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Natural areas in the East European Plain. Physical geography - Russian (East European) plain. The influence of the glacier on the relief of the plain

The Russian, or East European, plain is the second largest (after the Amazonian) plain of the Earth. Most of it is located within Russia. The length of the plain from north to south is more than 2500 km, from west to east - about 1000 km.

Features of nature. At the base of the East European Plain lies the ancient Precambrian Russian platform, which determines the main feature of the relief - flatness. The folded basement lies at different depths and comes to the surface within the plain only on the Kola Peninsula and in Karelia (Baltic Shield). In the rest of its territory, the foundation is covered by a sedimentary cover of various thicknesses. To the south and east of the shield, its "underground" slopes and the Moscow depression (more than 4 km deep), bounded in the east by the Timan Ridge, are distinguished.

Irregularities of the crystalline basement determine the placement of the largest uplands and lowlands. The Central Russian Upland and the Timan Ridge are confined to the basement uplifts. The depressions correspond to the lowlands - the Caspian and Pechora.

The diverse and picturesque relief of the Russian Plain was formed under the influence of external forces, and above all the Quaternary glaciation. Glaciers were advancing on the Russian Plain from the Scandinavian Peninsula and from the Urals. Traces of glacial activity manifested themselves everywhere in different ways. First, the glacier "plowed out" 11-shaped valleys on its way and expanded tectonic depressions; polished the rocks, forming a relief of "ram's foreheads". Narrow, winding, long and deep bays, jutting far into the land on the Kola Peninsula, are the result of the "ploughing" activity of ice.

At the edge of the glacier, together with rubble and boulders, clays, loams and sandy loams were deposited. Therefore, in the northwest of the plain, a hilly-morainic relief prevails, as if superimposed on the protrusions and depressions of the ancient relief; for example, the Valdai Upland, reaching a height of 343 m, has at its base rocks of the Carboniferous period, on which the glacier deposited moraine material.

During the retreat of the glacier in these areas, huge pond lakes were formed: Ilmen, Chudskoye, Pskovskoye. Along the southern margin of the glaciation, glacial meltwater deposited a mass of sandy material. Flat or slightly concave sandy lowlands arose here. Erosion relief prevails in the southern part of the plain. The Valdai, Central Russian, and Volga Uplands are especially strongly dissected by ravines and gullies. Between them are lowlands, along which such large rivers as the Volga, Dnieper, Don flow.

Despite the fact that, with the exception of the Far North, the entire territory of the Russian Plain is located in the temperate climatic zone, the climate here is diverse. The continentality of the climate increases towards the southeast. The Russian Plain is under the influence of the western transfer of air masses and cyclones coming from the Atlantic, and receives the greatest amount of precipitation compared to other Russian plains. The abundance of precipitation in the northwest of the plain contributes to the widespread occurrence of swamps, full-flowing rivers and lakes.

The absence of any obstacles in the way of the Arctic air masses leads to the fact that they penetrate far to the south. In spring and autumn, the arrival of arctic air is associated with a sharp drop in temperature and frost. Along with the arctic air masses, polar masses from the northeast and tropical masses from the south (the latter are associated with droughts and dry winds in the southern and central regions) enter the plain.

Many rivers and rivulets flow through the Russian Plain. The most abundant and longest river on the Russian Plain and in Europe is the Volga. Large rivers are the Dnieper, Don, Northern Dvina, Pechora, Kama - the largest tributary of the Volga.

The most characteristic feature of the nature of the Russian Plain is the well-defined zonality of its landscapes. In the Far North, on the cold, heavily waterlogged coasts of the Arctic Ocean in summer, there is a tundra zone with thin and nutrient-poor tundra gley or humus-peaty soils,

with the dominance of moss-lichen and shrub plant communities. To the south, near the Arctic Circle, first in the river valleys, and then along the interfluves, forest-tundras appear.

Forest landscapes predominate in the middle zone of the Russian Plain. In the north it is a dark coniferous taiga on podzolic, often swampy soils, in the south - mixed, and then broad-leaved forests of oak, linden and maple. Further south, they are replaced by forest-steppes and steppes with fertile, mostly chernozem soils and herbaceous vegetation. In the extreme southeast, in the Caspian lowland, under the influence of a dry climate, semi-deserts with chestnut soils and even deserts with gray soils, salt marshes and solonets formed. The vegetation of these places has pronounced features of aridity.

Natural resources. The long geological history of the ancient platform underlying the plain predetermined the richness of its plain in various minerals. The crystalline basement and sedimentary cover of the platform contain mineral reserves that are important not only for our entire country, but also for the world. First of all, these are the rich iron ore deposits of the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly (KMA). The deposits of hard coal (Vorkuta) and brown coal - the Moscow Region basin and oil deposits - the Ural-Vyatka, Timan-Pechora and Caspian basins are connected with the sedimentary cover of the platform. Oil shale is mined in the Leningrad region and in the region of Samara on the Volga. Ore minerals are also known in sedimentary rocks: brown iron ore near Lipetsk, aluminum ores (bauxite) near Tikhvin. Building materials (sand, gravel, clay, limestone) are distributed almost everywhere. Deposits of apatite-nepheline ores and excellent building granites are associated with outcrops of crystalline Precambrian rocks of the Baltic Shield on the Kola Peninsula and in Karelia. In the Volga region, deposits of table salt (Lakes Elton and Baskunchak) and potassium salts in the Kama Cis-Urals have long been known. Relatively recently, diamonds were discovered in the Arkhangelsk region. In the Volga and Moscow regions, valuable raw materials for the chemical industry are mined - phosphorites.

The northwestern and central regions of the Russian Plain are best provided with water resources. The abundance of lakes, high-water rivers is not only reserves fresh water and hydropower, but also cheap transport routes, and fisheries, and recreational facilities. The dense river network of the plain, the location of watersheds on low flat hills are favorable for the construction of canals, of which there are so many on the Russian Plain. Thanks to the system of modern canals - the Volga-Baltic, White Sea-Baltic and Volga-Don, as well as the Moscow-Volga canal, Moscow, located on the relatively small river Moscow and relatively far from the seas, has become a port of five seas.

The agro-climatic resources of the plain are of great value. The predominant part of the Russian Plain receives sufficient heat and moisture for the cultivation of many agricultural crops. In the north of the forest zone, fiber flax is grown, a crop that requires a cool, cloudy and humid summer, rye and oats. The middle strip of the plain and the southern regions are distinguished by fertile soils: soddy-podzolic chernozems, gray forest and chestnut soils. Soil plowing is facilitated by the conditions of a calm flat relief, which makes it possible to cut fields in the form of large arrays that are easily accessible for machine processing. In the middle lane, mainly grain and fodder crops are cultivated, to the south - grain and technical crops (sugar beet, sunflower), horticulture and melon growing are developed. The famous Astrakhan watermelons are known and loved by everyone.

The forest resources of the plain are both taiga and mixed forests, rich in valuable timber, fur-bearing game animals, mushrooms, berries, and medicinal plants.

The recreational resources of the plain are diverse, but not yet very well developed. The rivers and lakes of Karelia, its white nights, the museum of wooden architecture in Kizhi, the magnificent Solovetsky Monastery, thoughtful Valaam attract tourists. Lake Ladoga and Onega, Valdai and Seliger, the legendary Ilmen, the Volga with the Zhiguli and the Astrakhan delta, the ancient Russian cities that are part of the Golden Ring of Russia - this is not a complete list of areas developed for tourism and recreation.

Management issues natural resources. The Russian Plain is distinguished by a variety of natural resources, favorable conditions for life, so here is the highest population density in Russia, the largest number of large cities with highly developed industry.

Currently, more and more actively work is being carried out on land reclamation, i.e., on returning the territories to their original appearance, bringing the devastated landscape into a productive state. Near large cities, a lot of work is being done to improve the cultural landscape. Green belts and forest parks are being created, suburban water basins are picturesque reservoirs, which are used as recreation areas.

In large industrial cities, more and more attention is paid to measures to purify water and air from industrial emissions, to combat dust and noise. Strengthened and tightened environmental control over vehicles, including private cars, which are becoming more and more.

The East European Plain is one of the largest on the planet. Its area exceeds 4 million km2. It is located on the continent of Eurasia (in the eastern part of Europe). On the northwestern side, its borders run along the Scandinavian mountain formations, in the southeast - along the Caucasian, in the southwest - along the Central European massifs (Sudet, etc.) There are more than 10 states on its territory, most of which is occupied by the Russian Federation . It is for this reason that this plain is also called Russian.

East European Plain: climate formation

In any geographic area, the climate is formed due to some factors. First of all, this is the geographical location, relief and neighboring regions with which a certain territory borders.

So, what exactly affects the climate of this plain? To begin with, it is worth highlighting the oceanic areas: the Arctic and Atlantic. Due to their air masses, certain temperatures are set and the amount of precipitation is formed. The latter are distributed unevenly, but this is easily explained by the large territory of such an object as the East European Plain.

Mountains have no less impact than the oceans. along its entire length is not the same: in the southern zone it is much larger than in the northern one. Throughout the year, it changes, depending on the change of seasons (more in summer than in winter due to mountain snow peaks). In July, the highest level of radiation is reached.

Considering that the plain is located in high and temperate latitudes, it mainly dominates on its territory. It prevails mainly in the eastern part.

