Monster of the Black Sea. Does a sea serpent live on Karadag? What legendary monsters live in the Black Sea Karadag serpent in Crimea
Incredible and dangerous mythical monsters, the legendary dragon snakes, according to scientists and science fiction writers, owe their origin to the most ancient lizards who once inhabited the earth. We're talking about dinosaurs common features with which they were gradually lost. Everyone knows the tales, stories, legends associated with the famous Karadag snake. The first mentions of this monster “from the depths” of the Black Sea appeared quite a long time ago. Even in Ancient Greece, incredible tales were told about him, which were literally passed down from generation to generation. These interesting stories have reached this day, firmly cementing in the minds of millions of people the information that the Karadag snake can be seen on the coast Crimean peninsula.
Locations of detection in Crimea
In the 90s, on the territory of the Crimean Peninsula it was quite profitable to sell crab souvenirs and all kinds of marine finds, which brought in good income. Then in 1988, one of the fishermen who was engaged in a similar fishery witnessed how huge monster hunts dolphins, noisily dragging mammals under water. In his opinion, the sight was truly terrifying. But this is not the first mention of the Karadag snake on the territory of the resort peninsula. By the way, then at the end of the twentieth century it was discovered on Meganom.
But the location of the snake in Crimea was attested even earlier. In 1589, a young English merchant saw a monster - a huge lizard on the shores of the Black Sea. The three-meter monster, he said, was killed or injured by local peasants. In 1828, one official reported the appearance of a snake on the territory of Evpatoria. According to him, the sea monster was devouring sheep. And in 1855, near Cape Meganom, the snake appeared again. He was seen in the water near the Crimean town of Karadag. Since it was most often here that one could see a real sea monster, it was called Karadag. This name is known in the world even now.
In 1915, during the First World War, one of the German submariners videoed a huge monster, a reptile, which moved in the moonlight, slowly cutting through the unruly waves. Many believe that it was the Karadag snake. Seven years later, a popular newspaper in Feodosia published interesting and at the same time frightening information regarding the appearance of an unusual sea monster off the Crimean coast.
January 1936 - another mention of the appearance of a marine reptile from ordinary Crimean fishermen. In 1942, the monster repeatedly appeared near the village of Kutlak, and then there was some calm for a couple of years. Only in 1952 famous writer Vsevolod Ivanov will be able to see the Karadag monster in Carnelian Bay and tell the world about it. By the way, the Black Sea Blackie (another name for the famous monster) was discovered in 1958 near Kerch in Pavlovsky Kurgan. More precisely, a famous archaeologist there found the remains of a gold ring with an image of a sea serpent.
In 1961, near the Karadag biological station, evidence of the existence of a mysterious monster again appeared. Fisherman Mikhail Kondratiev and his expedition managed to see it up close.
In 1967, several eyewitness accounts were submitted who saw a snake near the village of Koktebel. Some witnesses could describe in detail what the legendary sea monster looked like.
The next meeting with the Black Sea Blackie took place in 1978, when the artist from Sevastopol Vladimir Dovgan saw him. Presumably, a dark brown snake, more than one and a half meters long, was simply hanging on one of the trees, but then disappeared behind the branches. In 1980, in Nikita, one of the vacationers again discovered this by that time “popular” snake. In 1984, a strange animal was again seen between Burgas and Batumi - a huge silvery reptile. But the hydronauts failed to photograph the monster - it sank too quickly to great depths.
In 1990, in the village of Koktebel, a mysterious creature was repeatedly seen at night. At this time, the famous artist Alexander Kudryavtsev was able to see a dragon in close proximity to himself. But the story of Blackie, who scared a lot of people, doesn’t end there. In 1992, evidence of the famous serpent's presence appeared again. The place of deployment was Cape Kiik-Atlam. Two years later, employees of the Karadag biological station saw the mysterious “ fur seal, over fifteen meters long” at the Golden Gate, where they scuba dived. Obviously, this is another evidence of the presence of the elusive Black Sea Blackie, which has brought a lot of fear to the inhabitants of the Crimean peninsula.
The next evidence of the discovery of a mysterious creature dates back to 2006. In Feodosia, fishermen managed to see a real chase of an unusual, huge sea creature, wriggling with several rings, which was busy hunting dolphins. Today, the question of the existence of the amazing sea monster - the Karadag Serpent - remains open. If you follow all the facts listed, eyewitnesses saw two different creatures. The length of one of them exceeded thirty meters, and the other barely reached fifteen. It is difficult to say which of the creatures is the mysterious Black Sea Blackie.
Parameters of the snake through the eyes of eyewitnesses: what does the sea monster eat?
If you believe numerous eyewitness accounts who have repeatedly seen the Karadag snake, it is a creature huge size from 15 to 30 meters. The monster's entire body is covered with brown snake scales, and its bulky hind and front legs are visible. Many claimed that the creature had a huge snake head and bright green eyes that glowed in the dark. The monster's paws are clawed and large, but do not prevent it from actively moving through the water.
