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Meshchera birds. Meshchera National Park. Where is Meshchersky Krai
Birds are found everywhere - in forests and reservoirs, in meadows and swamps, in fields and steppes, in settlements and industrial zones. However, many of them need protection, as their numbers are declining every year. Of the approximately 9,000 species of birds that live on Earth, at least 1,000 species are threatened with extinction. Every year new lists are compiled, where endangered species are entered. Therefore, let's talk about the birds that are found on the territory of the Ryazan region, which especially need to be protected so that they do not disappear forever from the face of the Earth. All of them are listed in the Red Book of Russia and the Ryazan region.
Black stork Among the endless swamps of Meshchera there is a small wooded island remote for many tens of kilometers from human places, on which a nest of black storks was found. In general, in the entire history of the Oksky Biosphere Reserve, no more than 10 nests have been found on its territory. Until some time, black storks were his pride. It is this bird that is depicted on the emblem of the reserve. But since 1982, nothing at all has been known about these birds. Currently, only three pairs nest in the Oksky Reserve. The outfit of the black stork is very exquisite. Nature endowed this bird with a chic "coat" that makes it elegant. At sunshine it shimmers with iridescent colors. The white belly and undertail, as well as the red eye sockets, beak and legs, give the stork nobility and make it look like a true aristocrat. And the chicks look like white fluffy lumps. Parents of storks keep the nest under supervision all the time. One returns from hunting - the other leaves the watch. Birds are by nature silent and secretive. They do not cruise over the forest, but use a kind of "corridors", deftly maneuvering between the trees. Having built a nest somewhere in the depths of the forest - among impenetrable swamps, more often they use it all their lives. 
White-tailed eagle A powerful bird of prey with a wingspan of more than two meters. In an adult eagle, the plumage is grayish-brown, and the tail is snow-white. He chooses places for settlement on the sea coasts, in river valleys, on the banks of large reservoirs. The nest is built at a height of 20 meters on old trees, on the edge of a forest of large knots and branches. Nests are massive - up to two meters in diameter and more than 1.5 meters in height. The female lays two white goose-sized eggs and sits on them for 35-40 days. Parents feed the chicks for up to two and a half months. Delicious food of the white-tailed eagle - big fish: pike, bream, carp, perch. The eagle does not dive for fish, but looks out for it and grabs it from the surface. Waterfowl also fall into its paws. It also feeds on mammals - hares, marmots, ground squirrels. In the Ryazan region, several permanent habitats of this bird are known. However, for a twelve-hour tour of the Oka, you can meet no more than 4-6 couples. The species is under threat of extinction. The Russian Union for the Protection of Birds selected the white-tailed eagle as the bird of the year 2013. 
Osprey This is a large dark brown bird with a white belly and one and a half meter wings. The structure of the body and the whole way of life of the osprey are associated with the water element and hunting for fish. She hangs over the water, and then, folding her wings, quickly flies down for prey with her paws outstretched and immediately soars up, holding a large fish in her claws. And immediately - to the nest, feed the chicks. And she always builds her nests along the shores of lakes rich in fish. An osprey can choose a nest site on a rock, on the ground, or even on a telegraph pole. Returning from wintering, the couple occupies their old nest. The female lays only 2 - 3 pale bluish eggs with red spots and sits on them for five weeks. Both parents feed the chicks, taking care of them until they learn to fly. The osprey eats only fresh fish and only those that it will get itself. Sitting on top of myself tall tree, she, like a sentry, guards her fishing grounds. There are very few of these birds left. At present, irregular nesting of only two pairs is possible in the Oka floodplain near the village of Sosnovka, Kasimovsky district. And although the osprey is found on all continents except Antarctica, its numbers are low everywhere and continue to decline. 
Bustard Bustard - steppe giant. By appearance looks like a small ostrich. She has high powerful legs, a long neck, a head with a short beak. The bustard has a colorful plumage. On the chin, like a mustache, bunches of reddish-white feathers hang. It nests in open spaces of fields and meadows, right on the ground. It feeds on beetles, ants, lizards, frogs, rodents, inflorescences and leaves of plants, grain. Bustards do not create permanent married couples. In the spring, after the wedding, the male goes to roam, and the female lays two greenish-brown eggs in a shallow hole and incubates them for about a month. The female raises the chicks alone. Cautious and distrustful birds with great difficulty get used to the proximity of a person. The only case of nesting confirmed by direct observations was noted in 1981 in the Shatsk region. Currently, in the Ryazan region, nesting of single pairs is found. Hunting for these birds is strictly prohibited everywhere. 