Atlantic masses

The air masses of the Atlantic dominate the East European Plain throughout the year. In the winter season, they bring rainfall and warm weather, and in the summer, the air is saturated with coolness. Atlantic winds, moving from west to east, change somewhat. Being above the earth's surface, they become warmer in summer with little moisture, and cold in winter with little rainfall. It is during the cold period that the East European Plain, whose climate directly depends on the oceans, is under the influence of Atlantic cyclones. During this season, their number can reach 12. Moving eastward, they can change dramatically, and this, in turn, brings warming or cooling.

And when Atlantic cyclones come from the southwest, the southern part of the Russian Plain is influenced by subtropical air masses, as a result of which a thaw occurs and in winter the temperature can rise to +5 ... 7 ° С.

Arctic air masses

When the East European Plain is under the influence of the north Atlantic and southwestern Arctic cyclones, the climate here changes significantly, even in the southern part. In its territory comes a sharp cooling. Arctic Air Forces tend to move in a north-west direction. Due to anticyclones, which lead to cooling, the snow lies for a long time, the weather is set to be cloudy with low temperatures. As a rule, they are distributed in the southeastern part of the plain.

winter season

Considering how the East European Plain is located, the climate in the winter season differs in different areas. In this regard, the following temperature statistics are observed:

Northern regions - winter is not very cold, in January, thermometers show an average of -4 ° C.
In the western zones of the Russian Federation, the weather conditions are somewhat more severe. The average temperature in January reaches -10 °С.
The northeastern parts are the coldest. Here on thermometers you can see -20 ° C and more.
In the southern zones of Russia, there is a temperature deviation in the southeast direction. The average is a revenge of -5 ° C.

Temperature regime of the summer season

In the summer season, the East European Plain is under the influence of solar radiation. The climate at this time depends, directly, on this factor. Here, oceanic air masses are no longer of such importance, and the temperature is distributed in accordance with geographic latitude.

So, let's look at the changes by region:

Precipitation

As mentioned above, most of the East European Plain has a temperate continental climate. And it is characterized by a certain amount of precipitation, which is 600-800 mm / year. Their loss depends on several factors. For example, the movement of air masses from the western parts, the presence of cyclones, the location of the polar and arctic fronts. The highest humidity index is observed between the Valdai and Smolensk-Moscow Uplands. During the year, about 800 mm of precipitation falls in the west, and a little less in the east - no more than 700 mm.

In addition, the relief of this territory has a great influence. On the uplands located in the western parts, precipitation falls by 200 millimeters more than on the lowlands. The rainy season in the southern zones falls on the first month of summer (June), and in the middle lane, as a rule, it is July.

In winter, snow falls in this region and a stable cover is formed. The elevation level may vary, given the natural areas of the East European Plain. For example, in the tundra, the snow thickness reaches 600-700 mm. Here he lies for about seven months. And in the forest zone and forest-steppe, the snow cover reaches a height of up to 500 mm and, as a rule, covers the ground for no more than two months.

Most of the moisture falls on the northern zone of the plain, and evaporation is less. In the middle band, these indicators are compared. As for the southern part, here moisture is much less than evaporation, for this reason drought is often observed in this area.

types and brief characteristics

The natural zones of the East European Plain are quite different. This is explained extremely simply - by the large size of this area. There are 7 zones on its territory. Let's take a look at them.

East European Plain and West Siberian Plain: Comparison

The Russian and West Siberian Plains have a number of common features. For example, their geographical location. They are both located on the Eurasian continent. They are influenced by the Arctic Ocean. The territory of both plains has such natural zones as forest, steppe and forest-steppe. There are no deserts and semi-deserts in the West Siberian Plain. The prevailing Arctic air masses have almost the same effect on both geographic areas. They also border on mountains, which directly affect the formation of the climate.

East European Plain and West Siberian Plain also have differences. These include the fact that although they are located on the same mainland, they are located in different parts: the first is in Europe, the second is in Asia. They also differ in relief - the West Siberian is considered one of the lowest, so some of its sections are swampy. If we take the territory of these plains as a whole, then in the latter the flora is somewhat poorer than that of the East European.

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Transnistrian State University them. T.G. Shevchenko

Faculty of Natural Geography

Department of Physical Geography and Nature Management.

on the topic: Comprehensive physical and geographical characteristics of the natural zones of the Russian Plain

Completed by: Varanitsa A.

Teacher: Doga E.F.

Tiraspol 2013.

Introduction

Tundra and forest tundra zone

Taiga zone

forest-steppe zone

steppe zone

Semi-desert and desert zones

Conclusion

Bibliography

Appendix

Introduction

The Russian (East European) Plain is one of the largest plains on our planet (the second largest after the Amazonian Plain in Western America). It is located in the eastern part of Europe. Since most of it is within the borders Russian Federation, The East European Plain is sometimes called Russian. In the northwestern part it is limited by the mountains of Scandinavia, in the southwestern part by the Sudetenland and other mountains of central Europe, in the southeastern part by the Caucasus, and in the east by the Urals. From the north, the Russian Plain is washed by the waters of the White and Barents Seas, and from the south by the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas.

The length of the plain from north to south is more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 1 thousand kilometers. Almost the entire length of the East European Plain is dominated by a gently sloping flat relief. Most of the population of Russia and most of the country's large cities are concentrated within the territory of the East European Plain. It was here that the Russian state was formed many centuries ago, which later became the largest country in the world in terms of its territory. A significant part of Russia's natural resources is also concentrated here.

The East European Plain almost completely coincides with the East European Platform. This circumstance explains its flat relief, as well as the absence of significant natural phenomena associated with the movement of the earth's crust (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions). Small hilly areas within the East European Plain resulted from faults and other complex tectonic processes. The height of some hills and plateaus reaches 600-1000 meters. In ancient times, the Baltic Shield of the East European Platform was in the center of glaciation, as evidenced by some forms of glacial relief. On the East European Plain, there are practically all types of natural zones available on the territory of Russia. Natural zones are clearly expressed on the Russian Plain: tundra and forest-tundra, a zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe, steppe, semi-desert and desert.

Tundra and forest tundra zone

The youngest landscape zone on the Russian Plain is the tundra. It was formed only after the death of the Valdai glacier.

Some, although not particularly significant, fluctuations in the boundaries of landscape zones were observed in the post-glacial period. In particular, there is much evidence that during the climatic optimum (Atlantic period) most of the continental tundra of the Russian Plain was captured by taiga and forest tundra.

Tundra and forest-tundra are two independent landscape zones. However, the forest-tundra on the Russian Plain is represented as a narrow strip, which has not yet been sufficiently studied, therefore, for convenience of description, it is combined here with the tundra zone.

The tundra and forest-tundra zones include the Arctic islands: Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya, Vaigach, Kolguev and the coast of the Barents Sea on the mainland.

The southern border of the forest-tundra on the mainland passes near the Arctic Circle, and the northern island of the Franz Josef Land archipelago lies at a latitude of 81045 "N. This geographical position determines the small amount of total solar radiation in the tundra. radiation and reaches more or less significant levels, but the vast majority of it goes not to heat the soil and air, but to evaporate moisture.Therefore, the air temperature in the tundra and forest-tundra is low even in summer: the average July temperature in the forest-tundra is about 12 °, and on Franz Land -Joseph, it is close to zero.

The severity of summer in the tundra and forest-tundra is intensified due to the fact that their territory is washed by the waters of the Barents and White Seas, which absorb a lot of heat spent on melting ice and heating water. But in winter, the seas "heat" the territory of the tundra and forest-tundra, and prevent a sharp cooling of the air. The latter is especially noticeable on the Murmansk coast, where the Barents Sea does not freeze even in winter. The average January temperature on the Murmansk coast is above -10°C, and only in the north of Novaya Zemlya and Franz Josef Land does it fall below -20°C.

In addition to the seas, the weakening of the climate continuum of the European tundra is strongly influenced by active cyclonic activity. It is associated with the passage of the Arctic front over the Barents Sea. In winter, warm Atlantic air masses come here with cyclones, causing unstable weather with heavy rainfall. The annual amount of precipitation in the European tundra is 300-400 mm; this is much more than the annual amount of precipitation in the tundra of Siberia.

Tundra and forest-tundra are young landscapes. Their territory was freed from continental ice later than other regions. Here, traces of the presence of the glacier are well expressed in the relief, and the north of Novaya Zemlya and a significant part of the Franz Josef Land archipelago are still hidden under ice.

The formation of tundra and forest-tundra landscapes takes place under conditions of prevailing frost weathering; the activity of the biological components of the landscape - vegetation, wildlife and microorganisms in the soil - is not very active. It intensifies to the south - in the typical tundra and forest tundra. In the Arctic deserts, on Franz Josef Land, the tundra landscape is in its first stages of development: lichens, mosses and flowering plants that cling to the soil grow in separate clumps, most often along frost cracks in rocks. In the subzone of a typical tundra, there is a fully formed landscape well adapted to the cold climate of the North with a developed moss-lichen, shrub and shrub cover.

