Pearls of nature

Bolonsky Nature Reserve

The Bolonsky Reserve was established in November 1997. Formerly it was called the regional Simminsky zakaznik, located in the North -Eastern part of Middle-Amur lowland. The Reserve include the lower parts of the Simmi and Selgon river basins, the shallow delta lakes Kiltasin and Albite, and Yorsuyn island. The Reserve is situated at the delta of the Kharpi river and on the southern shore of Bolon Lake on the territory of the Amursky and Nanaisky districts of the Khabarovsky krai. The reserve occupies 103,6 thousand hectares.

The core of the Reserve is Bolon lake, located in the center of the wetlands in the Amur river valley. Bolon lake is of high biological and geographical importance: the concentration of wetlands here is very high and the biological diversity is extremely diverse. Bolon lake is located on a unique cross-road of several migrating bird routes. Bolon Lake is also included in the List of Wetlands of International importance according to the Ramsar Convention. In addtion, Bolon lake is critically important as a nesting area for rare and endangered species.

The winding Simmi and Kharpi rivers flow into the lake. These far-flung rivers with numerous adjacent reservoirs and lake shores create a big wetland habitat for waterfowls. That is why this region is noted for its high concentration of birds and nesting grounds.

The Bolonsky Reserve is famous for its great number of bird species and amounts of individual birds of each species. In spring and in fall one can see thousands of swans, geese, ducks, cranes, different birds of prey and small sized migrating birds. Mainly, waterfowl live in the local wetlands. Nearly all of the migrating bird species of Priamurye and the Russian Far East can be found here. The bird list of the Reserve includes 250 species, 160 of them nesting in this area.

The number of rare bird species is 24, overall with migrating species not less than 35. Such a concentration of rare birds is the largest in the region. In addition, several endangered species nest here: Oriental White Stork, Japanese and Hooded Cranes, Mandarin duck, osprey, peregrine falcon, and others.

The Reserve is of interest to Russian and foreign ecologists, ornithologists, tourists and students interested in studying wetland birds.

Bolonsky Nature Reserve
Director: Vitaly A. Tyagunin
Amursk, GOS 5, P.O. 30
Khabarovsky Krai
E-mail: bolon@mail.amursk.ru

Price-list:

Accomodation (meals, service) - $25 per person per day

Guide-ornithologist and Interpreter service - $10 per person

Fare for drive excursion from Serebryanaya river channel - $10 per person

Video camera rent - $100 per day, photo camera rent - $50 per day