As for nutrition, here the opinions of eyewitnesses agree on dolphins. Repeatedly the Karadag snake was seen in pursuit of these mammals. Also, several times the gnawed remains of dolphins were discovered with injuries that could not have been caused by anything else. Living being. It turns out that these very harmless animals became the main food for the Black Sea Blackie. Marine life- a simple fish is too small for him. Evidence of a lizard attack from depths of the sea have not yet been identified in humans.
Stories of Tsarist Russia, legends about the snake
Numerous legends and tales about the famous Karadag snake appear in ancient Russian sources. In the Middle Ages in a cave on Kachi-Kalion local population terrorized by terrible snakes. Huge monsters were stealing sheep. But beautiful girl named Anastasia, who tended the flock, was not afraid of terrible snakes and as a result was tortured by these creatures. Only true faith helped the girl get rid of unnecessary suffering. The rocks collapsed and buried her body and these scary inhabitants sea depths. As a result, the Anastasievsky monastery was erected on this site, which existed until the twenties of the twentieth century.
Tatar legend tells about the appearance dangerous snake near the village of Otuzy. Presumably, the local khan even turned to the Janissaries for help to help cope with the terrible monsters. In ancient times, in the grottoes near Chufut-Kale there lived a snake that devoured cattle and people. Christians prayed Holy Mother of God save them from harm. And then one day, next to the icon in the gorge, they found a dead snake. By the way, it was this icon that became the precious shrine of the Assumption Monastery.
During the time of Nicholas the First, the first serious mentions of the Karadag snake already appeared. The emperor was a great lover of secrets and riddles. Therefore, after receiving information that a terrible snake of enormous size with red eyes had been seen in Crimea, he immediately sent an expedition to understand the truth or fiction. Scientists were incredibly lucky then, as they discovered the remains of a skeleton and a huge 20-kilogram egg of this monster. At this point the search was stopped. Many eyewitnesses then believed that the Black Sea Blackie seemed to be “scared” of such attention and left the Crimean coast for a long time.
Bulgakov about the snake “Fatal Eggs”, mentions of the artist Voloshin
In 1921, a company of Red Army soldiers arrived in Karadag, who specially went here to destroy a dangerous sea monster. This was witnessed by the famous poet and artist Maximilian Voloshin. But upon arrival in Crimea, they only managed to find a huge footprint in the sand, left by a monster that had escaped into the sea. Nothing else was found here. The poet lived in Koktebel for some time, and then sent a newspaper clipping in a note about a sea serpent to the writer Mikhail Bulgakov. It is interesting that after some time the famous story “Fatal Eggs” appeared. It seems that Mikhail Afanasyevich took the story of the Black Sea Blackie as the basis for his literary work.
Maximilian Voloshin himself was also affected by this amazing story about the Karadag monster and tried to reflect his image in one of his paintings. In his notes, a representative of the creative intelligentsia repeatedly discussed the reasons for the appearance of the sea monster and its ancestors.
Crimean Cossacks and snakes
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, evidence of the existence of the Black Sea Blackie already appeared. But he was seen not only by ordinary people, but also by military officers, officers, and Crimean Cossacks who served with General Ushakov. Repeatedly on long sea voyages and travels they came across the facts of the existence of a real, and not fictitious, Karadag serpent.
It is believed that it was the Crimean Cossacks who participated in the very expedition when the shell-like skeleton of the sea monster’s tail was discovered. A giant part of the body was left on the shore, and then serious speculation arose that the Karadag snake could shed its tail like a microscopic lizard and “renew itself” in the depths of the sea.
However, this fact has not yet been confirmed. Crimean Cossacks often witnessed how a huge snake hunted dolphins, and found horrifying remains of mammals with characteristic injuries abdominal cavity. But it was not possible to make any clear statements on this matter.
What does the Karadag Serpent (dragon) eat at depth?
We tried to find out what does the Karadag dragon eat? in the depths of the Black Sea, according to information from residents of the Meganom Peninsula, there is information that the snake feeds very rarely, and during the period of pregnancy of female dolphins, it bites off the calves with a piece of their belly, up to 3-4 months of age. Perhaps this is due to the high energy of the female dolphin fetus.
A huge snake-like creature has been repeatedly seen off the coast of Crimea. The monster resembles a huge sea serpent. According to eyewitnesses, it hunts Black Sea dolphins. It can only be observed from the high shore when the sea is clear and calm, then the entire bay is visible to the bottom. According to researchers, this is the famous Karadag snake, which for centuries rare eyewitnesses have seen on Black Sea coast. It is believed that this is a reptile that lived in the Black Sea back in the time of dinosaurs. Off the coast of the peninsula there are many underwater caves, not only near the coastal cliffs, but also in the underwater rocks. Researchers believe that huge prehistoric animals may have survived in them since ancient times. Eyewitnesses managed not only to photograph, but also to film the underwater monster on video. The length of the kite is at least 40 meters. The monster was seen off the coast of Yalta and in the South-West. It was even possible to observe two snakes at the same time, which were hunting in an organized manner, surrounding a school of dolphins.