In terms of landscape, the tundra zone is divided into three subzones. The Arctic desert subzone includes Franz Josef Land and northern Novaya Zemlya. The natural conditions of the subzone are characterized by exceptional severity. The average temperature of the warmest month, July, is below 4.5°. The soils of the Arctic deserts are polygonal, skeletal, with sparse, and in some places completely disappearing vegetation cover. We believe, like L. S. Berg and I. M. Ivanov, that this subzone can be considered as an independent ice zone; The landscape feature of this zone throughout the year is ice and snow. The name "ice zone" conveys the essence of the landscape of the extreme latitudes of the Arctic more fully than the "Arctic zone", as some researchers propose to call it.

The Arctic tundra subzone is distributed in the south of Novaya Zemlya, Vaigach Island and the coast of Baydaratskaya Bay. The average July temperature here is 5--6°. The vegetation, as in the previous subzone, is very poor; only a few species of low-growing grasses and shrubs rise above the moss-lichen ground cover. The subzone is heavily waterlogged, peaty-gley soils and hypnum bogs predominate.

A typical tundra is characteristic of the entire continental coast of the Barents Sea. The average July temperature in it reaches 6--10 °. In the north of the subzone, moss and lichen tundras are predominantly developed, in the south, shrub tundras with thickets of polar willow and polar birch. In contrast to the two previous subzones, sphagnum bogs acquire landscape significance here.

The vegetation cover of a typical tundra often closely resembles the corresponding layers of the taiga - moss-lichen and shrubs. Looking at some parts of the moss-lichen tundra dotted with blueberries or lingonberries, it involuntarily seems that coniferous forests once rustled here. There is nothing surprising in such an assumption. Between the tundra and the moss-lichen and shrub cover of the taiga there is not only a physiognomic similarity, but also a genetic commonality. In the post-glacial climatic optimum, forests, most likely of the type of forest-tundra woodlands, covered almost the entire continental tundra of the Russian Plain. Later, due to the cooling of the climate, the forests receded to the south, and the moss-lichen and shrub layers, in an altered form, became part of the tundra vegetation cover.

L. S. Berg believed that the attack of the tundra on the forest, caused by the cooling of the climate, continues at the present time. G. I. Tanfilyev also assumed that the tundra was advancing on the forest, but unlike L. S. Berg, he saw the reason for this not in the cooling of the climate, but in the fact that huge snowdrifts were swept on the edges of the forest, the melting of which leads to waterlogging soil and the death of tree species.

V. R. Williams adhered to a different view of the relationship between the tundra and the forest. In his opinion, the young tundra landscape over time, regardless of general changes climate, is evolving into a forest landscape, in connection with which, at present, there is an attack not of the tundra on the forest, but of the forest on the tundra.

Observations of the last two decades show that in nature there is an attack of the forest on the tundra. The process of forest attack on the tundra is not local, but general in nature; it is noted in the tundras of the Russian Plain, Eastern and Northeast Siberia, North America. Now it is difficult to say whether the advance of the forest on the tundra is the result of a directed climate change towards warming, or whether it is a consequence of a short-term, periodic climate fluctuation and soon the advance of the forest on the tundra may stop or be replaced by the opposite process - the advance of the tundra on the forest.

The relationship between the tundra and the forest, in addition to climate, is influenced by other factors that should not be forgotten. In particular, in the tundra, recently freed from the glacier, erosional dissection of the relief is growing, and this improves drainage and increases the forest suitability of the tundra, and contributes to the advancement of the forest to the north. Another important factor is human activity. For many centuries, man has destroyed forests in the forest-tundra. Many northern islands of forests have disappeared without a trace under the influence of human activity. It is these artificially deforested areas that are captured primarily by the forest as it moves north. Therefore, in the case of the protection of the northern forests and the moderate use of the forest-tundra for pastures, it is possible to expand the area of forests, not associated with a change in any natural components of the landscape.

Regardless of the reasons causing the advance of the forest on the tundra, this process is of great national economic importance. It creates favorable conditions for afforestation of the forest-tundra and southern regions of the tundra. Successful experiments in afforestation in the tundra have already been made in the area of the cities of Naryan-Mar and Vorkuta and along the Pechora railway. The afforestation of the tundra will improve its microclimate and increase the productivity of northern meadows and pastures.

Taiga zone

Taiga is a zone of coniferous forests on podzolic soils. In the southwest it borders on the zone of mixed forests, in the southeast on the zone of forest-steppe. Its southern border passes through Leningrad, Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Gorky, Kazan.

Over vast expanses - from the White Sea to the Volga - the landscape of the taiga is relatively monotonous. Everywhere there are coniferous forests of spruce on loams and pines on sands. These tree species are joined east of Onega by Sukachev larch (Larix Sukaczewii), east of Kostroma by fir (Abies sibirica), and in the Cis-Urals by cedar (Pinus sibirica). Everywhere in the taiga there are poor podzolic soils, constantly alternating with bog-podzolic and bog soils. Like any other type of landscape, the taiga is largely a derivative of the climate. This latter is characterized by low summer temperatures and predominance of precipitation over evaporation. The average July temperature (at sea level) ranges from 12° in the north to 20° in the south. Precipitation in the middle part of the taiga falls 500-600 mm per year, and evaporation there does not exceed 400 mm.

With a positive moisture balance, groundwater in the taiga comes to the surface or lies in its immediate vicinity. This, in turn, leads to waterlogging of the area. The taiga is a zone of domination not only of coniferous forests, but also of swamps, including upland ones, dressed in sphagnum.

The complex of animals characteristic of the taiga forests on the Russian Plain has been greatly modified by man. Among the surviving typical inhabitants of the taiga there are a bear, a marten, a lynx, a wolverine, an ermine, a squirrel, a chipmunk, a hare, an elk; from birds - capercaillie, hazel grouse, woodpeckers, crossbills, various types of waders. At the same time, species of southern origin have already penetrated into the taiga through fields and clearings: hedgehog, hare, black polecat, common vole, mice - forest, field and baby, black grouse.

The taiga of the Russian Plain has three features that distinguish it from other taiga regions of Russia. It has a temperate continental humid climate with active cyclonic activity. In this respect, it differs sharply from the taiga of Eastern Siberia. The predominance of dark spruce forests is the second feature of the taiga of the Russian Plain. And in this respect, it is the exact opposite of the light larch taiga of Eastern Siberia. Finally, moderate bogginess distinguishes it both from the East Siberian taiga, which is poor in marshes, and from the heavily boggy, devoid of drainage West Siberian taiga.

In the taiga of the Russian Plain, when moving from north to south, zonal changes in the landscape are observed, making it possible to distinguish three subzones in it: northern, typical, and southern taiga.

The subzone of the northern taiga is located between the forest-tundra and 64°N. sh. Summer in the northern taiga is short and cold (the average temperature in July is from 14 to 16°); noteworthy is the high percentage of swampy areas, short stature and sparseness of forests. In spruce forests, an admixture of birch is common; in the grass and shrub cover, marsh-tundra species are found. In addition to green moss spruce forests, long-moss spruce forests, sphagnum spruce forests and lichen spruce forests are common in the northern taiga. There are few typical podzolic soils in the northern taiga. The podzol-forming process here is constantly complicated by the bog-tundra process, in connection with which gley-podzolic soils with surface gleying dominate on loams.

Subzone of a typical (middle) taiga. The average temperature in July reaches 10--18°C. The taiga of this subzone is characterized by a closed forest stand, the absence of birch as a constant admixture to spruce, and the dominance of the blueberry spruce forest association in the group of green moss spruce forests. In the south of a typical taiga, the first representatives of broad-leaved species appear. The podzol-forming process finds optimal conditions for its development in the subzone; typical strongly podzolic soils become dominant in this subzone.

In the southern taiga subzone, the average July temperature exceeds 18°C. Coniferous forests find in it the most favorable conditions for their growth. Instead of blueberry spruce forests, sorrel spruce forests are becoming a common association. A new type of coniferous forest appears - complex (shrub) spruce and pine forests, containing linden, elm, hazel (Corylusavellana), warty euonymus (Evonymus verrucosus) and other species characteristic of a broad-leaved forest in the shrub layer and undergrowth. The area of swamps in the southern taiga is shrinking, and the soddy process is intensifying in soil formation, leading to the formation of soddy-podzolic soils. Along with zonal differences in the taiga of the Russian Plain, provincial landscape features are sharply expressed. These latter are due to the heterogeneity of the geological-geomorphological and longitudinal-climatic conditions of the zone.

The west of the taiga is part of the Baltic crystalline shield with surface occurrence up to the Cambrian crystalline rocks, the east is a tectonic depression filled with sedimentary Paleozoic and Mesozoic. Dissected uplands alternate in the taiga with swampy lowlands. The northwest of the taiga bears fresh traces of the Valdai glaciation: hilly moraine landscapes, sandy outwash plains, an endless number of lakes. In the central and northeastern parts of the taiga, which were covered by the Dnieper glacier, the moraine landscapes were heavily reworked and modified, and the extreme southeast of the zone was completely devoid of ice cover.

Longitudinal and climatic differences are superimposed on the geological and geomorphological differences in the taiga of the Russian Plain. The climate of the east of the taiga is much more continental than the west. The average January temperature in the southwest of the zone is about -6°, and in the northeast it is below -20°; the annual amount of precipitation also changes accordingly - from 600 mm in the west to 500 mm in the east.

Zone of mixed and deciduous forests

Mixed forests are an independent type of landscape, the main feature of which is the presence of coniferous and broad-leaved forests on soddy-podzolic soils in zonal conditions.

