Losiny Ostrov National Park

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Losiny Ostrov National Park
IUCN Category II (National Park)
Location:	Russia
Nearest city:	Moscow
Area:	116 km² (44.9 mi²)
Established:	1983

Losiny Ostrov National Park (Russian: Национальный парк "Лосиный Остров", literally - "Elk Island") is the first national park of Russia, located in Moscow and Moscow Oblast. It is presumed to be the largest forest in a city of comparable size.

[edit] Geography

The total area of the national park as of 2001 was 116.21 km², (28,717 acres). Forest occupied 96.04 km² (83% of area) of the total, of which 30.77 km² (27%) fall within the boundaries of Moscow city. Other land types in the park include 1.69 km² (2%) of water and 5.74 km², or 5% of swamp. An additional 66.45 km² is reserved for expansion of the park.

The park is divided into the three functional zones:

Especially protected, 53.94 km² (47%), closed to entry;
For training and excursion, 31.30 km² (27%) is open for restricted visits along established routes;
Recreational, 29.81 km² (26%), is open for mass entry.

Losiny Ostrov in Sokolniki by Alexei Savrasov (1869)

Geographically, the park occupies the joint of the Meshchera Lowlands and Klin-Dmitrov chine, which is the watershed of the Moskva River and Klyazma River. The relief of the territory is slightly undulating plain. The true altitudes of the locality vary from 146 m (floodlands of the Yauza River) to 175 m above sea level. In the center part of the park relief is expressed weakly. The most picturesque locality is on the southwest of the park, where the above-floodplain terraces of Yauza River are clearly expressed with the sufficiently steep slopes to its floodlands.

On the territory of park are found the sources of rivers Yauza and Pekhorka. The natural river bed of the Yauza was practically destroyed in the course of peateries in 1950s-1970s; the river bed of the Pekhorki is vastly changed after the building of the Akulovsk hydro-electric station. The Yauza has several inflows here, the largest of which is the Ichka.

[edit] History

Losiny Ostrov National Park was created in 1983 on the land which since ancient times served as the strictly guarded hunting area of Russian Grand Princes and tsars. Its territory was declared reserved in 1799, the first forest management was established here in 1842, and the idea of the creation of national park was expressed as early as 1909.

This place is known from the 14th century, in particular, from the testaments of Russian princes - Ivan Kalita, Dmitri Donskoi, Vladimir of Serpukhov and their descendants. In them are mentioned the plowed lands and the forests, located on the territory of the present national park. Later this region becomes the place of tsarist hunting, and the land of the future park come under protection. During the Time of Troubles the economic activity here was abruptly reduced, the former plowed lands were overgrown with forest. The prosperity of the Losiny Ostrov as a hunting area is connected with tsar Aleksey.

After the transfer of the capital to Saint Petersburg , this territory lost its value as a tsarist hunting grounds, but the government property continued to be guarded by imperial edicts. Approximately at this time the territory finally became named "Losiny Ostrov" or "Pogonny Losiny Ostrov". In 1798 these forests passed to the management of the newly formed forest department. In the middle of the 19th century the Losinoostrovskaya lesnaya dacha was organized and the period of systematic forestry begins. In 1934 the "Losiny Ostrov" was included in the 50-kilometer greenbelt of Moscow.

A large area of the forest was cut during World War II. From this time on, the future national park has suffered from arbitrary seizures of the land for vegetable-gardens, intensive pasturing of cattle, and arbitrary, even, illegal cuttings. In 1979 the united resolution of the Moscow urban and provincial Soviets of People's Deputies organized the "Losiny Ostrov" as a natural park, and in 1983 the decision of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR formed the national park.