Short-toed Eagle The total number of these birds in the Ryazan region is only about 5 - 10 pairs. Serpent Eater Sticks pine forests, alternating with swamps and clearings. A large, light-colored bottom bird of prey with a large head and long wings has amazing dexterity. When diving, it grabs its prey with its claws and rises heavily into the air, swallowing it in the air. And vipers, snakes, lizards, occasionally frogs serve as food for her. A secretive and silent bird builds its nest on a tree, choosing deaf places. The snake-eater's nest is small. The female lays only one egg, rarely two. But it is not always possible to raise one chick. Indeed, for the entire period of feeding, he consumes 240 -270 snakes. And the snakes crawl out of their shelters only when the earth warms up. Therefore, the short-toed eagle has half the time to hunt as other birds. The snake-eater is under protection in the Oksky Reserve and the Meshchersky National Park. 
Eagle owl In the Ryazan region, the eagle owl is currently - rare view. Lives mainly in Meshchera. AT recent times numbers have declined due to forestry work, disturbance and direct persecution. Cases of shooting and trapping of birds are known. Sometimes a loud hooting cry and an eerie screeching roll through the night forest, from which the frost is tearing at the skin. It was as if an evil spirit had appeared. This is an owl, the most big representative numerous owl family. Its beak is curved and sharp. Feathers protruding from the head look like ears. The eyes are round, orange-red. Owl sees well in the dark. Hunts at night, flying silently. Resting during the day in shelter. Eagle owls live in constant pairs. All year long, the pairs stay on their nesting sites in old forests right on the ground, or on rocks and cliffs. They rarely build nests themselves, more often they occupy strangers. In the spring, 2-3 eggs appear in the clutch, and in a month the chicks hatch. The eagle owl feeds on small and medium-sized birds and mammals. In the Ryazan region, nesting territories of the eagle owl are identified and protected, explanatory work is being carried out among hunters. This species is listed in the Red Book Russian Federation. 
Siberian Crane The large white crane breeds its offspring only in Siberia. This is a majestic huge bird, snow-white, only the ends of the wings are black. Siberian Cranes nest in hard-to-reach swamps, on plains flooded with water. They live in constant pairs. The nest is built together. It looks like a trampled heap of sedge stems and leaves floating on the water. The female lays two eggs, while one of them seems to be superfluous. Law natural selection makes the cranes immediately fight, and not for life, but for death. And one of the fighters dies. Parents feed the chicks intensively for the first week. And with the second, they teach them to get food on their own. Siberian Cranes feed on aquatic plants, berries, insects, frogs, and small fish. The family of the Siberian Cranes flies away for the winter together with the strengthened and grown chick. The number of white cranes is continuously declining. The Siberian Cranes die from hunters' shots, are broken when they collide with power lines, and are poisoned on crops treated with pesticides. But they are saved. Specialists - ornithologists fly helicopters over the Yakut tundra expanses, seek out the nests of the Siberian Cranes and take one egg from them. In special incubators they are delivered to Oksky biosphere reserve, where the nursery for breeding cranes in captivity, established in 1979, is located. The fact is that these cranes cannot be saved only by protecting them in nature. Therefore, in the Ryazan region in the Oksky reserve, they are grown in a nursery, and then released into the wild on their usual territories in Siberia. 
Gray goose In the books of the beginning of the last century it is written that then in the Ryazan region on the autumn migration of the gray goose there were a great many. In our time in the autumn we will not see even one. Surprisingly, flying over the countries of Europe, geese sit down on the lawns of parks for the rest, they are not at all afraid of people. In our country, you can’t even approach the geese with a cannon shot, because bird hunting is allowed. And gray geese are very smart birds, smart and quick-witted. They know where it's dangerous. Goose is a long-liver. Lives 40 - 50 years. Breeds in pairs on overgrown lakes, swamps, estuaries, choosing the most deaf areas. Nests are placed on bumps, reed heaps. As building material use the stems and leaves of reeds and other aquatic plants. Broods stay together until autumn. They feed in meadows and fields, often far from water bodies. They feed on various herbs, young shoots, seeds, tubers. Geese often die in the fields from pesticides. The species is listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation as requiring special attention.
