“Bear Island” – Polar Bear Nature Reserve | Polarjournal
The planned reserve is now one of the most important birthplaces of polar bears in Yakutia. (Photo: Ministry of Ecology)

As part of the national project ‘Ecology’, the Bear Island reserve will be created in the Russian Republic of Sacha on the basis of the regional reserves. The nature reserve will be located on the archipelago in the East Siberian Sea, north of the estuary of the River Kolyma.

The polar bear reserve is located north of the estuary of the Kolyma River into the East Siberian Sea. (Map: Google)

According to scientists, up to 26 polar bear cubs are born here every year. The decision to create this reserve will be signed by the end of 2020 – the beginning of 2021. Funding for the national park will come from the federal budget, said Sakhamin Afanasyev, Minister of Ecology.

In his opinion, the archipelago is one of the most important places for the formation of polar bear caves in Yakutia today. In April this year, experts counted eight caves, 14 adult polar bears and 11 juveniles on the archipelago. The animals were well fed and did not pose a particular threat to humans.

Young polar bears are nursed by their mother 1.5 to 2.5 years. During this time they learn the hunting behavior and are eventually abandoned by the mother. Under the harsh conditions of the Arctic, only about half of the cubs survive the first five years after birth. (Photo: Heiner Kubny)

Other nature parks in Yakutia

In 2018, the Lena Pillars National Park was founded in Yakutia. The park, which covers more than 1.2 million hectares, is home to 38 species of large mammals, and more than 100 species of birds nest, including such species listed on the Red List. In addition, the Lena Columns are themselves geological deposits with an age of about 500 million years. The park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Among the most important sights of Russia, the Lena Columns must be mentioned. This is a unique geological formation that has formed on the banks of the River Lena. The height of some rocks reaches 220 meters.

In 2019, Kytalyk National Park, with an area of more than 1.8 million hectares, was created in Yakutia on the basis of existing reserves to preserve tundra landscapes, a population of white cranes and reindeer.

Heiner Kubny, PolarJournal

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