Karadag snake(Karadag monster or Opuk serpent) is a water monster, according to legend, living off the coast of Crimea in the Black Sea.
Story
About the terrible sea monster Herodotus also mentioned it. According to his description, it is a black snake, with a mane, a huge mouth, large teeth and clawed paws. He sailed at cruising speed - faster than the fastest Greek ships. In the 16th-18th centuries, Turkish sailors who sailed on ships between Istanbul, Crimea and Azov constantly reported to the Sultan about the Black Sea dragon. And they called it Karadag because, according to legend, the monster lives in the area of the Karadag massif, in one of the underwater caves, of which there are many.
One of the Tatar legends of Crimea - the "Otuz Legend" - "Chershamba" tells about a snake place near the village. Otuzy (modern Shchebetovka) on the Otuzka river, where reeds grow - Yulanchik. The literal translation of the word Yulanchik is a snake's nest.
“Here... in the reeds lived a snake, which, curled up, seemed like a shock of hay, and when it walked through the field, it made ten knees or more. True, the Janissaries killed it. Akmaliz Khan sent them out of Istanbul, But only its cubs remained.. ""
Descriptions
According to V.X. Kondaraki, in 1828, the Evpatoria police officer filed a report, where he wrote about the appearance in the district of a huge snake with a hare’s head and the semblance of a mane, which attacked sheep and sucked blood.
S. Slavich, from the words of eyewitnesses, talks about meeting a huge snake on Kazantip (Kerch Peninsula).
M. Bykova mentions in her book the story of Maria Stepanovna Voloshina that “in 1921, a note was published in the local Feodosia newspaper that said that a “huge reptile” had appeared in the area of Mount Karadag and a company of Red Army soldiers was sent to catch it.” There was no further information in the newspapers. M. Voloshin sent a clipping about the “reptile” to M. Bulgakov, and it formed the basis of the story “Fatal Eggs.” Gad was allegedly seen in the village (Koktebel).
The same book provides another description of a meeting with a huge snake on Karadag with reference to Natalia Lesina. The story happened in September 1952 with Varvara Kuzminichnaya Zozulya on Karadag near Cape Boy. In a quiet, heated place near the cape, Varvara Kuzminichna was collecting brushwood and mistook the monster for a pile of brushwood and almost stepped on it. According to the description of the stunned woman, the animal has a small head, a thin neck, and a back as thick as a pillar. When she began to wave the rope, the animal began to unwind like a ball. The lower and upper limbs were visible, and it squeaked. The summary is purely everyday: “As long as I’ve been living, I haven’t seen anything like this.”
Eyewitnesses
Geologist Promtov saw huge snake on Karadag near the Lagorio wall.
During these same years, Vsevolod Ivanov observed the “most fantastic of the most fantastic” snake. Quote from his story:
“The spring of 1952 in Koktebel was cold and rainy. April was back and forth, and May was rainy and cold...
On May 14, after prolonged cold weather there was no wind. warm weather. Assuming that during storms the sea had thrown a lot of colored pebbles ashore, I walked again past the Devil’s Finger, along the Gyaur-Bakh gorge, and then, so as not to waste a lot of time on the difficult descent to the seashore into Carnelian Bay on a rock, near a tree, from where you can see the entire bay, the width of which is 200-250 m, I tied a rope and easily went down with it...
The sea, I repeat, was calm. Near the shore, among small stones overgrown with algae, a mullet was playing. Further away, about 100 meters from the shore, dolphins swam.
A school of dolphins moved along the bay to the left. The mullet must have moved there. I turned my eyes to the right and just in the middle of the bay, about 50 meters from the shore, I noticed a large stone, 10-12 meters in circumference, overgrown with brown algae. I have visited Koktebel many times in my life, and on each visit I visited Carnelian Bay several times. The bay is not shallow, the depth begins about ten steps from the shore, but I don’t remember this stone in the middle of the bay. It was about 200 meters from me to this stone. I didn’t have binoculars with me. I couldn't see the stone. And is it a stone? I leaned back, placed my “eye” against a tree knot and noticed that the stone was noticeably leaning to the right. This means that it was not a stone, but a large ball of algae. Torn out by storms, where did they come here from? Maybe they will be washed to the rocks by the current and I should look at them? I forgot the dolphins.
While smoking my pipe, I began to observe a tangle of seaweed. The current seemed to be intensifying. The algae began to lose their round shape. The ball lengthened. Tears appeared in the middle of it.
And then... Then I trembled all over, rose to my feet and sat down, as if afraid that I might scare “it” if I stood on my feet. I looked at my watch. It was 12.15 pm. There was complete silence. Behind me, in the Gyaur-Bakh valley, the birds were chirping, and my pipe was smoking intensely. The "tangle" was unfolding. Turned around. Stretched out. I was still counting and not counting "it" as seaweed until "it" moved upstream.
This creature swam with wave-like movements to the place where the dolphins were, that is, to the left side of the bay.
