Caspian lowland on the map. Sights of Russia: Caspian Lowland What natural zone occupies the Caspian Lowland

Caspian lowland occupies the northern coast of the Caspian Sea, and is a flat plain sloping towards the sea, among which mountains rise up to 150 meters high.

The lowland is represented by steppe, semi-desert and desert landscapes, which are of scientific and environmental value. A unique water body of the Caspian region is the largest salt lake in Europe, Baskunchak, taken under protection in the Bogdinsko-Baskunchaksky Nature Reserve.

In the west, the Caspian lowland is crossed by the Volga.

The Volga Delta is the largest and most environmentally friendly in Europe. It begins north of Astrakhan, where a large branch, the Buzan, separates. Along the entire path from Astrakhan to the rumps of the Caspian Sea, the delta is extremely diverse, the main branches 300 - 600 meters wide branch into numerous channels and eriks - small watercourses up to 30 meters wide. At its confluence with the Caspian Sea, the Volga has about 800 mouths.

About 500 plant species belonging to 82 families have been identified on the territory of the Volga delta. The richest among these families are the genera of wormwood, pondweed, astragalus, sedge, euphorbia and salt.

Within the Astrakhan region you can meet about 260 species of birds. Some, sedentary, can be found all year round, others - migratory and nomadic, during migrations. Conditions for birdwatching are especially favorable in the Astrakhan Nature Reserve, where you can go to observe the spring and autumn migrations of birds.

Caspian lowland is located on the East European Plain in Russia and Kazakhstan, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian lowland is surrounded in the north by General Syrt, in the west by the Volga Upland and Ergeni, in the east by the Pre-Ural Plateau and Ustyurt. The area of ​​the lowland is about 200 thousand km². The height above sea level is up to 100 m, the southern part of the lowland lies below sea level (up to −28 m). The northwestern part of the lowland between the Ergeninskaya Upland, the Kuma-Manych depression and the Volga is called the Black Lands.

The Caspian lowland is a flat surface, gently inclined towards the sea, among which rise individual hills - the Inder Mountains, Big Bogdo, Small Bogdo and others.

The Caspian lowland is crossed by the rivers Ural, Volga, Terek, Kuma and others. Small rivers (Bolshoy and Maly Uzen, Uil, Sagiz) dry up in the summer or break up into a number of basins, forming lake floods - Kamysh-Samarsky lakes, Sarpinsky lakes. There are many salt lakes (Baskunchak, Elton, etc.).

Geological structure

The Caspian lowland includes several large tectonic structures (Caspian syneclise, Ergeninsky uplift, Nogai and Tersk depressions). In Quaternary times, the lowland was repeatedly flooded by the sea, which left clayey and loamy deposits in the northern part and sandy deposits in the southern part.

The surface of the Caspian lowland is characterized by micro- and mesoforms in the form of depressions, estuaries, spits, hollows, in the south - by aeolian forms, and along the coast of the Caspian Sea - by a strip of Baer hillocks.

Climate and vegetation

The climate is sharply continental. Average temperatures in January are from −14° in the north to −8° on the coast, in July - from +22° in the north to +24 °C in the south. Precipitation is from 200-150 mm in the southeast to 350 mm in the north. west, evaporation is about 1000 mm. Dry winds are frequent.

The soils and vegetation of the Caspian lowland are characterized by great complexity. Salt licks and solonchaks are often found.

In the north there are wormwood-grass steppes on light chestnut soils, in the south there are semi-deserts and deserts on brown and sandy soils with a predominance of wormwood.

Economic significance

Used as pasture.

In the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain, melon growing, gardening, and vegetable growing are widespread.

Oil and gas production (Caspian oil and gas province), in lakes - extraction of table salt (lakes Baskunchak, Elton, etc.).

The northern coast of the Caspian Sea is occupied by the Caspian Lowland, part of which is located on the territory of Kazakhstan. The northern border of this region is General Syrt, the Volga Upland limits the west, the eastern border is the Pre-Ural Plateau and the Ustyurt Plateau. The area of ​​the territory is approximately 200 thousand square meters. km.

