1 Lermontov St., Hola Pristan, 75600, Kherson oblast, Ukraine

Phone/fax: (05539) 21 004;
e-mail: zapovidnyk@selena.kherson.ua

The Black Sea Reserve was set up in 1927 by a Resolution of the USSR SNK of July 14, 1927 ¹ 172 ‘On organizing seaside reserves on the coast of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov’.

On November 25, 1983 the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine by its resolution ¹ 538 transformed the Black Sea State Reserve into the Biosphere Reserve. In 1985 the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve was included to the World network of biosphere reserves (UNESCO certificate of 15.02.1985).

Research areas: protection of natural complexes, development of scientific fundamentals of saving their natural state, environmental monitoring.

Major achievements:

– The best security status – that of Biosphere reserve was assigned to the preserved territories. These territories are wetlands of international value (the Ramsar convention).

– Stock-taking of natural complexes of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve was carried out. Representative environmental monitoring network was designed and implemented.

– Guidelines on improving the territorial frame of the reserve were prepared, according to which in 1998 it was possible to extend the territory of ‘Yahorlitsky Kut’ site (4700 ha of land and 8761 ha of water area, the Decree of the President of Ukraine of May 12, 1998 ¹ 457/98 ‘On extending the territory of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve’).

– Annually (since 1953) ‘The Annals of Nature’ have been published, which cover the results of research and environmental monitoring of the Reserve.

– A management plan of the further development of the Biosphere Reserve was made.

– The Environmentalist Education Department and the Nature Museum of the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve work actively.

The Reserve is looking for partners in:

– optimizing the territorial structure of the biosphere reserve;

– creating the GIS of the biosphere reserve region;

– taking special measures on protecting rarity species (the territory of Reserve is home for more than 80 species of vertebrates and about 30 species of invertebrates included to the Red book of Ukraine, as well as nearly 300 species from the Bern Convention lists);

– researching and substantiating the organization of new nature-protection territories;

– ecological expertise and assessing the environment status.