Everything was still quiet. Naturally, what immediately came to mind was: is this a hallucination? I took out my watch. It was 12:18.
The reality of what I saw was hampered by the distance and the shine of the sun on the water, but the water was transparent, and that’s why I saw the bodies of dolphins, which were twice as far from me as the monster. It was large, very large, 25-30 meters, and as thick as a desk top if you turned it sideways. It was half a meter to a meter under water and, it seems to me, it was flat. The lower part of it was apparently white, as far as the blueness of the water made it clear, and the upper part was dark brown, which allowed me to take it for algae.
The monster, wriggling, just like swimming snakes, did not quickly swim towards the dolphins. They immediately fled.
Having driven away the dolphins and, perhaps, not even thinking about chasing them, the monster curled up into a ball, and the current carried it again to the right. It again began to look like a brown stone overgrown with algae.
Carried to the middle of the bay, just to the place or approximately where I saw it for the first time, the monster turned around again and, turning towards the dolphins, suddenly raised its head above the water. The head, the size of the arm span, looked like a snake's. I still couldn’t see the eyes, from which I could conclude that they were small. After holding its head above the water for about two minutes - large drops of water were dripping from it - the monster turned sharply, lowered its head into the water and quickly swam away behind the rocks that closed Carnelian Bay.
I looked at my watch. It was three minutes to one. I watched the monster for a little over forty minutes."
1967 Lyudmila Szegeda stepped over a log on an autumn evening while walking in the Armatluk Valley. Hearing a splash from behind, she saw a huge snake, as thick as a log, crawling from one body of water to another. The log she had stepped over was not there.
Semenkov's article
From the director's article Karadag Reserve P.G. Semenkova:
“On December 7, 1990, a team of fishermen from the Karadag branch of the Institute of Biomedicine of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, consisting of A. A. Tsabanov, Y. M. Nuykin, M. M. Sych and N. V. Gerasimov, went to sea to check the nets set for catching Black Sea stingrays. The net is a canvas 2.5 m wide and 200 m long with a mesh size of 200 mm. It was installed at a depth of 50 m with coordinates at a distance of 3 miles in the direction southeast of Lyagushachya Bay and 7 miles south of the village of Ordzhonikidze. arrived at about 12 o'clock in the afternoon and began sorting the net from the southern end. After one hundred and fifty meters, the net appeared torn, and the fishermen decided that when setting up they had thrown their net on top of someone else's, and the owner of the lower net was forced to cut off the upper one in order to to check theirs.They came from the other end of the network and continued checking.
When we went to the ragged edge, we pulled a dolphin to the surface - Black Sea bottlenose dolphin measuring about 230 cm, the tail of which was entangled in a net. Having pulled the dolphin to the nose of the mothfish, the fishermen discovered that the dolphin's belly had been bitten out in one bite. The width of the bite along the arc was about 1 m. Along the edge of the arc, teeth marks were clearly visible on the dolphin’s skin. The size of the tooth mark is about 40 mm. The distance between the teeth marks is about 15-20 mm. In total there were about 16 tooth marks along the arc. The dolphin's belly was bitten out along with its ribs, so that the spine was clearly visible. In the area of the head dangled the remains of the lungs, from which blood flowed as we rose. The marks of teeth were clearly visible on the sides of the frames, and were located symmetrically.
The dolphin's head was severely deformed, evenly compressed on all sides, as if they were trying to drag it through a narrow hole. No eyes were visible, and the deformed part had a whitish color, reminiscent of the color of a fish taken from the stomach of another fish.
The examination of the dolphin lasted no more than three minutes. The sight of the dolphin and the flowing blood caused severe panic among the fishermen. One of them cut the net, the dolphin fell into the sea, and the fishermen full speed left the area and went home.
I saw the fishermen immediately upon their return from the sea, asked them in detail about what had happened, and based on their story, the artist made a sketch of the dolphin they saw.
Dolphin bite mark unknown creature.
A dolphin bite mark from an unknown creature. (According to P.G. Semenkov. Geological journal No. 1, 1994)
In the spring of 1991, fishermen brought back a second dolphin with similar teeth marks on its body. It was an Azovka one and a half meters in size.
They pulled him out of the network, which was installed in approximately the same place as on December 7, 1990.
This time the net was not torn, and almost the entire dolphin was very entangled in the net, wrapped like a doll, so that only one head was sticking out. The marks of three teeth were clearly visible on the dolphin's head. In appearance, they were exactly like the teeth marks on the body of a bottlenose dolphin.
The brought dolphin was placed in a cold chamber and in May 1991, while in Leningrad, I went to the Institute of Zoology, talked with a number of employees, and invited the Azov fish to come and examine it. Unfortunately, none of the employees were able to go, but I received the address of specialists based on the marks found on the body marine mammals fished in the ocean. These were YugNIRO employees working in Kerch and Odessa. I managed to contact one of them by phone. I described in detail the marks found on the bodies of the dolphins entangled in our nets, and invited him to examine the Azov fish stored in our cold chamber. I was promised that he would try to find time to come to our institution. However, neither in May, nor in June, nor in July, no one came to us.