The lowland reaches its maximum height in the north - up to 100 m above sea level; in the south this figure drops to 28 m below sea level. The geological basis of the Caspian lowland consists of rocks of late Quaternary age. This region is crossed by several large rivers: Volga, Ural, Terek, Kuma. But there is no permanent hydrographic network in the region - small rivers dry up in the summer. Some of it forms basins that create lake overflows. Examples of such reservoirs are the Kamysh-Samar lakes and the Sarpinsky lakes. In the lowland there are salt lakes, for example, Baskunchak and Elton. Lake Elton is considered one of the saltiest lakes in the world.

The Volga, the largest river flowing into the Caspian Sea, lies in the west of the Caspian Lowland, its source is located north of Astrakhan. The width of the main branches of the river is 300-600 m. The Volga branches into many channels and eriks. In Europe, the Volga has the largest delta - the river is divided into 800 mouths.

The climate of the Caspian lowland is sharply continental. In the north of the region in January the average temperature reaches -14 degrees, on the coast it fluctuates around -8 degrees. In July, the average temperature in the northern region is +22 degrees, in the south it increases to +24 degrees. Dry winds often occur in the region. The reason for this is the rapid evaporation of water. The precipitation is not enough to properly moisten the soil, and the uneven amount of precipitation that falls in the regions contributes to the dry wind. In the southeast of the Caspian lowland, precipitation falls less than 200 mm, but in the northwest it is almost twice as much.

The flora of steppes and semi-deserts is characteristic of the Caspian lowland. From north to south, the feather-grass-forb steppe gives way to feather-grass-fescue steppe, and the wormwood-grass semi-desert becomes the end point of the flora change. Large estuaries are covered with thickets of wheat grass - a representative of meadow grasses. In desert areas, the amount of vegetation is reduced.

A significant part of the region's vegetation is used as pasture for livestock. The Volga-Akhtuba floodplain is the main agricultural region. They are engaged in gardening, melon growing and vegetable growing.

The salt lakes of the Caspian lowland are the place of extraction of table salt. Oil and gas are developed in the Ural-Emba region.

Fauna of the Caspian Lowland

The Volga-Ural interfluve, located on the coast of the Caspian Sea, has the best pastures. Hunting and fish farming are well developed in this area. The Ural-Emba interfluve in the country is known for its rich oil and gas deposits.

The Caspian lowland is a habitat for fifty species of mammals, three hundred species of birds, twenty species of reptiles and amphibians. For migratory and wintering birds, the coast of the Caspian Sea is of high importance. According to biologists, approximately one and a half million waterfowl winter in the southern Caspian Sea.

On the coasts of the north and northeast of the Caspian Sea there is a migration area of ​​3 million waders. In summer, half a thousand pairs of gray geese, 2 thousand pairs of ducks and 2.5 thousand pairs of mute swans live in the reeds. This area is also home to breeding grounds for gulls, terns and roseate pelicans.

Saigas are commercial ungulate mammals that live in the Volga-Ural interfluve. In the early 2000s, this species was under threat of extinction, so a ban on the shooting of saigas was introduced in order to restore the population of these animals. It is noteworthy that monitoring the population status of this species is complicated by the constant migrations of saigas across different territories.

Animals such as foxes, wolves and steppe ferrets are numerous in the Caspian lowland. In the anthropogenic desert called the Black Lands, there is a reserve of the same name, studying the landscapes of the steppe, semi-desert and desert.

The region is home to several endemic species that are on the verge of extinction. These animals include:

1. Long-spined hedgehog. An insectivorous animal with a small body weight (up to 750 g), leading a nocturnal lifestyle. This species is protected in nature reserves in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

2. Turkmen mountain sheep (Ustyurt mouflon) is an artiodactyl mammal of the bovid family. Listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan.

3. Honey badger, a predator from the mustelidae family. In the Caspian region it is distributed on the border with the Ustyurt plateau.