In the northeast, mixed forests border on the taiga along the line: Leningrad - Novgorod - Yaroslavl - Gorky. In the southeast, they are replaced by forest-steppe along the line: Lutsk - Zhytomyr - Kyiv - Kaluga - Ryazan - Gorky. In the west, outside the USSR, mixed forests are gradually turning into European broad-leaved forests.

The position of mixed forests in the southwest of the forest region of Russia, their relative proximity to the warm Atlantic Ocean enhance the western features in the landscape of this zone. The western nature of the zone of mixed forests affects primarily the climatic conditions. This zone in winter knows neither severe frosts nor deep snow cover. The average January temperature in the west of the zone is above -5°, in the east about -12°. Frequent thaws in winter prevent the formation of deep snow cover. Therefore, the southwest of the zone, in terms of the duration of the snow cover (less than 100 days) and its height (below 30 cm), resembles the steppes and semi-deserts of the Trans-Volga region. The western features of the climate are further expressed in the abundance of precipitation. In most of the zone, their annual number exceeds 600 mm, and in some places (east of Riga) even 800 mm.

Soddy-podzolic soils in the west of the zone already have some features that bring them closer to the brown forest soils of Western Europe. So, in the west of Belarus, yellow-yellow color appears in podzolic soils, and in the Kaliningrad region, more or less typical brown forest soils are described. The western influence on the vegetation of the zone of mixed forests is very noticeable. Broad-leaved forests are of western origin, with their characteristic shrub and herbaceous species. In the Baltics, such typical Western Europeans as yew (Taxus baccata) and ivy (Hedera helix) are known. The very composition of conifers in the landscape zone of mixed forests is different from that in the taiga: European spruce and pine are widespread here and there are no Siberian conifers at all - Siberian spruce, Siberian fir, Sukachev larch.

The location of coniferous and broad-leaved species is subject to a certain pattern: broad-leaved forests prefer to grow on loamy, well-drained soils, most often along the southern slopes and tops of low elevations.

Like vegetation, animal world of mixed forests is saturated with western species and depleted with taiga-siberian ones. Among the typical western species are the European subspecies of roe deer, wild boar, wild forest cat, several species of dormouse, mink, pine marten; from birds - green and middle woodpecker, chaffinch. An ancient inhabitant of broad-leaved forests, bison, has been preserved in Belovezhskaya Pushcha. The heterogeneity of geological and geomorphological conditions introduces great diversity into the landscape of mixed forests. Moving from the northwest to the southeast, in the zone of mixed forests one can find traces of a glacier of the most varied preservation - from fresh terminal moraine ridges of the Valdai glaciation in the west to secondary moraine plains and erosion relief in the area of the Dnieper glaciation in the east. The west of the zone of mixed forests, due to the abundance of moraine lakes, was called the "lake belt". In the east of the zone, watershed lakes occur as a rare exception.

The role of the glacier in the formation of the relief of the zone was greatly exaggerated for a long time, considering that all its uplands, such as the Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow, Lithuanian-Belarusian, and others, are of glacial-accumulative origin. In fact, all these hills are composed of bedrock and only from the surface are covered with moraine of relatively small thickness. The origin of the main elevations of the zone is due to tectonics and partly to ancient erosional erosion.

The vertical differentiation of landscapes in the zone of mixed forests is much more pronounced than in the taiga zone. Its sharpness is due not only to large fluctuations in relative heights, but also to two other circumstances: geological differences between uplands and lowlands and the position of the southern boundary of the zone at the main landscape boundary of the Russian Plain. Many lowlands in the zone of mixed forests belong to the "polesian type" - they have passed the stage of a periglacial reservoir and are composed of glacial sands. Poorly drained, they are swamped even on the border with the forest-steppe, covered with pine forests, resembling taiga in their landscape. Polissya and Meshchera are examples of them. The uplands are composed of loamy moraine, which in the south of the zone is covered by mantle and loess-like loams. With good drainage and a moisture balance close to neutral, fertile soddy-podzolic and even gray forest soils form on the loamy soils of the uplands in the south of the zone. Accordingly, the vegetation also acquires a southern character: swamps disappear, the role of broad-leaved species in the forest stand increases, and the first representatives of the northern steppes appear.

forest-steppe zone

The forest-steppe is a zonal landscape of the temperate zone, characterized by the alternation of closed, predominantly deciduous forests on gray forest (forest-steppe) soils and grassy steppes on chernozems, now mostly plowed.

The northern border of the forest-steppe, coinciding with the main landscape boundary of the Russian Plain, is well defined climatically: near it, the positive moisture balance changes to negative. This is the first zone on the Russian Plain when moving from north to south, in which evaporation begins to exceed the annual amount of precipitation. In botanical and soil terms, the northern border of the forest-steppe is marked by the southern border of spruce and the northern limit of the continuous distribution of gray forest (forest-steppe) soils. From west to east, it goes as follows: Lutsk - Zhytomyr - Kyiv - Karachev - Kaluga - Ryazan - Gorky - Kazan - the right bank of the Kama and Belaya rivers to the Ural Range.

In the south, where the last large forest islands disappear on the watersheds, the forest-steppe passes into the steppe zone. It is difficult to establish exactly the southern border of the forest-steppe, since many forest islands near it have long been cut down by man. Approximately the southern border of the forest-steppe on the Russian Plain coincides with the southern border of the distribution of medium-humus (ordinary) chernozems and passes through such places: the southern outskirts of Codri in Moldova - Dnepropetrovsk - the Samara Valley - northeast of Stalino - Sev. Donets, from the mouth of Kalitva to Oskol - Don, from the mouth of Chernaya Kalitva to Podgornaya, - the valley of the Podgornaya River on the Kalach Upland - Volga, north of Kamyshin - Common Syrt, south of the Samara valley.

The southern border of the forest-steppe is located near the climatic “Voyeikov axis”. Therefore, in the north of the forest-steppe, humid western winds predominate in winter and summer, and cyclones are relatively frequent; in the south of the zone, the western transport weakens, in winter the role of easterly winds increases, and the frequency of cyclones decreases. In this regard, the annual amount of precipitation in the forest-steppe rapidly decreases from 500–600 mm in the north to 300–400 mm in the south. In contrast to precipitation, summer temperatures increase in a southerly direction: the average July temperature at sea level varies from 20° in the north of the zone to 22.5° in the south. With such a ratio of precipitation and temperature, the moisture balance in the forest-steppe, although negative, is not so negative as to hinder the development of vegetation.

The unfavorable side of the forest-steppe climate for vegetation consists in the instability of moisture, in the alternation of wet and dry years. In the forest-steppe, for the first time, when moving from north to south, there is a need for special agrotechnical measures to combat drought and dry winds. The forest-steppe zone was not covered by a glacier, with the exception of the Dnieper and Oka-Don lowlands. Instead of moraine and fluvioglacial sands, loess and loess-like loams are common as subsoils. Fertile chernozem soils were formed on these carbonate rocks under the cover of forb steppes under the cover of forb steppes: podzolized and leached chernozems in the north, typical thick chernozems in the center, and medium-humus (ordinary) chernozems in the south. Only in the extreme north of the zone and under forests in the south do chernozems give way to gray forest (forest-steppe) soils.

The soils of the forest-steppe change not only from north to south, but also from west to east. In the west, in the Ukrainian part of the forest-steppe, chernozems are characterized by high thickness with a low humus content; in the Central Russian and Trans-Volga forest-steppes, on the contrary, chernozems are thin, but rich in humus. The reason for these differences in soils in the west and east of the zone is twofold - an increase in the continentality of the climate and an increase in the clay fraction in the subsoils in the east of the zone.

In contrast to the podzols of the forest north, the soils of the forest-steppe do not suffer from excessive moisture. The swampiness of lands in the forest-steppe is negligible. The economic value of forest-steppe soils in the south of the zone is sometimes reduced by salinization processes, leading to the formation of solods and solonetzes. But the real disaster for forest-steppe soils is not salinization, but erosion.

Erosion processes in the forest-steppe zone are very active. There are many reasons that activate erosion processes in the forest-steppe: the presence of loose, easily eroded loess-like soils, the stormy nature of summer precipitation, a high degree of plowing of the territory, etc. The soils of the forest-steppe uplands are especially strongly eroded, where the density of the ravine-gully network in places exceeds 1.0 km per 1 km2 of area, and washed away soils in some areas occupy up to one third or more of the land fund. In the Kursk region, from fields located on slopes with a steepness of 4-6 °, only during snowmelt is washed off 25-60 tons of fine soil per 1 hectare. The soils of the steep slopes of the southern and southeastern exposure are most susceptible to erosion, the soils of the more gentle slopes of the northern exposure are the least eroded.

The fight against the washout of soils in the forest-steppe is just as urgent and important a state task as the fight against droughts and dry winds.

In the forest-steppe, more clearly than anywhere else, the relationship of vegetation and soils with relief and subsoils is traced. All the uplands of the forest-steppe zone are more forested and covered with more leached soils than the adjacent lowlands. This is reflected in the vertical differentiation of the forest-steppe landscape, which is also noticeable when comparing watersheds with river valleys. To be convinced of this, it suffices to look at the layout of soils and vegetation depending on the relief, developed by G. I. Tanfilyev and B. A. Keller for the territory of the Central Russian forest-steppe. The floodplain of each river is occupied by meadows, sedge urems, oak forests and black alder forests in terraced depressions. The lower floodplain terraces, composed of sands, are covered with pine, in the interdune depressions there are patches of sphagnum swamps with cranberries. The pine forest on the border with steppe terraces above the floodplain passes into the subor, and then into the forb steppe on chernozems with aspen bushes on the solods along the depressions. The flat plains, once occupied by the forb steppe, and now completely plowed up, have the same steppe character. The plakor ends with a high dissected right bank of the river, lost under the greenery of the upland oak forest.

