SCIENTISTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERTS COMPLETED DATA COLLECTION FOR THE KARPOGORY WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
Back in 2004-2008 the Silver Taiga Foundation for Sustainable Development mapped large intact forest landscapes (IFLs, areas of intact forest of over 50,000 ha) in the Komi Republic, later cores of those IFLs, the most valuable from the environmental point of view and unaffected by any industry areas, were agreed with various stakeholders. Since then, the Foundation has been systematically dealing with inspection of such remote intact tracts to award the status of PAs (specially protected natural areas) to them. In 2009-2013, Koygorodok IFL in the south of the region was inspected, and now a new national park – Koygorodok National Park – is planned to be established there. In 2016, the Silver Taiga Foundation arranged an international scientific expedition to Verkhnyaya Vashka IFL to find justification for the new landscape reserve. In 2017, the environmental and economic feasibility study for the Osa complex landscape reserve was prepared and forwarded to the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Komi Republic. In summer 2018 an expedition to the Core of the Karpogory IFL located near the border of Udora district of Komi and Pinega district of Arkhangelsk region was planned.
The following experts took part in the expedition which started on 18 June 2018 in Chuprovo, Udora district: Andrey Korolev and Natalya Semenova, scientists of Institute of Biology of the Komi Scientific Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Science, Syktyvkar, phytosociologist Asya Zagidullina from Saint Petersburg, Finnish experts Junikka Jaako Juhani and Olli Antti Manninen, and Nikolay Shuktomov and Sergey Davydov from the Silver Taiga Foundation for Sustainable Development. They inspected the Karpogory IFL to identify habitats of Red Book species of plants and animals, rare ecosystems and landscapes. Later, the information on biodiversity collected during the trip will be included in the documents to justify establishment of the wildlife sanctuary on that area.
Zoologists Andrey Korolev and Junikka Jaako Juhani monitor the situation
It is important to note that the place is remote and difficult for access. The only reliable type of transportation is a motorboat. The base camp of the participants was 70 kilometers away from the village of Chuprovo. To get to the camp the members of the expedition had to travel by boat up the Kurmysh river. The guide was one of the local residents of Chuprovo – Nikolay Tyurnin.
Nikolay Tyurnin, the guide
The central part of the Karpogory tract was conducted by groups of 2-3 people. The walking distance of the routes was from 15 to 25 kilometers. On the way, one could see family marks, which means that the area had been used by local people for traditional activities for a long time.
Family marks
The long spring this year postponed the start of vegetation and blossoming of many of vascular plants, however, the scientists managed to find a very rare orchid – Calypso bulbosa which is included in the Red Book of Russia. According to the leader of the expedition – forestry coordinator Nikolay Shuktomov from Silver Taiga – the experts were extremely lucky to find it. The participants of the trip also found some unique lichens and fungi in the Karpogory tract. Zoologist Andrey Korolev and ornithologist from Finland Junikka Jaako Juhani identified some rare bird species. The expedition managed to make a photo of a big predator bird very similar to a honey buzzard included in the Red Books of many areas, including the one of Arkhangelsk region.
Calypso bulbosa orchid
The Karpogory IFL is one of the biggest well preserved tracts of intact forest. Its area exceeds 393,500 ha, the area of the core is more than 276,500 ha. The last expedition was the third one. In 2007 a trip to the southern part of the tract along the Puchkoma river was arranged. The team included members of the Silver Taiga Foundation, a representative of the SPOK environment protection organization from Karelia, and the head of the Udorachi public movement. The experts were to estimate the degree of preservation of forests and availability of Red Book species of plants and animals. In 2011, an expedition to audit the Ezhuga wildlife sanctuary (the northern part of the Karpogory IFL) was arranged as part of the UNDP/GEF project. The group included scientists of Institute of Biology of the Komi Scientific Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Science, staff of the Silver Taiga Foundation, experts from Arkhangelsk and St. Petersburg. The expedition report was included in the UNDP/GEF summary report on assessment of representativeness of specially protected natural areas (PA) of the Komi Republic. Based on the results of the studies an idea emerged to create the Karpogory wildlife sanctuary merging together Puchkoma and Ezhuga reserves. The 2018 expedition concluded the series of studies in this IFL. The following stage will be development of an environmental justification for the Karpogory wildlife sanctuary, which will merge the existing Puchkoma reserve in the Komi Republic and Ezhuga reserve in Arkhangelsk region into an integrated specially protected natural area of regional significance, thus preserving unique intact forest tracts of middle taiga for upcoming generations.
In the heart of the Karpogory tract
