest is a contiguous band of forest surrounded
by agricultural fields and areas of human development. It is therefore
remarkable that so many large animals have been able to survive
in the presence of people. Moose (Alces alces) persist
despite constant hunting pressure. Wolves (Canis lupis)
hunt moose in packs in the winter, but generally prefer easier
prey like wild boar (Sus scofa) and roe deer (Capreolus
capreolus). Wild boar use their hardened snouts to dig for
roots in the forest floor, while roe deer graze on grasses in
abandoned fields during the twilight hours. The brown bear (Ursus
arctos), which almost disappeared in the region due to overhunting,
is slowly making a comeback. Hunting for bears was prohibited
when scientists discovered that fewer than a dozen of the animals
remained in the region. In an effort to save the population and
reduce inbreeding, more than 10 bear cubs were brought to the
Bryansk Forest from Tsentralno-Lesnoy
Zapovednik. In all, there are 297 species of vertebrates in
the Bryansky Les Zapovednik, including 46 mammals, 201 birds,
six reptiles, 11 amphibians, and at least 34 species of fish.
Bryansky Les is the only place in the world
where all 10 species of European woodpeckers can be
found, including black woodpecker (Dryocopus
martius), middle spotted woodpecker
(Dendrocopos midius), three-toed woodpecker
(Picoides tridactylus), and Eurasian wryneck
(Jynx torquilla), among others. Accompanied
by the rattling sounds of woodpeckers overhead,
male capercaillies (Tetrao urogallus) sing
songs and put on elaborate displays to attract
their mates in spring. Common crane (Grus
grus), gray heron (Ardea cinera), corn
crake (Crex crex), and other migrants fly in
from warmer wintering areas for the nesting season.
Black storks (Ciconia nigra), incredibly
rare and shy relatives of white storks (Ciconia
ciconia), cautiously select isolated, mature
forests near the edges of swamps and streams for
their nesting sites. Here they can easily watch for
crested newts (Triturus cristatus), ground
frogs (Rana terrestris), and small fish to
feed their young. Spotted eagle (Aquila clanga
), marsh harrier (Circus aeruginosus),
black kite (Milvus migrans), and tawny owl
(Strix aluco) are just a few of the 16 kinds
of raptors and eight owls that prey on small
rodents and other vertebrates in the Bryansk
Forest.
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Vegetation
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The Bryansk Forest ("Les") is located at a kind
of ecological crossroads, where southern broadleaf
and forest-steppe communities meet northern boreal
and coniferous forest types. The intersection of
two different natural systems, called biomes, makes
plant life here incredibly rich and diverse.
Subarctic and boreal species such as twin flower
(Linneaea borealis), lousewort (Ledum
palustre), willow (Salix lapponum), and
Norway spruce (Picea excelsa) are found
alongside European species like sedge (Carex
brizoides), laserwort (Laserpitium
spp.), and ash (Fraxinus excelsior).
More than 750 species of vascular plants, 80 kinds
of mosses, 120 lichens, and 120 types of mushrooms
are found in the zapovednik and surrounding
territories. Rare species of plants, including 16
kinds of orchids, also occur in the reserve.
Forests cover more than 60% percent of the
zapovednik. Pine forests, which once concealed
Partisan bunkers during World War II, thrive on
sandy soils of ancient river terraces. Scotch pine
stands (Pinus sylvestris), many having
regenerated after heavy logging in the mid-1900s,
cover one-third of the zapovednik; mixed oak and
pine forests make up one-quarter; and broadleaf
forests account for one-tenth. Broadleaf trees,
mainly found in loamy soils of flooplains and river
valleys, include common oak (Quercus robur
), Norway maple (Acer platanoides),
small-leaved linden (Tilia cordata), and
others. Ancient oak trees, some 300 years old,
stand majestically along river banks as monuments
to a much earlier time.
The banks of the Nerussa River overflow in the
spring, flooding oak forests, black alder (Alnus
glutinosa) swamps, and floodplain meadows for
as long as two months. Wetlands are important sites
for purifying and storing excess flood and rain
water. Vegetation in these marshy communities
include reeds, grasses, and sedges such as
Phragmites australis, Glyceria
maxima, Carex acuta, C. cespitosa and
C. omskiana. Impassable sphagnum bogs are home
to hairy birch (Betula pubescens), slender
sedge (Carex lasiocarpa), woodreed
(Calamagrostis canescens), peatmoss
(Sphagnum fallax and S. Flexuosum),
and other species. Woodland bogs and sphagnum
swamps make up 15% of the reserve.
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Geographical
Features
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Bryansky Les Zapovednik is located on the
boundary of the Suzemsky and Trubchevsky
administrative districts of the Bryansk Oblast. The
reserve is less than 10 miles from the border with
Ukraine. Perhaps this corner of the forest was
preserved because it was located near the border of
district, state, and country - far from centers of
human disturbance.
The Bryansk Forest is a 150 km long band of
forest that extends along the left bank of the
Desna River, into Ukraine. The word "Bryansk" comes
from "debryansk," which means debris - a
description of the impenetrable Bryansk Forest from
centuries ago. The zapovednik is situated at the
southern end of the Bryansk Forest, and is bisected
by the Nerussa River, a tributary of the Desna. The
Desna River is one of the last free-flowing rivers
on the European continent. Its annual flooding
plays an influential role in the life of the
zapovednik, replenishing fields, forests, and
wetlands with nutrients each year. In springtime,
boats are the only mode of transportation until the
roads and trails dry out after the floods, usually
by June or July.
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Conservation
Status
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The greatest threat to the Bryansky Les
Zapovednik is its small size in comparison to the
surrounding communities, where unemployment
following the collapse of collective farms has hit
hard, causing an increase in poaching violations.
Fortunately, 16 protected nature refuges have been
established near the zapovednik, where limited
hunting and fishing are allowed. But to maintain
viable wildlife populations, additional buffer
zones and corridors connecting these protected
areas will be crucial. Towards that end, in 2001,
Bryansky Les Zapovednik was made the core of the
Nerusso-Desnianskoe-Polesie biosphere reserve.
In order to ensure long-term conservation of the
Bryansk Forest, the zapovednik works with local
communities to gain support for the nature reserve
system. The reserve carries out an active education
program based at its modern visitor's center and
museum. The progressive education department works
with children from all over the region, helping to
raise the environmental consciousness of the next
generation of decision-makers. A non-profit NGO
"Friends of the Bryansk Forest" was established in
1997 to build support for conservation of the
Bryansk Forest on a broader scale, and to create a
series of nature films for television.
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References
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Written by Laura
Williams, based on materials by Igor
Shpilenok, Yuri Fedotov, and Serguei Kossenko
of Bryansky Les Zapovednik.
For more information on environmental education
in the Bryansky Les Zapovednik, CLICK
HERE
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