The fauna of the forest-steppe is a motley mixture of forest and steppe species. Elk, marten, squirrel, dormice, capercaillie, hazel grouse, black grouse are found in the forests; ground squirrels are found in the steppes and in open places; the common babka, the earthen hare (large jerboa), the marmot (baybak), now close to complete extermination, the steppe polecat, various types of mouse-like rodents are numerous, the bustard and little bustard are characteristic of birds, which have now become a rarity in the forest-steppe of the Russian Plain. River beaver and muskrat are found along river floodplains.

Human activity in the forest-steppe for centuries has not been in favor of the spread of forest animals. And although many steppe species also suffered greatly as a result of the economic development of the zone, on the whole, the proportion of the steppe element in the modern fauna of the forest-steppe undoubtedly increased compared to its number in the fauna of the virgin forest-steppe. Large differences are observed between the northern and southern landscapes of forest-steppe. This makes it possible to distinguish three subzones in the forest-steppe of the Russian Plain: northern, typical, and southern forest-steppe. The northern forest-steppe is developed on gray forest (forest-steppe) soils and apodoline chernozem and in the past it was almost completely dressed with broad forest forests. Many botanists consider it a subzone of deciduous forests of the forest zone. However, the presence of the islands of the forb steppe speaks in favor of the forest-steppe rather than the forest nature of this territory, which, in its landscape, is completely alien to the broad-leaved forests of Western Europe.

In a typical forest-steppe in the past, forest and mixed-grass steppe alternated, occupying approximately the same area. The soils of typical forest-steppe are leached and typical (powerful) black soils with islands of gray forest soils and apodoline chernozem under the forests.

The southern forest-steppe on medium-humus (ordinary) chernozems is characterized by the dominance of cereal steppes and the presence of isolated forest islands on the watersheds. Cereal steppes prevailed here over forests even before human intervention.

In a virgin state, the differences between subzones in the forest-steppe were dramatically manifested. Now, as a result of deforestation and plowing of the steppes, the differences between them have been greatly smoothed out, and cultivated fields have become the predominant landscape in all subzones.

steppe zone

The most important features of the steppe landscape zone are the dry continental climate, treeless watersheds, the predominance of herbaceous, predominantly grassy vegetation on chernozems and dark chestnut soils. As a type of vegetation, the steppe is also known in other landscape zones - in the forest-steppe and semi-deserts.

The steppe zone, located south of the forest-steppe, goes to the Black and Azov seas. In the southeast, it borders on a semi-desert zone. The border with the semi-desert runs along the west of Ergeni, the northeastern coast of the Tsimlyansk reservoir, goes to the Volga north of Stalingrad, from here it goes along the Volga valley to Saratov and, before reaching it, sharply turns east to the city of Uralsk.

The landscape of the steppe zone is a single interconnected geographical complex. The steppes as a geographical complex were studied by many prominent researchers. The development of Russian geobotany and soil science is largely connected with the development of the issues of treelessness of the steppes and the origin of chernozem.

Dry, continental climate plays an important role in the formation of the steppe geographical complex. During summers that are sunnier and hotter than in the forest-steppe, there is less precipitation, which leads to a sharply negative moisture balance. In the south of the zone, evaporation is approximately twice the annual amount of precipitation. Droughts and dry winds, which were characteristic of the forest-steppe, are even more pronounced in the steppes. In the north of the steppe zone, in the city of Kalache ( Voronezh region), in 1954 for 15 days (from June 25 to July 10) the maximum air temperature was kept in the range from 33 to 39.4 °, with a minimum relative humidity of 27 to 41%. Dry winds sometimes develop into black dust storms. In some years, black dust storms can also be observed in winter, when there is little snow.

The predominance of evaporation over precipitation leads to a decrease in surface runoff in the steppes, the vast majority of which also falls during the spring snowmelt period. As a result, the own river network in the steppes is not numerous and lacks water. Groundwater, lying at a great depth, is hard, sometimes salty, not always suitable for drinking purposes.

The steppe zone is one of the oldest on the Russian Plain. As a type of landscape, it took shape in the Pliocene; in the Quaternary period, unlike the zones located to the north, it was not covered by a glacier at all. The relief of the zone is mature erosive, with deep asymmetric river valleys, large gullies and a developed network of ravines. The formation of erosional relief in most areas began at the end of the Paleogene, in places, for example, in the Black Sea lowland, at the end of the Neogene.

Despite the antiquity of the steppe landscape, modern soils in the steppes are young post-glacial formations. Their youth is confirmed by the fact that loess and loess-like rocks serve as their parent rock, the accumulation of which took place during the epoch of glaciation.

The idea of chernozems is always associated with the concept of steppes. However, it should be borne in mind that the most fertile subtypes of chernozems, as well as the main area of distribution of chernozems in general, are located not in the steppe landscape zone, but in the forest-steppe. In the steppe zone, only low-humus (southern) and, in some cases, medium-humus (ordinary) chernozems are known. In the south of the steppes, chernozems give way to dark chestnut soils, showing signs of solonetsism. Salt licks, which are rare in the north of the steppes, are often found in the south of the zone and thereby reduce the economic value of soils.

The cereal steppes of the west of the Russian Plain, like forbs, are almost completely plowed. They survived only in the south-east of the zone, in the Trans-Volga region, mainly in the form of old deposits used as pastures and pastures. However, even here, the proportion of steppe virgin lands has sharply decreased since 1953 due to increased plowing.

The plowed area, loess-like soils, the stormy nature of summer precipitation and rapid snowmelt in spring - all this creates conditions in the steppes that are favorable for the development of erosion and soil washout. In terms of the distribution and intensity of modern erosion processes and soil erosion, the steppe zone is only slightly inferior to the forest-steppe.

There are many western species in the flora and fauna of the steppes of the Russian Plain. Such, for example, are Ukrainian feather grass (Stipa ucrainica) and coastal brome (Bromus riparius) among plants, common mole rat and spotted ground squirrel among animals. In the floodplain and ravine forests of the zone, to the east to the Ural valley, oak is found together with its broad-leaved companions.

Another landscape feature of the southern Russian steppes is the presence of thickets of steppe shrubs, the so-called dereznyaks. They were also known in the forest-steppe, but are especially characteristic of the steppe zone. Steppe cherry, blackthorn, bean, dereza (chiliga), meadowsweet crenate form impenetrable thickets on the slopes in the steppe and along the edges of the forest. In this, the southern Russian steppes differ from the Western Siberian steppes, which are almost devoid of dereznyaks.

As in the forest-steppe, in the steppe zone the location of soils, vegetation and wildlife is closely related to the terrain. This circumstance allows us to distinguish several types of terrain in the territory of the forest-steppe and steppe south of the Russian Plain - typological landscape complexes of great economic interest.

The floodplain type of terrain is best expressed in the valleys of large rivers in the lowlands. Of great economic importance are water meadows, as well as floodplain sedge bark forests, oak forests and black alder forests. There are many lowland swamps and oxbow lakes on the floodplains. On the fertile floodplain lands, high yields of corn, vegetables and other valuable crops are obtained.

The floodplain-terrace type consists of two or three, and sometimes more, terraces above the floodplain, usually located on the low left banks of large rivers. The upper terraces, covered with loess-like rocks, differ little in their landscape from watersheds. The first and second terraces are composed of sand and sandy loam, their surface, processed by the wind, has a hilly relief. The area of terraced sands along the Lower Dnieper, Don and North is especially large. Donets. In the forest-steppe, pine forests grow on the lower floodplain terraces. Large areas of sand are fixed by plantings of pine, sheluga and grass crops. The upland type corresponds to flat watersheds with a rare network of shallow runoff troughs and gully tops. The soil cover and vegetation are characterized by homogeneity and constancy; they experience certain disturbances only in connection with the presence of steppe depressions on the plains. With few exceptions, the plakors are completely open. Their landscape is enlivened by field-protective forest belts, ponds and aspen bushes in the forest-steppe.

The remnant-watershed type differs from the previous one in the presence of mounds and hills of remnant-denudation origin on the watersheds. The stony slopes of hillocks and hills are unsuitable for plowing and are mainly used as pastures. This type of locality is known in the High Trans-Volga region, the Donetsk Ridge, the Volga and Azov Uplands.

The riverine type is developed along riverine, mainly right-bank sections of watersheds with a dense network of ravines and ravines and washed away soils. Soils, vegetation, microclimate of the riverine type are extremely diverse. The ravine forests are very characteristic of it, to which mountain oak forests are added in the forest-steppe. Most of the finds of rare relic plants in the south of the Russian Plain are associated with the riverine type of terrain. The dissected relief complicates the economic development of riverine-type areas and requires anti-erosion measures. Zonal differences are well traced in the landscape of the steppe zone. The existence of two subzones is an expression of zonal differences: northern steppes on chernozems and southern steppes on dark chestnut soils.