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Ruined temple in the semi-abandoned village of Pushnino\n","type":"star","photo":[("id":6240,"url":"https:\/\/website\/wp-content\/uploads \/2018\/05\/bd9ece921bbcef9643c8c29c848b3e09.jpg"),("id":6241,"url":"https:\/\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/ ..jpg"),("id":6243,"url":"https:\/\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/d5d3127a903f9d49931b9ee9d6c0ab3f..jpg")])) ,("type":"Feature","geometry":("type":"Point","coordinates":["39.84077095","55..jpg"),("id":6181,"url" :"https:\/\/website\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/95119c62d4e877797927c9ab6ee6fafc..jpg")])),("type":"Feature","geometry":(" type":"Point","coordinates":["39.98546004","55.63205400"]),"properties":("id":2,"description":"
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Church of the Intercession of the Holy Mother of God in Pustosh 1831 You can read more about the village and the temple here http:\/\/www.pustoshahram.prihod.ru\n
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national park"Meshchera" was formed by the Decree of the Government of Russia No. 234 of 04/09/92 on the territory of the Vladimir Region in order to preserve natural complex Meshcherskaya lowland. Subordinates to the Vladimir forest management.
The Meshchera National Park is located in the southeastern part of the Vladimir Region on the territory of the Gus-Khrustalny District. In the west, the park borders on the Moscow region. The National Park "Meshchersky" of the Ryazan region adjoins the southern border of the park. Together, both parks serve to preserve the natural complex of the Meshcherskaya lowland. total area national park"Meshchera" 118.9 thousand hectares, including: 72.7 thousand hectares (61% of the total area) are provided to the national park, and 46.2 thousand hectares (38.9%) of lands of other owners, owners and users included in the boundaries of the park without exception from economic activity. Significant historical developed territories are located in the central and southern parts of the park. On these lands there are 46 settlements(urban-type settlements and villages), in which about 14 thousand people live. The forest lands of the park occupy 86.3 thousand hectares (72.6% of the total area of the park), including 81.6 thousand hectares (68.6%) covered with forests. There are three railway lines (Moscow-Kazan-Ekaterinburg, Vladimir-Tumskaya and local) and several highways passing through the territory of the park.
In the village of Urshelsky there is a museum "The World of Birds", where there are representatives of all species living in the park. The museum opened in 2004. There are more than 130 stuffed birds, as well as a unique collection of bird eggs.
Faunistically, the Meshchera lowland does not differ significantly from other natural regions of Central Russia. The composition of the fauna of birds and mammals, as well as other groups of animals, is dominated by species of European origin. Taiga forms occupy a subordinate position. The outstanding significance of Meshchera in general and the park in particular for the conservation of wildlife is determined not by its faunistic originality, but by the fact that the entire range of habitats of the subzone of European coniferous-deciduous forests is very fully represented here.
Forests in combination with swamps form a vast forest-bog complex, which supports the centers of conservation of a number of species of large mammals, as well as birds that need large individual plots.
This territory has long been famous for the abundance of forest animals and birds, as evidenced by the donation letters of the Ryazan princes to local monasteries. Animal hunting, bird hunting and fishing, along with beekeeping, were among the traditional forms of nature management in Meshchera.
The fauna and animal population bear the features of a strong anthropogenic influence. The most numerous are white hare, squirrel, fox; elk, wild boar, beaver, raccoon dog, American mink, weasel, ermine, wolf, pine marten, badger are common; occasionally there are hare, forest polecat, otter. Marked traces of entry brown bear, and habitats of the endemic of the Eastern European fauna - the Russian muskrat. Among the birds are quite common: gray crane, capercaillie, black grouse, hazel grouse, marsh harrier, red falcon, corncrake. Rare - white stork, gray heron, bittern, wigeon, gray partridge, great godwit, curlew, woodpeckers - green, gray, three-toed, white-backed, gray shrikes, etc. common viper. Amphibians are represented by common and crested newts, two types of toads, frogs: lake, pond, moor, grass, as well as spadefoot and red-bellied toad. Among the fish are common - ordinary loach, common roach, perch, pike, crucian carp, rotan-brown (invader). Rare - blue, white-eyed.
About 520 species of Lepidoptera and 149 species of weevils have been recorded in the park.
Birds included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation:
Golden Eagle / Aquila chrysaetos
Curlew / Numenius arquata
Greater Spotted Eagle / Aquila clanga
Serpent-eater / Circaetus gallicus
Oystercatcher / Haematopus ostralegus
Lesser Tern / Sterna albifrons
Common Gray Shrike / Lanius excubitor excubitor
White-tailed Eagle / Haliaeetus albicilla
Lesser White-fronted Lesser / Anser erythropus
Peregrine Falcon / Falco peregrinus
Osprey / Pandion haliaetus
Central Russian Ptarmigan / Lagopus lagopus rossicus
Owl / Bubo bubo
Black Stork / Ciconia nigra
Used info from websites.