4. Caspian seal (Caspian seal), a representative of the family of true seals, which are distributed throughout the coastal region of the entire Caspian Sea. In winter, these animals migrate to the northern coast, forming colonies. These animals are listed in the Red Book as a species that is in danger of complete extinction.

5. Bobrinsky's Kozhanok is a small bat whose habitat is the deserts of Kazakhstan.

Representatives of small rodents - jerboas and gerbils - also have a low level of abundance and density. There are up to 6 individuals per 1 hectare. There are half as many ground squirrels.

Valuable fur-bearing animals and other commercial species play an important role in the economy of the region. Small rodents distribute plant seeds, while they are prey for predators. Due to the fact that rodents are simultaneously carriers of various infections, there is a natural control of the number of predators.

Environmental problems of the territory

The rise in the level of the Caspian Sea has led to the emergence of a number of problems - flooding of large areas of lowlands, flooding of ports, settlements, transport facilities, etc. The anthropogenic factor plays a significant role in the environmental problems of the region. Active human activity has contributed to the pollution of rivers and the saturation of the environment with waste from large-scale industries. Improper and overuse of land has caused accelerated soil erosion.

In the territory of Kalmykia, oversaturated with pastures, unsystematic grazing of livestock led to desertification of the area. To avoid worsening this environmental problem, a number of measures have been taken to prevent desertification. In particular, the “Federal Program to Combat Desertification” was introduced in the republic, with the help of which they were able to achieve the first successes.

Pollution of the Volga River, which flows into the Caspian Sea, is another environmental problem in the region. Since this river flows through the entire Russian Plain, all the waste from enterprises located along its entire length gets into its water. As a result, the polluted waters of the Volga led to a reduction in species diversity and the spread of alien bacteria in the Caspian Sea.

Oil, which is the main pollutant, suppresses the development of phytoplankton and phytobenthos in the Caspian Sea. Oil pollution interferes with normal heat and gas exchange, and water begins to evaporate more slowly. Fish, shellfish and other marine life are negatively affected by foreign organisms brought in by seaborne transport. Thus, a real disaster was the introduction of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis into the waters of the Caspian Sea, which had previously devastated the waters of the Azov and Black Seas. By multiplying quickly and uncontrollably, the ctenophore destroys the reserves of zooplankton that Caspian fish feed on. Disruption of food chains has led to a decline in the populations of indigenous inhabitants of the Caspian Sea.

Oil pollution also negatively affects waterfowl. Their plumage loses its heat-insulating and water-repellent properties, for this reason many birds die. Oil spills lead to declines in the number of other animals in the region.

The construction of hydroelectric power stations on rivers leads to siltation of the riverbed. The number of fish in the waters is decreasing due to the fact that the natural habitat of fish is undergoing severe changes. Reserve zones located in the north of the Caspian lowland regulate geophysical work, which contributes to the preservation of species diversity.

Environmental problems can be mitigated or even eliminated entirely by investing significant sums of money. Unfortunately, most enterprises, in pursuit of their own profit, are quite dismissive of environmental protection. The Caspian Sea and its coastal areas continue to be polluted.

BLACK LANDS OF THE CASPIAN DEPRESSION
Black Lands (Kalmyk “har gazr”) is a semi-desert territory, deprived of continuous snow cover in winter due to strong winds. Black sagebrush and brown semi-desert soils reinforce the “color” meaning of the placename, but the word “black” implies more than just color.

In aerial photography, the Caspian depression (depression) looks like a crown crowning the northern coast of the Caspian Sea. This territory is a flat plain, the southern part of which lies almost 30 m below the level of the World Ocean, and in the northern part the height rises to 150 m above ocean level (Indera, Big and Small Bogdo mountains). The Caspian lowland is located within the boundaries of the Caspian syneclise (from ancient Greek “together” and “inclination”) - a gentle depression of the earth’s crust formed in the Paleozoic. The folded basement of the syneclise lies at a depth of 3000-4000 m and is covered with a thickness of sediments, the thickness of which reaches the greatest depth here for the Russian Platform. In ancient times, the Caspian Lowland was part of the World Ocean; the modern relief was influenced by numerous ups and downs of the Caspian Sea.