At the end of August there was an accident, and everything that was in the cold chamber was lost, including the dolphin.
This is an accurate description of the events that occurred in December 1990 and April 1991.
For thousands of years, an animal unknown to science has been encountered in the Black Sea, resembling prehistoric dinosaur. Some call it Blackie, others call it the Black Sea Nessie or the Karadag Serpent. Hundreds of years before our era, Herodotus wrote about a mysterious monster that lived in the waters of the Pontus Euxine, which is what the ancient Greeks called the Black Sea. In Crimea, every year more and more evidence about the Karadag snake appears. There have been cases of attacks by the Karadag monster on people. For example, in 2011, a tragic incident occurred: “In the small town of Ordzhonikidze, in Crimea, there was a commotion - an unknown animal bit off the side of a girl who decided to swim in the sea in the evening. According to local residents, the tourist was dragged ashore dead - without internal organs. They say that the girl is from Kharkov, she came to visit her boyfriend, who went to summer time to Crimea to work as a cook. He is also from Kharkov. The tragedy took place around 9 pm, when it was already dark outside, says Dmitry. – Two girls decided to swim and at first swam peacefully near the shore. Suddenly one of them sank like a stone. Her friend managed to grab the victim by the hair and pull her ashore before the creature managed to drown its prey. Already on the beach it became clear that the victim was severely injured. The creature vomited for her big piece meat near the spleen. The unconscious girl was taken to the first City Hospital of Feodosia, where she died a few hours later." AFTER THIS NOBODY WILL GO TO THE CRIMEA. THE KARADAG MONSTER IN THE CRIMEA. THE KARADAG SNAKE MONSTER https://youtu.be/NEpLQHkTX9w The Karadag serpent. The Karadag monster. Legends and secrets of the Black Sea - https://youtu.be/NEpLQHkTX9w Even the “father of history” - Herodotus - mentioned in his writings that in the depths of the Black Sea, or, as the Greeks of those times called it, Pontus Euxine, there lives a huge monster, catching up with the movement of waves. The Karadag serpent repeatedly appeared to sailors. Thus, the Turks, who regularly sailed to the Crimea and Azov, wrote reports to the Sultan about the dragon. According to eyewitnesses, the creature had a length of about 30 m, was covered with black scales, and fluttered on its back crest, reminiscent of a horse's mane. Its movement was swift, it easily left behind the fastest ships, and the wave created by it was similar to the one that occurs during a storm. The people who inhabited the coastal zone were also familiar with the sea reptile firsthand, that reflected in fairy tales and myths. The image of the monster was even on the coat of arms of the Bakhchisarai Khan! In 1828, the Evpatoria police officer reported to higher authorities about the appearance of a huge sea snake in the district. Emperor Nicholas I, who, like Peter I, was distinguished by his curiosity, learned about the Black Sea monster and ordered scientists to be sent to Crimea to find and catch it. Since evidence of sightings of the monster came mainly from the Karadag region, scientists from the expedition decided to look for it there. They didn’t find a monster, but they found an egg weighing 12 kg, containing an embryo resembling a fairy-tale dragon with a crest on its head. Nearby were found the remains of a rather impressive tail, which was characterized by a scaly-shell-like structure. ➊ SUBSCRIBE TO NEW ISSUE
Let's say right away - there is not a single one in the mountains of Crimea poisonous snake, which poses a serious threat to humans. The only Crimean snake that uses venom for protection is steppe viper. The rest pose virtually no threat. In general, there are 2 snakes living in Crimea that pose little danger to humans - the steppe viper and yellow-bellied snake. Let's look at them in more detail.
Steppe viper
What it looks like in the photo
The steppe viper has a very recognizable appearance. Average length an adult is 40-50 centimeters (maximum length 58 cm). In most cases, females are larger than males. It is very similar to an ordinary viper: the main difference is the sharp, elongated muzzle. The skin color is grey-brown: there is usually a zigzag pattern on the back, which can often appear as spots that are unevenly distributed across the back. On the sides snakes There are also spots, usually located in two rows, but in most cases these spots are not as bright as on the back. Another characteristic feature is the presence of a symmetrical pattern on the head. The belly of the Crimean viper is light; small gray-black spots may be present. In very rare cases, completely black steppe vipers can be found.
The video shows defense and attack well.
Where is it most common?
The viper is found in the steppe part of Crimea, mainly in the area of the city of Kerch.
How poisonous
It should be understood that this snake is poisonous. However, she bites only in the most extreme cases - when she is protecting a snake’s nest or in case of extreme danger (in most cases she simply crawls away from people). You should also remember that the venom of this snake is quite “weak” - yes, after a bite you will not feel very good, but after a couple of tens of hours you will feel better, and over the past 10 years there has not been a single case of a bite from a steppe viper led to death.
