Kolguyev (island): where is, in honor of whom is named? Photo of the island of Kolguev. Weather on the island of Kolguev

Few people know where the island of Kolguev is. This place does not attract a lot of tourists, and its infrastructure is undeveloped, so there are not many people who want to live here either. However, to know about where the island of Kolguev is located and what it is remarkable for is still useful. For scientists, it is of great interest, and everyone will be curious to know about the living conditions of people very far from those to which we are accustomed.

Kolguyev is an island located in the Arctic Ocean in the eastern part of the Barents Sea. It can be found in 80 km from the peninsula of Kaninsky. Is Kolguyev Island located to the east or west of the Kaninsky Peninsula? The correct answer is to the east. Kolguev is washed by the Barents Sea from the north, and in the southeast and south, respectively, by the Pechora Sea and the Pomorsky Strait.

origin of name

Kolguyev is an island whose origin is controversial. Old Russian (Kalguev) only one letter differs from the modern one. There are several versions of why this island is called that way. According to one of them, one day Ivan Kaglov, a local notable fisherman, disappeared in the waters that washed him. Here in honor of whom Kolguev Island is named, according to one version. According to another opinion, this word originated from "collage", which is translated from ancient Finn as "triangular", or "triangle".

Geographical location

Kolguyev - an island, the area of which is just over 3.2 thousand square meters. Km. It is located on the territory of the Russian Federation, belongs to the Arkhangelsk region and is part of the Nenets Autonomous District.

History of the island

The first people on this island, according to archaeologists, appeared somewhere in the 2nd century AD. E. They came to Kolguev, most likely from the mainland during the migration of tribes, which were the forefathers of today's Nenets.

The island of Kolguyev was known to the merchants of Novgorod about the 10th century. This is mentioned in chronicles related to this period. In these documents, however, nothing is said about the Kolguev population, which is more indicative of the fact that it was uninhabited at that time, or the population of the island was not numerous.

Hugh Willoughby, the envoy of the English king, became the first European to describe Kolguev. In the summer of 1553 he followed the islands of Novaya Zemlya and Vaigach and on the way came across him. Kolguev in the 15th century was included in the Great Moscow Principality. There is documentary evidence of this fact. However, Russian merchants at first rarely visited him. Only since the 18th century they regularly went to Kolguev in order to buy furs from the local population.

Only in 1941 began mapping and detailed study of the island. However, it immediately ended, as the Second World War began. Only in the early 1950s the study was continued. Geological expeditions in the 1970s opened the Peschanoozerskoe oil field on the territory of Kolguyev. Its development began in the early 1980s.

Today, this island is used by the authorities only for oil production. This leads to a rapid deterioration of its ecology, causing great damage to the plant and animal life.

Geography and origin of the island

Kolguyev - an island, in its form is almost the right circle. The straight line of its coastline is quite straightforward, but it nevertheless forms in several places several bays that go into the land. Among them, it should be noted located on the south-west lip Promoynaya, and in the south - the lip Remenka. Several small braids and islands are located at the southern coast of Kolguyev. Among them are the islands of Strait and Chayachiy, as well as the spits Eastern Flat and Flat Cats.

As for the relief, it is almost flat and low-lying. However, in the central part are low hills and hills. The highest point of the island is the city of Sarlopy. Its height is 151 m above sea level.

Small salt and fresh lakes, as well as marshes covered almost the whole island. The following lakes are the largest in area: Gusinoye, Peschanoe, Krivoye, Solenoye, Khyyropsky, etc. In addition, there are many rivers on Kolguev. The largest along the length are Great, Underground, Yurochnaya, Bolshaya Pearchikha, Krivaya, Veskina, Kitova, Eastern and Western Goose.

Say a few words about the geological structure of this island. It is represented by clay shales, limestones and sandstones. The researchers found small deposits of brown and coal, as well as a fairly large oil deposit in the eastern part.

Kolguyev is an island whose origin is continental. Experts believe that his education occurred about 25-26 million years ago. This fact makes Kolguyev the same age as such islands as Novaya Zemlya and Vaigach.

Climatic features

On the island of interest to us, the climate is wet, subarctic. It is quite damp here, as there are many rivers, lakes and marshes. The weather on the island of Kolguev in winter is cold. Minimum temperatures can reach -45 ° C. Summer can set the heat to +30 ° C. On Kolguyev, the polar day and night are pronounced, since the duration of the day in December is only 3 hours, and in June it reaches 22 hours. Kolguyev is an island on which it is constantly windy, especially from January to early May. Mostly the winds blow from the north-east and south-west. Precipitation falls here in the form of rain, snow and fog. Their average number is about 350 mm during the year.