Semi-desert and desert zones

natural zone forest-steppe tundra

The semi-desert zone enters the Russian Plain only in the southeast, occupying here the Ergeni upland and the northern half of the Caspian lowland. Its southern border to the west of the Volga runs at a distance of about 150 km from the coast of the Caspian Sea; On the Volga-Ural interfluve, it moves away from the sea even further and passes here along the line: Lake Bascunchak-Lake Arallsor - the mouth of the small and large Upares - the Ural River south of Kalmykova.

The position in the southeast of the Russian Plain in the depths of the Eurasian continent determines the sharply continental, dry climate of this zone. Summer in the semi-deserts is hot and sunny. The average temperature in July reaches 23--25 °, in the city of Novouzensk during the warm period of 85 days it happens with dry winds. Winter is as cold as on the Kola Peninsula: the average January temperature is -7--8° in the southwest of the zone and -13--14° in its northeast. The snow cover is thin - from 10 to 30 cm. The total annual amount of precipitation is 300 - 200 mm; it's three or four times Less than magnitude evaporation. For example, in the city of Novouzensk, the annual precipitation is 250 mm, and the evaporation rate is 910 mm.

Surface runoff in the semi-desert is negligible, so its own river network is not developed in it. Ground water is saline and mostly not suitable for drinking.

In addition to the climate, the geological and geomorphological features of the territory have the strongest impact on the landscape of the zone - a low absolute height, flatness, weak erosional dissection, the presence of saline bedrock and Quaternary rocks. There are few ravines and gullies in the zone. Instead of these erosional forms, closed basin-depression forms are widespread - steppe depressions, estuaries, sors, etc. Their genesis is different - from suffusion-subsidence to karst and tectonic (some estuaries).

The continental climate, flat relief and saline soils contribute to the accumulation of salts in the soils of semi-deserts, including easily soluble ones. Salt licks are as typical for semi-deserts as are light chestnut soils, which are zonal here. Lack of moisture and salinity of soils lead to discontinuous, clump distribution of vegetation. The abundance of hollow-depression forms causes extraordinary diversity, complexity of vegetation and soil cover. With a lack of moisture, even the most insignificant depressions - 10 - 20 cm deep - lead to drastic changes in soils and vegetation. It can be said that the semi-desert is a zone of complexes in which the grassy steppe is closely intertwined along the depressions, the wormwood-saltwort desert on solonetzes and the fescue-chamomile proper semi-desert on light chestnut soils.

In the animal world of semi-deserts, an outstanding role belongs to rodents. Among them, in terms of abundance and impact on the landscape, ground squirrels are distinguished, represented here by two species - a small ground squirrel that lives on loamy plains, and a yellow ground squirrel that inhabits the sands. The occurrence of gophers is very high. In some places on one hectare you can count up to 740-750 ground squirrel holes. Ground squirrel ejections create a hillock microrelief characteristic of the Caspian Sea, which further enhances the complexity of the soil and vegetation cover.

In addition to ground squirrels, jerboas, gerbils, voles, steppe lemmings, and mice are common rodents in the semi-desert. Within the zone, the saiga antelope is found, which previously inhabited the steppe and forest-steppe zones of the Russian Plain. In some places, wild boar is found in the reed thickets of river valleys. Of the predators, the wolf, the corsac fox, and the steppe polecat are common.

The composition of birds (steppe eagle, harrier, larks), reptiles and insects is also quite diverse.

Most of the semi-desert zone is used as pasture. Firth and irrigated agriculture is developed in places.

The southern third of the Caspian lowland belongs to the desert zone. Due to the small size of the territory and the uniformity of geological and geomorphological conditions, the desert zone on the Russian Plain belongs to one landscape province - the province of sandy and clay-saline deserts of the Caspian Sea. The devices of dryness and continentality of the climate, characteristic of the southeast of the Russian plain, reach their maximum desert in the zone. Annual amount, precipitation in deserts less than 200 mm. In the city of Astrakhan, on average, 170 mm of precipitation falls per year, with an evaporation rate of 936 mm. Winter is extremely snowless, even by the end of its snow cover does not reach 10 cm. For this reason, the Caspian desert, especially to the west of the Volga (Black Lands), where winter is warmer, is a good winter pasture.

Surface stock in the deserts is so insignificant (less than 0.5 l / s), which no local river crosses the provincial territory.

Geologically, the territory of the Caspian desert is very young; Coastal parts of it turned into a landing recently. In contrast to the semi-desert, the desert zone in the Quaternary time was poured by all three transgressions of the Caspian Sea, including Khazar. Almost the entire territory of the province lies below sea level.

Huge squares, in the desert are engaged in sands that have marine (latexal Sea) and alluvial-delta origin. The area of the Volga-Ural sands alone is about 50 thousand km3.

On the coast of the Caspian Sea, and especially near the Volga delta and to the west of it, Baer knolls are found. More precisely, these are low (6–20 m) and long (from several hundred meters to 5–6 km) sandy ridges, mainly in the latitudinal direction. First described by Academician K. M. Baer, the hillocks later served as the object of special study more than once. Regarding their genesis, a variety of hypotheses were expressed - eool, tectonic, water-erosion, water-accumulative and many others. Most likely, their education should be born with the accumulation and movement of the waters of the waters of the ancient marine pools. Later, part of the mounds underwent eolian processing. Brown desert-steppe soils appear in the soil cover of deserts, solonchaks stretch in a wide strip along the shores of the Caspian Sea. Vegetation is closely dependent on soils. On saline clay soils, wormwood-saltwort groups are represented. The vegetation of sandy deserts, characterized by a shallow occurrence of fresh groundwater, looks more diverse. It is formed by grass-wormwood groups with the participation of bluegrass (Poa bulbosa), Siberian couch grass (Agropyrum sibiricum), prutnyak, and milkweed. In the north-west of the Volga-Ural sands in the Urdinian sands rich in fresh water, small groves of poplar and aspen were survived, fruit gardens and Bakhchi are bred.

Deserts are used as pastures and grasslands. Horticulture, horticulture and melon growing are developed in the wide Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. The area of floodplain lands used for agriculture is still small and can be successfully increased many times over.

Conclusion

So, based on the work done, it can be said that in the territory of the Russian plain there are almost all types of natural zones available in Russia.

Based on the foregoing, the question arises, “why is there a complete set of natural zones on the Russian Plain?” All this is due to the length of the plain from north to south for more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 1 thousand kilometers. Consequently, the climatic zones and the natural zone are changing from the tundra in the north to the desert in the south.

These zones gradually replace each other from north to south. For example, off the coast of the Barents Sea, tundra prevails in the subtropical zone. To the south, in the temperate zone, a strip of forests begins, which stretches from Polissya to the Urals. It includes both coniferous taiga and mixed forests, which gradually turn into deciduous in the west. To the south, the transition zone of the forest-steppe begins, and beyond it the steppe zone. On the territory of the Caspian lowland, a small strip of deserts and semi-deserts begins.

Exploring the natural zones of the Russian plain, we can say that between the zones there are big differences in climate, in relief, in the composition of soils, differences in flora and fauna, etc. For example, if in the taiga the average July temperature (at sea level) ranges from 12 ° In the north to 20 ° in the south, then in the forest-steppe, the average temperature of July at sea level varies from 20 ° in the north of the zone to 22.5 ° in the south.

Bibliography

1. Physical geography of Russia. At 2 o'clock Rakovskaya E.M., Davydova M.I. M.: 2001, Part 1 - 288s., Part 2 - 304s.

2. 10. Berg L. S. Geographical zones of the Soviet Union, vol. 1, ed. 3. M., 1947; v. 2. M., 1952.

3. Vegetation map of the USSR (for higher educational institutions), 1: 4,000,000. M., 1955.

4. Atlas of the USSR - M.: GUGK, 1983-1986.

5. Physical and geographical atlas of the world (FGAM) - M. GUGK 1964

6. A. M. Alpatiev, A. M. Arkhangelsky, et al., Physical Geography of the USSR, Part III. M., 1976.

Appendix

Scheme of natural zones of the Russian Plain

Tundra and forest tundra zone.

Taiga zone

Zone of mixed and deciduous forests

Steppe zone.

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Relief and geological structure

V.-E. R. Geostructurally corresponds to the whole Russian stove of ancient East European Platform, in the south - northern part of the young Scythian platform, in the northeast - southern part of the young Barents-Pechora platform .

Complex relief V.-E. R. It is characterized by small height oscillations (the average height of about 170 m). The greatest heights are marked on Podolskaya (up to 471 m, Kamula Mountain) and Bugulminsko-Belladeevskaya (up to 479 m) hills, the smallest (about 27 m below sea level - the lowest point of Russia) is located on the Caspian lowland, on the Caspian Sea coast.

In V.-E. R. two geomorphological regions are distinguished: the northern moraine with glacial landforms and the southern extra-morainic with erosive landforms. For the Northern Moric Area, the lowland and plains are characterized by lowland (Baltic, Verineolzhskaya, Meshcherskaya, etc.), as well as small hills (Veps, Zhamaitskaya, Hahan, and others). To the east is the Timan Ridge. The extreme north occupy extensive seaside lowlands (Pechora et al.). There are also a number of large uplands - the tundra, among them - the Lovozero tundra, etc.