Yellow-bellied Snake
How dangerous
The yellow-bellied snake also lives in Crimea. He is famous for his aggressive behavior- can attack a person and bite him, but you should remember that the bite of this snake is not poisonous, and the wound from the bite heals quite quickly. Yellow-bellied snakes are among the largest European snakes. The average length of a snake is 2 meters, although many travelers have encountered snakes whose length is 2.5 meters or more. Male yellow-bellied snakes are longer than females.
What does it look like
Fast and aggressive
The yellow-bellied snake has a small muzzle, which seems to “grow” into the body without transitions. The shape of the muzzle is round, the eyes protrude slightly from their sockets. There are usually circles of white around the eyes yellow color. The color of the upper body is yellow-brown, pinkish-brown, gray-yellow, and so on. Completely black individuals are very rare.
Snake bite - symptoms and first aid
The bite of a poisonous Crimean snake does not pose a serious danger to humans. Yes, it is painful, but almost 100% of people recover on their own within 1-2 days after the attack, even without any specific treatment. Yes, sometimes there are complications after a bite - but in most cases, complications arise due to subsequent improper treatment.
In most cases, Crimean vipers are not very aggressive - when they see a person, they immediately crawl away, and they use their poisonous teeth to kill prey. However, in some cases, such a snake can still bite - in case of self-defense and in case of protecting a snake's nest. It should be understood that in case of contact there is no need to tease the snake - do not hit it with a stick, do not pull its tail (it is better not to even try to grab its tail), and so on. If you are bitten by a viper, then you need to do the following:
- The most important thing is don't panic. Yes, the wound may bleed, your head may hurt, and the affected area may become covered with unpleasant spots. But don’t worry, the venom of this snake is very weak and people do not die from it.
- Immediately after the attack, suck out all the poison from the wound, periodically spitting it on the ground. Both the victim himself and other people can suck out the poison. It is advisable that it be suctioned by those people who have no injuries in the oral cavity. However, if the poison gets into the oral cavity, then nothing bad will happen - the poison will easily break down in the stomach and be excreted from the body along with urine.
- The person should be given peace. To do this, find some dark place, lay a blanket on the ground and place a person on it.
- Give him water or some non-alcoholic drink, as alcohol makes the painful symptoms of the bite worse.
- To reduce the likelihood of allergies, give the victim several tablets of diphenhydramine, suprastin or some other antihistamine.
- After providing first aid, the victim must be taken to the hospital.
Harmless snakes that live on the peninsula
There are also other snakes in Crimea that do not pose a danger to humans.
Many of these reptiles are listed in the Red Book of Crimea - you cannot offend them!
- Ordinary already. The average length of a snake is 60-100 centimeters, and females are usually slightly longer than males. Feature common snake- the presence of two yellowish spots on the head that resemble ears (although snakes themselves do not have ears). The scales on the back and sides of the common grass snake are predominantly black, while those on the belly are light yellow or light green (although completely black snakes are sometimes found). In case of serious danger, it can secrete a sticky thick liquid that smells unpleasant.
- Medyanka. Its length is less than 100 centimeters. The head has a characteristic flattened shape. Color: whitish-gray, with big amount black spots that look like short stripes. The scales are very smooth. A characteristic feature is the black stripes that run through the snake’s eyes and color the pupil black.
- Water snake. The average length of a water snake is 100-130 centimeters, and females are usually slightly longer than males. The color is olive with small black spots located in a checkerboard pattern. Many water snakes have a characteristic V-shaped spot on their head, the end of which faces the direction of the head.
- Leopard snake. The average length of the runner is 90-110 centimeters. The head has a characteristic diamond shape. Color: reddish-brown or yellowish-brown. Many snakes have a large number of large diamond-shaped patterns of white or yellow with a black outline, and a thin red-orange stripe stretches along the ridge from tail to head.
- Four stripe runner. The average length of the runner is 150-180 centimeters, and the length of some specimens can reach 250-260 centimeters. The head has a characteristic diamond shape. Such snakes usually live in rocks. The back of the four-striped snake is gray and grey-green; The sides of the snake are pale yellow with a distinctive black stripe that runs from the tail to the head right down the middle. The body is usually yellowish-gray or yellowish-brown.
Which Crimean snakes are listed in the Red Book
Some Crimean reptiles are listed in the Red Book. Let's list the main species - insectivorous yellowbell, four-striped snake, leopard snake, steppe viper and some others. Catching them for the purpose of selling is considered an administrative and criminal offense. They do not pose a serious danger to humans, but in case of serious danger they can bite painfully, so it is advisable to stay away from them.
Photo collage about all the snakes living in Crimea
Travel safely and take reasonable precautions. Although a large number of snakes live in Crimea - snakes, snakes, copperheads and others. They do not pose a serious danger to humans. The only poisonous Crimean snake is the steppe viper, but its poison is very weak and cannot lead to human death. The yellow-bellied snake also poses a certain danger, since it often attacks humans, but its bite is not fatal.
Very detailed video about all snakes living in Russia and Ukraine
The Crimean peninsula is famous not only for the beauty of nature, unique historical and architectural buildings, sweet wines and juicy fruits, but also for amazing mysteries, the explanations of which no one has yet found. One of these secrets is the Karadag snake, a creature that lives in the waters of the Black Sea.