WINDOW TO NATURE
This story is about random life episodes that remain in memory because of their unusualness. After all, a forest hike every time gives food not only to the stomach, although picking mushrooms, nuts and berries is still a pleasure! Observe the flora from mosses and grasses to ancient oaks and ship pines. Observe the fauna from mosquitoes and horseflies to wild boars and elks. And so on. I'll tell you a little about the Meshchera birds. In some stories and mushroom stories, I have already described some interesting meetings with the feathered lads - the cuckoo and the black grouse, magpies and woodpeckers (see note), I will try not to repeat myself.
We have been going to the Balashikha forest for lines since the 60s of the last century. Somehow in the early spring of about 40 years ago, on a sunny warm Saturday, I set off in the morning towards Hare Hill. In young pine plantations from the direction of the Poultry Farm, I noticed a couple of ducks raking a dry needle bed with their beaks in search of, apparently, insect larvae. Is there not enough food for you on Pekhorka and in the pond? This is not your area! On the way back, having collected a few young lines for a roast (after a double broth!), Where the ducks “grazed”, I find a small duck torn to pieces, having lost weight on a long-distance flight. In those days, Pekhorka was clean and froze in winter, there were no wintering ducks at all - as expected, migratory waterfowl flew away in the fall and returned in the spring. Who could attack a duck in the forest? Most likely, a flock of crows - they could not stand a food competitor on their territory. Still warm, covered in blood, but no longer alive, I took the duck with me and brought it to the private sector of a familiar lady for her dog. However, Maria Kuzminichna's dog did not eat raw duck, and Masha had no time to pluck and boil the bird. Then the duck was buried in the garden by Masha's son Anatoly...
Another spring, I went to the same places for spring mushrooms on a bicycle. A crow fledgling ran along the forest path - a chick that had not yet learned to fly properly. Deciding to get to know him better, examine him and stroke him, he put the bicycle to the pine tree, caught up with the crow and took him in his hands. Yes, he did not particularly resist, he let himself admire. But his parents, and they always continue to feed and protect the fledglings, attacked me and were ready to peck out my eyes. Of course, I released their offspring in peace, got on a bicycle, but the crows continued to accompany me for some time with their fighting flapping of wings and alarming croaking. In fact, in nature, it’s not worth it for a person to touch either the nests of birds or their chicks - for small birds it is dangerous because the parents will stop flying to the children, and large birds can stand up for their offspring!
Apiary, autumn. The harvest is almost harvested, the bees are fed in the winter, we put the beds in order. Quiet, sunny, occasional cirrus clouds. And suddenly there was a sound from the heavens... a murmur. At a great height, a wedge of cranes flew from the northeast to the southwest, in which more than 30 birds could be counted. Common cranes do not live in flocks, but in pairs, somehow I even met such a family in the swamp beyond Dubrovka in the Pokrovsky forest. Those who fly away for the winter with their cooing gather relatives from all the swamps, the wedge grows, and it takes a long time to fly. Cranes noticed in the sky and local crows. Where are they up to such echelons of height! But when they saw and heard their migratory counterparts, all the crows greeted their beautiful flight with a loud croak...
Pokrovsky forest. Eight am. Ahead is the collection of Polish whites. Next to the concrete road in the pine row, I stumble upon a dead little owl. Sorry bird! Also, after all, some of the other birds are itching, it’s even hard to guess - to whom, a kite or a crow? Well, they would eat it. Having cut off the wings of an owl for the apiary with a mushroom knife, they are needed there instead of sweeping brushes when planting a swarm, I left it to ants and hedgehogs - forest orderlies ...
From the Pokrovsky forest with a full basket of mushroom trophies, on a sunny August day, I looked into a clearing with a non-thorny wild rose, there is such a variety near Klyazma. Making sure that later it is worth coming here for ripe berries, he wandered through the meadows towards the bridge. The herbage is tall, you can mow it, or you can start the herd. And, true, he came out on someone's small herd of unhobbed horses, peacefully grazing under the sun. The large guard dog did not notice me, he was sleeping peacefully in the grass. And suddenly, almost from under my feet, a huge bird takes off. The camera was not ready, I did not have time to shoot. The wingspan is under two meters. The plumage is gray-brown, with white spots. It was a meadow or marsh harrier. Its food is mice, small birds and even frogs. A week later, I again came to this wonderful corner of Meshchera. And, wow, by the road I find a large gray-brownish bird's feather with white specks. Throwing his head up, he saw a soaring moon in the sky. So he sent me a hello letter in the form of his feather. Wow! I always collected various bird feathers in a kitchen vase, but moths spoiled them. The last white feathers of the Kriushinsky goose, black rook and brown with white stripes and speckles from the cuckoo and harrier, I took to the local history museum. There, behind the glass, there is a natural stained-glass window, where there are also my exhibits: from the Klyazma meadow - a wasp ball nest on a rosehip branch, from the collective apiary - a nest of a robin-robin eaten by a cat with five of its testicles and with a blue cuckoo egg planted, and now here are birds feathers...