In the south of the northwestern sector of the Caspian lowland, between the Kuma-Manych depression,

The Ergeninskaya Upland and the Volga (at the junction with the Sarpinskaya Lowland) are the so-called Black Lands. This waterless territory with uncomfortable climatic conditions and natural foci of plague, leprosy (the old name is leprosy) and other diseases is unsuitable for life. The population density here is extremely low - less than 4 people/km2. In the summer, dust storms rage here, up to 40 days a year. The only direction of agriculture in these places is transhumance. Having deprived the Black Lands of water, nature did not skimp on minerals: over hundreds of millions of years, sedimentary rocks accumulated here, and now the Black Lands are the region of the richest Caspian oil field, a place of extraction of uranium, titanium, precious metals - gold, silver and platinum, rare earth elements - scandium, yttrium, rhenium, gallium.

Active mining also has a negative effect: the surface of the Black Lands is quickly turning into an anthropogenic desert (especially considering that the soil here began to form only 4-5 thousand years ago, there is almost no turf). To preserve the local ecosystem, the Black Lands State Biosphere Reserve was created.

In the northeast, “Khar Gazr” descends into the Volga delta, to the Caspian Sea, where stripes of Baer’s mounds (first described in 1866 by academician K. M. Baer) stretch along the coast - sand ridges of regular shape with a height of 6 to 45 m, width 200-300 m and up to several kilometers long, alternating with ilmens (small lakes overgrown with reeds). Human economic activity can lead to their complete destruction in the near future.

The Volga-Akhtuba floodplain with the vast delta of the Volga River crosses the Caspian Lowland in the northwestern part. As it approaches the sea, the main branches of the Volga, 300-600 m wide, branch into numerous channels and eriks about 30 m wide. When it flows into the Caspian Sea, the river has about 800 mouths. The Volga water, saturated with industrial and agricultural runoff, poses a serious threat to the environment in the Caspian lowland. In 2000, to protect the ecosystem of swamps and nesting birds, the Volga-Akhtubinskaya Floodplain Natural Park was created: there are more than 200 species here.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Location: in the extreme southeast of the Russian Plain, skirting the Caspian Sea from the north.
Administrative affiliation: Astrakhan region (Russia), Republic of Kalmykia (as part of the Russian Federation), Republic of Dagestan (as part of the Russian Federation), Republic of Kazakhstan.
Origin: tectonic, sedimentary rocks.
Languages: Russian, Kazakh, Kalmyk, Dagestan, Tatar, Bashkir.
Ethnic composition: Russians, Kazakhs, Kalmyks, Dagestanis, Tatars, Bashkirs.
Religions: Orthodoxy, Islam.
Monetary units: Russian ruble, Kazakhstani tenge.
Large cities: Astrakhan (Russia), Aty pay (Kazakhstan).
The largest rivers: Volga, Terek, Sulak, Ural, Emba.
The largest lakes (salty): Baskunchak, Elton, Manych-Gudilo, Tinaki.
Natural boundaries: in the west it is limited by the Stavropol, Ergeni and Volga hills, in the north - by General Syrt, in the northeast and east - by the Pre-Urape plateau, in the southeast - by the cliff of the Ustyurt plateau and the Mangyshlak peninsula, in the south - by the coast of the Caspian Sea.
FIGURES Area: about 200,000 km2.
Length: from north to south - up to 550 km, from west to east - up to 770 km.
Population: about 2 million people.
Population density: about 10 people/km2.
Lowest point: -28 m below sea level.
Highest point: Mount Bolshoye Bogdo (149.6 m above sea level).

CLIMATE
Sharply continental. Severe and little snow winter, hot summer.
Average January temperature: - 14°C in the north, -8°C on the Caspian Sea coast.
Average July temperature: +22°C in the north, +24°C on the coast of the Caspian Sea.
Average annual precipitation: less than 200 mm.
Relative humidity: 50-60%.

