Birds of Svetloyar
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- Species
- ≈ 42 species Source, Species: Community observations: eBird and GBIF
- Best time
- June Source, Best time: Months with the most species, across all years of observations
- ≈ 42 species Source, Species: Community observations: eBird and GBIF
- June Source, Best time: Months with the most species, across all years of observations
Birds year-round
All birds
All year
Within 10 km
About the lake
Svetloyar is an oval lake about 470 by 350 metres, with its long axis running north to south. Though compact, it reaches 33.4 metres deep: the southern floor drops sharply into a funnel-shaped hollow, while depths change more gradually in the shallower north. Hills rise around the water, forming a particularly clear arc to the south, where ravines cut as deep as 7–8 metres into their slopes. The banks are slightly marshy, and bottom springs feed water clear to more than five metres. A small stream connects the lake to the shallow Lunda River to the north-east. Road construction in the Soviet era partly disrupted the outflow, after which the lake began to become marshy; flow through the stream was restored in the 1990s.
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The lake’s origin has been attributed to glacial, karst, volcanic and meteorite processes. Vasily Dokuchaev, the first researcher to study it, proposed in the late 19th century that Svetloyar was a meteorite crater. Fieldwork published in 2009 supported the impact hypothesis, placing the possible fall 3,000–3,200 years ago; evidence included fragments of fused rock and glass-like formations in the bottom sediments. Svetloyar is also linked to the legend of Kitezh, a sunken city. In his 19th-century novel In the Forests, ethnographer Pavel Melnikov-Pechersky described how memories of folk festivals at the lake gradually gave way to the legend of an invisible city. He recounted how skete elders declared the hills holy and held psalm readings beside the water.
Birds recorded nearby include mallard, northern shoveler, green-winged teal and common goldeneye.
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