Monster egg weighing 12 kilograms
Even the “father of history” - Herodotus - mentioned in his writings that in the depths of the Black Sea, or, as the Greeks of those times called it, the Pontus Euxine, there lives a huge monster that overtakes the waves as it moves. The Karadag serpent repeatedly appeared to sailors. Thus, the Turks, who regularly sailed to the Crimea and Azov, wrote reports to the Sultan about the dragon.
According to eyewitnesses, the creature was about 30 m long, covered with black scales, and had a comb fluttering on its back, reminiscent of a horse's mane. Her movement was swift, she easily left behind the fastest ships, and the wave created by her was similar to the one that occurs during a storm. The people who inhabited the coastal zone were also familiar with the sea reptile first-hand, which was reflected in fairy tales and myths. The image of the monster was even on the coat of arms of the Bakhchisarai Khan!
In 1828, the Evpatoria police officer reported to higher authorities about the appearance of a huge sea snake in the district. Emperor Nicholas I, who, like Peter I, was distinguished by his curiosity, learned about the Black Sea monster and ordered scientists to be sent to Crimea to find and catch it.
Since evidence of sightings of the monster came mainly from the Karadag region, scientists from the expedition decided to look for it there. They didn’t find a monster, but they found an egg weighing 12 kg, containing an embryo resembling a fairy-tale dragon with a crest on its head. Nearby were found the remains of a rather impressive tail, which was characterized by a scaly-shell-like structure.
The Soviet writer saw a monster!
For several thousand years, residents and guests of the peninsula claim that they somehow met this incomprehensible and unknown resident. sea waters. And it must be said that among the eyewitnesses there were famous and serious personalities whom there is no reason not to believe. Among them are the director of the reserve, geologists, a poet, an official of the local executive committee, and the military. It is clear that these people are educated and, most likely, are not prone to mystification and inventions.
In 1952, the Soviet writer Vsevolod Ivanov happened to see the monster from a cliff in Carnelian Bay. Perhaps, it was he who made one of the longest observations of the monster; he looked at it for about 40 minutes. According to him, the monster had impressive dimensions: “25-30 meters long, and as thick as a desk top, if you turn it sideways.” He had a snake head “the size of his armspan” with small eyes, top part of the mysterious creature was dark brown in color.
After such a unique observation of the monster, Vsevolod Ivanov tried to find out if any of the local residents had seen this monster, and undertook a small investigation. M. S. Voloshina told him that in 1921, a small article flashed in the Feodosia newspaper, which reported that a “huge reptile” had appeared in the area of Mount Karadag, and a company of Red Army soldiers was sent to catch it. As far as is known, the “reptile” was not caught then, but her husband, the famous Russian poet and artist M. A. Voloshin, sent this clipping about the “reptile” to M. Bulgakov, and it formed the basis of the story “Fatal Eggs.” Also, Vsevolod Ivanov, with the help of Voloshina, managed to find out about the fact of an encounter with a monster by one collective farmer, who came across a monster resting on the shore while collecting driftwood for firewood.
Real evidence? Please!
The Karadag snake leaves very real traces of its existence. A few years ago, Turkish fishermen pulled a dolphin from the sea, which had been bitten in half by some monster. The remains of the dolphin were rushed to Istanbul University, where scientists examined the find and confirmed that the marks on the dolphin were not wounds from a ship's propeller and, without a doubt, were left by the teeth of a large animal. The same dead dolphins with huge wounds and even traces of 16 large teeth were seen by Crimean fishermen in 1990 and 1991, and one of them was even taken to the Karadag Nature Reserve.
By the way, Crimean Alexander Paraskevidi has even more material evidence of the existence of the monster - his tooth. Six centimeters long, red-brown in color, this tooth was discovered on the beach, near the village of Maly Mayak, sticking out in a small piece of wood. Turkish ichthyologist Arif Harim, who examined and analyzed the tooth, is confident that it belongs to an animal unknown to science.
Shocking encounters with the Karadag snake
In May 1961, a rather shocking encounter with a monster took place in Crimea. Local fisherman M.I. Kondratiev, director of the Crimean Primorye sanatorium A. Mozhaisky and chief accountant of this enterprise V. Vostokov went fishing one morning on a boat. They walked only three hundred meters from the pier of the Karadag biological station towards the Golden Gate, when suddenly, 60 meters away from them, they saw a brown spot under the water. They sent the boat towards it, and it suddenly began to move away from them.
When we managed to get closer to the “spot,” it became clear that there was something very impressive and creepy under the water. The head of a huge snake, about a meter in size, was quite clearly visible 2-3 meters under the water. The surface of the monster's head was covered with brown hairs, reminiscent of algae. Behind the head, horny plates were visible on the monster’s body. At the top of the head and back, a characteristic mane swayed in the water. The monster's belly was lighter - gray, in contrast to the dark brown back.