ECONOMY
Minerals: oil, natural gas, uranium, titanium, gold, silver, platinum, scandium, yttrium, rhenium, gallium, table salt.
Industry: mining (oil and gas, ore, salt mining).
Agriculture: plant growing (melon growing, gardening, vegetable growing), livestock breeding (pasture - sheep breeding).
Sphere of services: tourism (recreational fishing in the Volga delta), transport.
INTERESTING FACTS - The thickness of the surface salt deposits on Lake Baskunchak reaches 10-18 m. Only certain types of bacteria live in brine (saturated salt solution). Today, the extremely pure salt of Lake Baskunchak accounts for up to 80% of the total salt production in Russia: from 1.5 to 5 million tons of salt are mined here per year. The Baskunchak railway was built to export salt.
- The Cordon tract is a natural monument of regional significance (status since 1995): the Mexican prickly pear cactus, blooming with large yellow or pale pink flowers, grows here in natural conditions. The cactus was planted for experimental purposes by scientists from the Khosheutov point of the Republic of Armenia in 1904-1917.
- Big Bogdo was nicknamed the “singing mountain”: during the weathering process, depressions similar to giant honeycombs were formed on the rocky cliffs. If the wind blows, the holes produce characteristic sounds of different pitches.

The Caspian lowland is located in Eurasia. This is the southern tip of the East European Plain, adjacent to the Caspian Sea in its northern part. Natural boundaries: from the north - the General Syrt upland, to the west - the Volga, Stavropol uplands and Ergeni, to the east - the Pre-Ural plateau and Ustyurt, from the south - the Caspian Sea. Located on the territory of Russia and Kazakhstan.

Coordinates:
Latitude: 47°32"N
Longitude: 49°01"E

The Caspian Lowland is a huge plain with an area of ​​200,000 sq. km, falling below sea level from the south. These are steppes, deserts, semi-deserts and salt marshes, although many rivers flow there, including large ones: the Volga, at its confluence with the Caspian Sea, forming a vast delta, and the Ural. Emba, Terek, Kuma cross the lowland. There are many salt lakes - Baskunchak, Inder, Aralsor, Kamys-Samar lakes, Elton, Botkul.

Among the pancake-flat plains, here and there rise domes of salt called mountains. Big Bogdo, a 150-meter-high salt mountain, is a cult place for Buddhists. The main part of the lowland is steppes and sands used for pastures. In the Volga-Ural interfluve, fishing and hunting are developed; the famous Astrakhan watermelons grow in the Volga floodplain. There are oil and gas fields in the Ural-Emba interfluve.

In the Caspian lowland, despite the seeming avarice of nature, there are many natural attractions. There are also archaeological, historical, cultural ones of different peoples and eras.

Russia

Nature reserves “Bogodino-Baskunchaksky”, “Astrakhansky”, “Black Lands”. “Volga-Akhtubinskaya floodplain” is a natural park. Nature reserves “Manych-Gudilo” and “Sands of Burley”, Mount Bolshoye Bogdo, Lotus Valley, Kuma-Manych depression (separates Eurasia), Kordon tract, Baer hillocks. Archeological monuments: Devil's ancient settlement of the Golden Horde era (Astrakhan region), Sarai-Batu (Astrakhan region), burials in Turtles of the Bronze Age, "Samosdelka" settlement (Astrakhan region). Among the cultural sites, one can note the Khosheutovsky khurul (Kalmyk monument in honor of the victory over Napoleon in the village of Rechnoye, Astrakhan region), the watermelon museum (the city of Kamyzyak).

Kazakhstan

Ustyurt Nature Reserve, Karagiye depression on the Mangyshlak peninsula, Lake Shalkar (Aktobe region), floodplain forests of the Ural River with unique and relict vegetation, Sanal and Sazanbay canyons. On the Caspian coast there is the resort town of Aktau and the Kenderli complex. You can travel along the Great Silk Road, which passed through these places. There are many archaeological sites: Kyzyl-Kala (red fortress), the city of Sary-Aichik - the Golden Horde trade center. The sacred places of Muslims are the underground mosques of Shopan-Ata and Beket-Ata.