In the northwest, in the area of the Valdai glaciation, accumulative glacial relief prevails: hilly and ridge-moraine, depression with flat lacustrine-glacial and outwash plains. There are many swamps and lakes (Chudsko-Pskovskoye, Ilmen, Upper Volga lakes, Beloe, etc.), the so-called lake area. To the south and east, in the area of distribution of the more ancient Moscow glaciation, smoothed undulating secondary moraine plains, reworked by erosion, are characteristic; there are basins of lowered lakes. Moraine-erosion uplands and ridges (Belarusian Ridge, Smolensk-Moscow Upland, and others) alternate with moraine, outwash, lacustrine-glacial, and alluvial lowlands and plains (Mologo-Sheksninskaya, Upper Volga, and others). In some places, karst landforms are developed (the White Sea-Kuloi plateau, etc.). Ravines and gullies are more common, as well as river valleys with asymmetric slopes. Along the southern border of the Moscow glaciation, woodlands (the Polesskaya lowland, etc.) and opolyas (Vladimirskoye, Yuryevskoye, etc.) are typical.

In the north, insular permafrost is widespread in the tundra, in the extreme northeast - continuous permafrost up to 500 m thick and with temperatures from -2 to -4 °C. To the south, in the forest-tundra, the thickness of the permafrost decreases, its temperature rises to 0 °C. Permafrost degradation, thermal abrasion on sea coasts with destruction and retreat of coasts up to 3 m per year is noted.

For the Southern Melted Area V.-E. R. A large elevation with erosion oxide-beam-lefts (Volyn, Podolskaya, Pridniprovskaya, Priazovskaya, Podolskaya, Pridniprovskaya, Priazovskaya, Pridonskaya, Pridonskaya, Priazovskaya, Bugulminskaya-Bellakeevskaya, Common System, etc.) and Zandrovaya, alluvial accumulative lowlands and plains belonging to the region of the Dneprovsky and Don glaciation (Pridneprovskaya, Oksko-Donskaya, etc.). Wide asymmetric terraced river valleys are characteristic. In the southwest (the Black Sea and Dnieper lowlands, the Volyn and Podolsk uplands, etc.) there are flat watersheds with shallow steppe depressions, the so-called "saucers", formed due to the widespread development of loess and loess-like loams. In the northeast (High Trans-Volga, General Syrt, etc.), where there are no loess-like deposits and bedrocks come to the surface, the watersheds are complicated by terraces, and the peaks are weathering remnants of bizarre shapes - shikhans. In the south and southeast, flat coastal accumulative lowlands are typical (Black Sea, Azov, Caspian).

Climate

Far North V.-E. The river, which is located in the subarctic zone, has a subarctic climate. On most of the plain, located in a temperate belt, a moderate continental climate with the domination of Western air masses prevails. As the distance from the Atlantic Ocean to the east increases, the continentality of the climate increases, it becomes more severe and dry, and in the southeast, in the Caspian Lowland, it becomes continental, with hot, dry summers and cold winters with little snow. The average temperature of January from -2 to -5 ° C in the southwest decreases to -20 ° C in the northeast. The average July temperature grows from north to south from 6 to 23-24 ° C and to 25.5 ° C in the south-east. The northern and central parts of the plains are characterized by excessive and sufficient moisture, the southern part is insufficient and scarce, reaching it to arid. The most humid part of V.-E. R. (between 55–60°N) receives 700–800 mm of precipitation per year in the west and 600–700 mm in the east. Their number decreases to the north (up to 300–250 mm in the tundra) and to the south, but especially to the southeast (up to 200–150 mm in the semi-desert and desert). The maximum precipitation occurs in summer. In winter, the snow cover (10–20 cm thick) lies from 60 days a year in the south to 220 days (60–70 cm thick) in the northeast. In the forest-steppe and steppe, frosts are frequent, droughts and dry winds are characteristic; in the semi-desert and desert - dust storms.

Inland waters

Most of the rivers V.-E. R. belongs to the basins of the Atlantic and North. Arctic Oceans. The Neva, Daugava (Western Dvina), Vistula, Neman, etc. flow into the Baltic Sea; the Dnieper, Dniester, Southern Bug carry their waters to the Black Sea; into the Sea of Azov - Don, Kuban, etc. The Pechora flows into the Barents Sea; to the White Sea - Mezen, Northern Dvina, Onega, etc. The Volga, the largest river in Europe, as well as the Urals, Emba, Bolshoi Uzen, Maly Uzen, etc. belong to the basin of internal flow, mainly the Caspian Sea. spring flood. In the southwest of the E.-E.r. rivers do not freeze every year; in the northeast, freeze-up lasts up to 8 months. The long-term runoff modulus decreases from 10–12 l/s per km2 in the north to 0.1 l/s per km2 or less in the southeast. The hydrographic network has undergone strong anthropogenic changes: a system of canals (Volga-Baltic, White Sea-Baltic, etc.) connects all the seas washing the East-E. R. The flow of many rivers, especially those flowing south, is regulated. Significant sections of the Volga, Kama, Dnieper, Dniester, and others have been transformed into cascades of large reservoirs (Rybinsk, Kuibyshev, Tsimlyansk, Kremenchug, Kakhovskoe, and others).

There are numerous lakes of various genesis: glacial-tectonic - Ladoga (area with islands 18.3 thousand km 2) and Onega (area 9.7 thousand km 2) - the largest in Europe; morainic - Chudsko-Pskovskoye, Ilmen, Beloe, etc., estuaries (Chizhinsky floods, etc.), karst (Okonskoye Zherlo in Polissya, etc.), thermokarst in the north and suffusion in the south of V.-E. R. Salt tectonics played a role in the formation of salt lakes (Baskunchak, Elton, Aralsor, Inder), since some of them arose during the destruction of salt domes.

natural landscapes

V.-E. R. - a classic example of a territory with a clearly defined latitudinal and sublatitudinal zonality of natural landscapes. Almost the entire plain is located in the temperate geographical zone, and only the northern part is in the subarctic zone. In the north, where permafrost is common, small areas with expansion to the east are occupied by the tundra zone: typical moss-lichen, grass-moss-shrub (lingonberry, blueberry, crowberry, etc.) and southern shrub (dwarf birch, willow) on tundra- gley and bog soils, as well as on dwarf illuvial-humus podzols (on sands). These are landscapes that are uncomfortable for living and have a low ability to recover. To the south, a forest-tundra zone with undersized birch and spruce sparse forests stretches in a narrow strip, in the east - with larch. This is a pasture zone with technogenic and field landscapes around rare cities. About 50% of the territory of the plain is occupied by forests. Zone of dark coniferous (mainly spruce, and in the east - with the participation of fir and larch) European taiga, swampy in places (from 6% in the southern to 9.5% in the northern taiga), on gley-podzolic (in the northern taiga), podzolic soils and the podzols are expanding towards the east. To the south there is a subzone of mixed coniferous-broad-leaved (oak, spruce, pine) forests on soddy-podzolic soils, which extends most widely in the western part. Pine forests on podzols are developed along the river valleys. In the west, from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the foothills of the Carpathians, a subzone of broad-leaved (oak, linden, ash, maple, hornbeam) forests stretches on gray forest soils; forests wedged out to the Volga valley and have an insular character of distribution in the east. The subzone is represented by forest-field-meadow natural landscapes with a forest cover of only 28%. Primary forests are often replaced by secondary birch and aspen forests, which occupy 50–70% of the forest area. The natural landscapes of the opal areas are peculiar - with plowed flat areas, the remains of oak forests and a ravine-beam network along the slopes, as well as woodlands - swampy lowlands with pine forests. From the northern part of Moldova to the Southern Urals, a forest-steppe zone stretches with oak forests (mostly cut down) on gray forest soils and rich forb-grass meadow steppes (some sections are preserved in reserves) on black soil, which make up the main fund of arable land. The share of arable land in the forest-steppe zone is up to 80%. Southern part of V.-E. R. (except the southeast) is occupied by forb-feather grass steppes on ordinary chernozems, which are replaced to the south by fescue-feather grass dry steppes on dark chestnut soils. Most of the Caspian lowland is dominated by grass-wormwood semi-deserts on light chestnut and brown desert-steppe soils and wormwood-saltwort deserts on brown soils in combination with solonetzes and solonchaks.