In the forest, the main enemies of birds are, of course, foxes. But there are also ferrets and weasels, lynxes and other creatures that “love” birds in their own way. On hikes, you can see bird feathers lying in heaps. Woodpeckers and jays get it, the same owls, finches and goldfinches, orioles and wagtails. First of all, weakened birds that do not have time to fly away from the enemy die. It's probably an element of natural selection. The enemy is cunning and dangerous, he also wants to eat and live in this world. But Mother Nature confidently maintains the balance of the living - everything should be enough for everyone. Let's not interfere with her in this - and then we will also have enough of everything!
Note - Links to some stories about the feathered lads:
- "Raven":
- "Rooks fly home":
- "Woodpecker-Controller":
- "Cuckoo":
- Silent Magpies:
- "Flying flights":
- "Bird Flicker":
- "Bird feathers":
- "Bird eggs":
- "Sweet-voiced maestro":
- "Bullfinches".
Let's continue our story about the birds found on the territory of the Ryazan region, which especially need to be protected so that they do not disappear forever from the face of the Earth. All of them are listed in the Red Book of Russia and the Ryazan region. Siberian Crane The large white crane breeds its offspring only in Siberia. This is a majestic huge bird, snow-white, only the ends of the wings are black. Siberian Cranes nest in hard-to-reach swamps, on plains flooded with water. They live in constant pairs. The nest is built together. It looks like a trampled heap of sedge stems and leaves floating on the water. The female lays two eggs, while one of them seems to be superfluous. The law of natural selection forces the cranes to immediately fight, and not for life, but for death. And one of the fighters dies. Parents feed the chicks intensively for the first week. And with the second, they teach them to get food on their own. Siberian Cranes feed on aquatic plants, berries, insects, frogs, and small fish. The family of the Siberian Cranes flies away for the winter together with the strengthened and grown chick. The number of white cranes is continuously declining. The Siberian Cranes die from hunters' shots, are broken when they collide with power lines, and are poisoned on crops treated with pesticides. But they are saved. Specialists - ornithologists fly helicopters over the Yakut tundra expanses, seek out the nests of Siberian Cranes and take one egg from them. In special incubators, they are delivered to the Oksky Biosphere Reserve, where there is a nursery for breeding cranes in captivity, established in 1979. The fact is that these cranes cannot be saved only by protecting them in nature. Therefore, in the Ryazan region in the Oksky reserve, they are grown in a nursery, and then released into the wild on their usual territories in Siberia. Eagle owl In the Ryazan region, the eagle owl is currently a rare species. Lives mainly in Meshchera. Recently, the number has decreased due to forestry work, disturbance and direct persecution. Cases of shooting and trapping of birds are known. Sometimes a loud hooting cry and an eerie screeching roll through the night forest, from which the frost is tearing at the skin. It was as if an evil spirit had appeared. This is an owl, the largest representative of a numerous owl genus. Its beak is curved and sharp. Feathers protruding from the head look like ears. The eyes are round, orange-red. Owl sees well in the dark. Hunts at night, flying silently. Resting during the day in shelter. Eagle owls live in constant pairs. All year long, the pairs stay on their nesting sites in old forests right on the ground, or on rocks and cliffs. They rarely build nests themselves, more often they occupy strangers. In the spring, 2-3 eggs appear in the clutch, and in a month the chicks hatch. The eagle owl feeds on small and medium-sized birds and mammals. In the Ryazan region, nesting territories of the eagle owl are identified and protected, explanatory work is being carried out among hunters. This species is listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. Gray goose In the books of the beginning of the last century it is written that then in the Ryazan region on the autumn migration of the gray goose there were a great many. In our time in the autumn we will not see even one. Surprisingly, flying over the countries of Europe, geese sit down on the lawns of parks for the rest, they are not at all afraid of people. In our country, you can’t even approach the geese with a cannon shot, because bird hunting is allowed. And gray geese are very smart birds, smart and quick-witted. They know where it's dangerous. Goose is a long-liver. Lives 40 - 50 years. Breeds in pairs on overgrown lakes, swamps, estuaries, choosing the most deaf areas. Nests are placed on bumps, reed heaps. Stems and leaves of reeds and other aquatic plants are used as building material. Broods stay together until autumn. They feed in meadows and fields, often far from water bodies. They feed on various herbs, young shoots, seeds, tubers. Geese often die in the fields from pesticides. The species is listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation as requiring special attention.