Population

On the island today there are 2 settlements - North and Bugrino. In total, about 450 people live here, which is the entire population of Kolguev. Its administrative center, if I may say so, is the village of Bugrino. It is located in the southern part of Kolguyev, on the coast of the Pomor Strait. The second settlement, North, is, as is easy to guess, in the north. This settlement is a lighthouse and a meteorological station.

Ethnically, about half of the local population are Nenets, an indigenous people engaged in reindeer herding, seal hunting and fishing. The second half is employees of ZAO ArcticNeft, which serve the Peschanoozerskoe oil field located here. These workers live in the northeastern part of Kolguyev, 60 km from Bugrino. There are about 250 of them, and every 52 days they change.

Settlement Bugrino

On the territory of this village there is a kindergarten, a secondary school, a Culture Center, an outpatient clinic, a TV station "Moscow", a power station and shops. In total there are about 100 houses in the village. As the local dispensary is now in a very bad condition, it was decided to build a new building designed for her. JSC "Zarubezhneft" is engaged in financing this project. This company signed an agreement to allocate for this purpose 71 million rubles in 2014.

According to official data, there are 1 km 200 m of roads in Bugrino. However, this is probably not the road, but the place where tractors haul cargo on the sled from the shore. It remains almost always slow and broken. Roads are, rather, wooden sidewalks that cross the village in and out.

Reindeer herding on the island

Reindeer herding is the main occupation of the local population. It should be said that SEC Kolguyev is a breeding farm, which annually surrenders to the market of the district a large amount of meat from these animals. Scientists distinguish the breed of Kolguy deer, which are one of the largest reindeer in Russia. Due to the lack of food in 2013-2014 there was a massive loss of livestock. The number of deer decreased from 12 thousand to 200-400 individuals.

The plant world of Kolguev

The vegetative world of the island is very typical for the Arctic, subarctic and Arctic-Alpine natural and climatic zones. The main part of Kolguyev is occupied by the tundra. Most of it is represented by herbs and shrub plants. On the island, the southern tundra is located, located in the south and east; And the northern, located in the west and north. Shrub strata includes Betula nana (dwarf birch), as well as several species of willow (Salix glauca, Salix lanata and Salix phylicifolia).

Most of the rare species growing on the island are on the western, eastern and northern border of the area of distribution. Note that the tundra is a very sensitive environment. A significant violation of the vegetation cover, depending on the type of soil, is restored by approximately 90% only after 3-5 years for mosses and grasses and only 20% for various shrubs. And the soils that remain naked are very sensitive to erosion caused by precipitation and winds.

The fauna of Kolguyev

As for the fauna, because of the distance from the mainland and the severity of the climate, it is not too diverse. The animal world is represented mainly by foxes, polar bears, arctic foxes, walruses and seals. In the coastal waters are found several species of fish, more than half of which are commercial. In the summer, whales visit the coast, but recently such visits are rare because of the pollution of the island. It is necessary to recognize that the Russian authorities are conducting uncontrolled oil production here.

For ornithologists, this island is a real paradise, as many species of birds nest here, including the Barnacle Goose, the small tundra swan, the zipper, the peregrine falcon, the gray geese (white whistle and the gooseberry), the black-throated diver, and others.

Tourism and transport links

With regard to tourism, this island is absolutely unpromising. The main role in this is played not even by the severity of the climate and the scarcity of nature, but by the remoteness of Kolguyev from the continent. You can get here either to the village of Bugrino by helicopter, or to Peschanoozerskoye by light motor aircraft. Thus, transport communication is carried out by air transport. You can get to Bugrino village by helicopters Mi-8. They regularly make flights to the island. In emergency cases, in addition, you can get here by helicopter, which delivers oilmen, who work on a shift basis. The provision of various cargoes, including the necessary products, is carried out by sea during the navigation period. They are brought from Arkhangelsk.

Accommodation of tourists is also quite problematic. Therefore, the island of Kolguev, whose photo was presented in this article, is still visited only by oil workers and naturalists, to which the Russian military has recently added. In addition, the island sometimes arrives hunters.