Ecological situation

V.-E. R. has been mastered for a long time and significantly changed by man. Many natural landscapes are dominated by natural-anthropogenic complexes, especially in the steppe, forest-steppe, mixed and broad-leaved forests (up to 75%). Territory V.-E. R. highly urbanized. The most densely populated areas (up to 100 people/km 2) are the zones of mixed and broad-leaved forests of the Central region of V.-E. r., where territories with a relatively satisfactory or favorable ecological situation occupy only 15% of the area. Particularly tense environmental situation in large cities and industrial centers (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Cherepovets, Lipetsk, Voronezh, etc.). In Moscow, emissions into the atmospheric air amounted (2014) to 996.8 thousand tons, or 19.3% of the emissions of the entire Central Federal District (5169.7 thousand tons), in the Moscow Region - 966.8 thousand tons (18. 7%); in the Lipetsk region, emissions from stationary sources reached 330 thousand tons (21.2% of the district's emissions). In Moscow, 93.2% are emissions from road transport, of which carbon monoxide accounts for 80.7%. The largest amount of emissions from stationary sources was noted in the Komi Republic (707.0 thousand tons). The share of residents (up to 3%) living in cities with high and very high levels of pollution is decreasing (2014). In 2013, Moscow, Dzerzhinsk, Ivanovo were excluded from the priority list of the most polluted cities of the Russian Federation. Foci of pollution are typical for large industrial centers, especially for Dzerzhinsk, Vorkuta, Nizhny Novgorod, etc. Oil products contaminated (2014) soils in the city of Arzamas (2565 and 6730 mg / kg) of the Nizhny Novgorod region, in the city of Chapaevsk (1488 and 18034 mg /kg) Samara region, in the regions of Nizhny Novgorod (1282 and 14,000 mg/kg), Samara (1007 and 1815 mg/kg) and other cities. Spills of oil and oil products as a result of accidents at oil and gas production facilities and main pipeline transport lead to a change in soil properties - an increase in pH to 7.7–8.2, salinization and the formation of technogenic solonchaks, and the appearance of microelement anomalies. In agricultural areas, soils are contaminated with pesticides, including banned DDT.

Numerous rivers, lakes, and reservoirs are heavily polluted (2014), especially in the center and south of East-East. r., including the rivers Moscow, Pakhra, Klyazma, Myshega (Aleksin), Volga, etc., mainly within the cities and downstream. Fresh water intake (2014) in the Central Federal District amounted to 10,583.62 million m3; The volume of consumer water consumption is the largest in the Moscow region (76.56 m 3 / person) and in Moscow (69.27 m 3 / person), the discharge of polluted wastewater is also maximum in these subjects - 1121.91 million m 3 and 862 .86 million m 3, respectively. The proportion of polluted wastewater in the total volume of discharges is 40-80%. The discharge of polluted waters in St. Petersburg reached 1054.14 million m 3 or 91.5% of the total volume of discharges. There is a shortage of fresh water, especially in the southern regions of V.-E. R. The problem of waste disposal is acute. In 2014, 150.3 million tons of waste were collected in the Belgorod Region - the largest in the Central Federal District, as well as disposed waste - 107.511 million tons. Leningrad region Over 630 quarries with an area of more than 1 hectare. Large careers are preserved in Lipetsk and Kursk regions. The taiga is the main areas of forestry and timber processing industries, which are powerful pollutants of the natural environment. Solid logging and refurbishment are observed, littering. The proportion of fine breeds is growing, including at the place of former passengers and hayed meadows, as well as fir forests, less resistant to pests and winders. The number of fires increased, in 2010, more than 500 thousand hectares of land. Secondary swamping of territories is noted. The number and biodiversity of the animal world is declining, including as a result of poaching. In 2014, 228 ungulates were poached in the Central Federal District alone.

For agricultural lands, especially in the southern regions, soil degradation processes are typical. The annual rehabilitation of soils in the steppe and forest-steppe is up to 6 t / ha, in places 30 t / ha; the average annual loss of humus in soils is 0.5–1 t/ha. Up to 50–60% of the lands are prone to erosion, the density of the ravine network reaches 1–2.0 km/km2. The processes of siltation and eutrophication of water bodies are growing, and the shallowing of small rivers continues. Secondary salinization and flooding of soils is noted.

Specially protected natural areas

To study and protect typical and rare natural landscapes, numerous reserves, national parks and reserves have been created. In the European part of Russia there are (2016) 32 reserves and 23 national parks, including 10 biosphere reserves (Voronezh, Prioksko-Terrasny, Central Forest, etc.). Among the oldest reserves: Astrakhan Nature Reserve(1919), Askania-Nova (1921, Ukraine), Belovezhskaya Pushcha(1939, Belarus). Among the largest reserves is the Nenets Reserve (313.4 thousand km 2), and among the national parks - the Vodlozersky National Park (4683.4 km 2). Indigenous taiga sites "Virgin Komi Forests" and Belovezhskaya Pushcha are on the list world heritage. There are many nature reserves: federal (Tarusa, Kamennaya steppe, Mshinsky swamp) and regional ones, as well as natural monuments (Irgiz floodplain, Rachey taiga, etc.). Natural parks have been created (Gagarinsky, Eltonsky, etc.). The share of protected areas in different subjects varies from 15.2% in the Tver region to 2.3% in the Rostov region.

Natural areas in the East European Plain. Physical geography - Russian (East European) plain. The influence of the glacier on the relief of the plain

East European Plain: climate formation

Atlantic masses

Arctic air masses

winter season

Temperature regime of the summer season

Precipitation

types and brief characteristics

East European Plain and West Siberian Plain: Comparison

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Introduction

Tundra and forest tundra zone

The youngest landscape zone on the Russian Plain is the tundra. It was formed only after the death of the Valdai glacier.

Tundra and forest-tundra are two independent landscape zones. However, the forest-tundra on the Russian Plain is represented as a narrow strip, which has not yet been sufficiently studied, therefore, for convenience of description, it is combined here with the tundra zone.

The tundra and forest-tundra zones include the Arctic islands: Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya, Vaigach, Kolguev and the coast of the Barents Sea on the mainland.

Taiga zone

Taiga is a zone of coniferous forests on podzolic soils. In the southwest it borders on the zone of mixed forests, in the southeast on the zone of forest-steppe. Its southern border passes through Leningrad, Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Gorky, Kazan.

With a positive moisture balance, groundwater in the taiga comes to the surface or lies in its immediate vicinity. This, in turn, leads to waterlogging of the area. The taiga is a zone of domination not only of coniferous forests, but also of swamps, including upland ones, dressed in sphagnum.

In the taiga of the Russian Plain, when moving from north to south, zonal changes in the landscape are observed, making it possible to distinguish three subzones in it: northern, typical, and southern taiga.

Zone of mixed and deciduous forests

Mixed forests are an independent type of landscape, the main feature of which is the presence of coniferous and broad-leaved forests on soddy-podzolic soils in zonal conditions.

The location of coniferous and broad-leaved species is subject to a certain pattern: broad-leaved forests prefer to grow on loamy, well-drained soils, most often along the southern slopes and tops of low elevations.

forest-steppe zone

The forest-steppe is a zonal landscape of the temperate zone, characterized by the alternation of closed, predominantly deciduous forests on gray forest (forest-steppe) soils and grassy steppes on chernozems, now mostly plowed.

The fight against the washout of soils in the forest-steppe is just as urgent and important a state task as the fight against droughts and dry winds.

In a typical forest-steppe in the past, forest and mixed-grass steppe alternated, occupying approximately the same area. The soils of typical forest-steppe are leached and typical (powerful) black soils with islands of gray forest soils and apodoline chernozem under the forests.

The southern forest-steppe on medium-humus (ordinary) chernozems is characterized by the dominance of cereal steppes and the presence of isolated forest islands on the watersheds. Cereal steppes prevailed here over forests even before human intervention.

steppe zone

Despite the antiquity of the steppe landscape, modern soils in the steppes are young post-glacial formations. Their youth is confirmed by the fact that loess and loess-like rocks serve as their parent rock, the accumulation of which took place during the epoch of glaciation.

Semi-desert and desert zones

natural zone forest-steppe tundra

Surface runoff in the semi-desert is negligible, so its own river network is not developed in it. Ground water is saline and mostly not suitable for drinking.

The composition of birds (steppe eagle, harrier, larks), reptiles and insects is also quite diverse.

Most of the semi-desert zone is used as pasture. Firth and irrigated agriculture is developed in places.

Surface stock in the deserts is so insignificant (less than 0.5 l / s), which no local river crosses the provincial territory.

Huge squares, in the desert are engaged in sands that have marine (latexal Sea) and alluvial-delta origin. The area of ​​the Volga-Ural sands alone is about 50 thousand km3.

Deserts are used as pastures and grasslands. Horticulture, horticulture and melon growing are developed in the wide Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. The area of ​​floodplain lands used for agriculture is still small and can be successfully increased many times over.

Conclusion

So, based on the work done, it can be said that in the territory of the Russian plain there are almost all types of natural zones available in Russia.

Bibliography

1. Physical geography of Russia. At 2 o'clock Rakovskaya E.M., Davydova M.I. M.: 2001, Part 1 - 288s., Part 2 - 304s.

2. 10. Berg L. S. Geographical zones of the Soviet Union, vol. 1, ed. 3. M., 1947; v. 2. M., 1952.

3. Vegetation map of the USSR (for higher educational institutions), 1: 4,000,000. M., 1955.

4. Atlas of the USSR - M.: GUGK, 1983-1986.

5. Physical and geographical atlas of the world (FGAM) - M. GUGK 1964

6. A. M. Alpatiev, A. M. Arkhangelsky, et al., Physical Geography of the USSR, Part III. M., 1976.

Appendix

Scheme of natural zones of the Russian Plain

Tundra and forest tundra zone.

Taiga zone

Zone of mixed and deciduous forests

Steppe zone.

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Relief and geological structure

Climate

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natural landscapes

Ecological situation

Specially protected natural areas

Huge squares, in the desert are engaged in sands that have marine (latexal Sea) and alluvial-delta origin. The area of the Volga-Ural sands alone is about 50 thousand km3.

Deserts are used as pastures and grasslands. Horticulture, horticulture and melon growing are developed in the wide Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. The area of floodplain lands used for agriculture is still small and can be successfully increased many times over.