The Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve is the gem of the (Lake District), one of the oldest protected areas in Belarus of the highest rank. It has gained international fame as a model of undisturbed wilderness not only of the CIS but also all over Europe. Today there are only two reserves in Belarus: Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve and the Polesie State Radioecological Reserve. Set up in the wake of the man-made environmental disaster, the Polesie reserve is a place of rehabilitation and research.

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It is virtually closed to tourists. The Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve is a protected area of untouched diverse wildlife which began to take shape thousands of years ago after the meltdown of the ancient glaciers. And it is open to visitors! The reserve is home to four types of ecosystems: forests, rivers, meadows and deep bogs.

Wetlands cover about 60% of the territory of the reserve and are part of the natural riches of Belarus, thanks to which the country is called 'the lungs of Europe '. It is not just words: more than 2.5 million hectares of wetlands in Belarus (11.5% of the country’s territory) play a crucial role in maintaining the biosphere and microclimate of the region. To date, 1,348 bogs or about 863,000 hectares have survived in the country in the natural or near-natural state. It was precisely the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve that became one of the first conservation areas important for the protection of the wetland ecosystems of Belarus. However, wetlands are not the only treasures of the Berezinsky reserve. For example, today it is the only place, not only in Belarus but also across the continent, that is home to the famous Europe’s Big 5 - European bison, moose, bear, wolf, and lynx. Only here you can see all of them at the same time.

History of Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve The history of the reserve began with one person. After the First World War an expedition led by BSU Professor Anatoly Fedyushin found around 20 colonies of the beaver, previously thought extinct, in the upper Berezina River. The animal was heavily hunted due to the expensive fur and virtually disappeared in Belarus. In Berezinsky scientists also found the specimens of bear, elk, wild boar, wood grouse, white grouse. To preserve the rare ecosystem, the reserve was formally established on 30 January 1925. Hunting, fishing, and logging were banned on its territory.

Serious research of flora and fauna was launched. During the, the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve became the center of the partisan movement in northern Belarus. Dense forests, swamps, numerous rivers, the lack of roads, plenty of game - all this really helped partisan fighters. Protected folder v12 serial key. But the war brought great losses to the reserve: scientific archives and collections were lost, the museum and other buildings were destroyed. So were the beaver farm and the elk nursery.

It was decades later that environmental protection activities resumed in the biosphere reserve along with large-scale research and monitoring The status of the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve has been confirmed at the highest international level. The reserve is part of: •. Berezinsky was awarded the European Diploma of Protected Areas in 1995 and became partner of the European Wilderness Society in 2014.