When people saw the monster’s small eyes, they literally became numb with horror. Fortunately, Mikhail Kondratyev quickly managed to come to his senses, he turned the boat around and headed it towards the shore at full speed. Amazingly, the monster chased them! Its speed was quite high, but 100 meters from the coast it stopped the chase and headed out to the open sea. Seven years later, Mikhail Kondratyev again observed the Black Sea monster near the Karadag biological station under similar circumstances.
In the 80s 20th century vacationer Grigory Tabunov had a chance to meet the monster. This is what he recalls: “I lived in Nikita, quickly went down to the sea, undressed and fell into the water. He swam about two hundred meters away, lay on his back, rested, and was just about to swim back when he noticed a dark spot nearby in the waves. Dolphin, probably, he thought. What a dolphin! A huge head appeared above the water. Out of fear, I screamed as loud as I could and rushed to the shore. All this lasted a few seconds, but I remembered what I saw for the rest of my life. The monster’s head was greenish and flat...”
On August 12, 1992, V.M. Belsky, an employee of the Feodosia City Council, encountered the monster. He swam in the sea, dived until, having emerged, he saw a huge snake head almost next to him... In horror, Belsky rushed to the shore with all his might, jumped out of the water and hid among the stones. Looking out from behind the stone, he saw that where he had just bathed, the head of a monster appeared, with water flowing from its mane. Belsky was able to even see the skin and gray horny plates on the head and neck. The monster's eyes were small, and its body was dark gray with a lighter lower part.
Relatively recently, our compatriot Vladimir Ternovsky even managed to ride on the back of a Black Sea monster! He was windsurfing 2-3 km from the shore, when suddenly someone from below threw the stern of his board. After this push, he fell into the water, however, to his amazement, he felt something solid under his feet. He was standing on something big, wide and alive, and it was moving! Fortunately, he managed to overcome his fear, jumping off the monster and quickly reaching the shore. The monster did not pursue him.
The servants of one of the monasteries once observed two monsters at once, which, clearly acting in coordination with each other, started a hunt for dolphins.
The Karadag monster was also seen by submariners. This happened during the dive of Benthos-300, a laboratory working at depth. Having reached a dive level of 100 meters, the hydronaut saw a vague shadow on the right side of the ship. Swimming slowly towards the porthole giant snake, as if studying people with his small eyes. However, as soon as the scientists decided to photograph it, the monster, as if reading their thoughts, rushed into the depths.
So who swam into Crimean waters? We talked about the frilled shark with flat sides, resembling a huge eel; according to another version, it was the herring king - a belt fish up to nine meters in length, found in the Northern and Mediterranean seas... Maybe some kind of lizard has been preserved in the Black Sea since ancient times? After all, what do we know about Karadag, which was a nature reserve for decades? And why shouldn’t this majestic mountain be a haven for exotic species?
Karadag is the remnant of an ancient volcano, the underwater part of which has not been studied. Once upon a time, displacements of earth layers and volcanic clay led to complex layers, the formation of underwater caves, unknown passages and tunnels.
On this moment There is no official confirmation that the Karadag snake is a real creature; it seems to sense that they are looking for it and goes into the depths of the sea at the slightest attempt to film it on video or with photographic equipment. Perhaps expeditions could clarify the situation, but such events require financial investments, which neither officials, nor scientists, nor individuals are in a hurry to make. The waters of our planet still firmly keep their secrets - Loch Ness, Karadag, and others water monsters do not seek contact with people.
Official science is sure: if a living creature lives on Karadag, there must be several of them - mother, father, grandfather, grandmother, etc. But neither the remains nor the clutch of eggs of these creatures have yet been discovered. In addition, Crimean hydronautics is completely destroyed today, deep-sea equipment has been sold for scrap.
It is known that North American zoologists successfully continue such research in their territories. In 1995, two Canadian oceanographers - Dr. Edward Bousfield (Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto) and Professor Paul Le Blond (University of British Columbia, Vancouver) - in the April issue scientific journal"Amphip-tsifika" described what was discovered in the fjords of British Columbia, on the Pacific coast of Canada, new to science. close-up view animals - Cadborosaurus.
They classified it as a plesiosaur, a group of highly specialized marine reptiles that went extinct in Mesozoic era. This “saurus” got its name from the Cadboro Bay, where it was most often observed.
The message caused a furor in the media. Newspapers immediately gave the creature the nickname Caddy, and local environmentalists demanded that the government immediately ensure the protection of such a rare and obviously vulnerable species.
If you believe eyewitness accounts, the Cadborosaurus, by the way, which has been mentioned in Indian folklore since ancient times, is exactly like the Black Sea serpent, but feeds on fish, sometimes trying to hunt seabirds.
Scientists have no doubt that the depths of the World Ocean hold many unexplored secrets. But they need facts. However, so far not a single high-quality photograph has been taken - neither by us nor by them.
This is persistently explained by the fact that mysterious creatures appear and disappear suddenly, as if only to remind: living earth It was not born yesterday, but it must be studied and protected in all its manifestations, especially in unique ones.