Tsimlyanskiy prirodnyy zakaznik
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- 1983 Source, Founded: From Wikidata
Birds year-round
All birds
All year
About the park
Hummocky sand ridges run across the whole tract, rising to eight metres, with valley-shaped hollows formed by wind erosion between them. Steppe covers most of the interior, including sandy steppe on flatter ground. In damp hollows between the ridges, small birch and aspen groves survive as remnants of Pleistocene woodland. Lowland meadows and marshy patches of bulrush and reed occur beside the reservoir and small lakes that dry out. The reservoir’s deeply indented shoreline shifts with changing water levels; 14,300 hectares of the sanctuary lie in its coastal waters.
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The Kuchugury tract is part of the Don–Tsimlyansk Sands natural complex. Tsimlyansk Reservoir effectively separates the sanctuary from the rest of Rostov Oblast, while in Volgograd Oblast the protected zone continues as Tsimlyanskiye Peski Nature Park. The sanctuary was established in 1983 as a republican steppe zoological protected area. In 1996 it was added to the list of specially protected natural areas along the Black Sea and Azov Sea coasts and gained federal status. Plans to turn it into a steppe reserve were discussed in the early 2000s, but a 2010 order retained its status as a sanctuary.
The sanctuary has records of 140 bird species, including large, established breeding groups of white-tailed eagles, little bustards, stone-curlews and Eurasian eagle-owls. About 33 animal species found here are listed in the Red Books of Russia and Rostov Oblast; among them are the peregrine falcon, demoiselle crane, black-winged stilt and Eurasian oystercatcher. The sanctuary is included in Russia’s list of Key Ornithological Territories.
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