The Kazakh land is filled by sacred regions. The surface of the land and underground is rich, which continues from Altai to Atyrau. Our website does not stop sharing interesting information about places in Kazakhstan. The next destination to the reserves will continue.
Barsa-Kelmes Nature state reserve – one of the most important reserves in nature protection in our country, located in Syrdariya area. Due to locating on the island of the sea, the name Barsa-Kelmes was given. The reserve established in 1939. However, officially works since 1848.
The name of the reserve sounds unpleasant to the ear. What is the purpose of calling «Barsa-Kelmes»? The main thing is not its importance of the name, the important thing is to protect the environment.
Each of the reserves has a unique feature. The symbol of Barsa-Kelmes is – Kulan. This animal listed in the world «Red book» which protects all wild animals. Kulans first were brought from the reserve Badhyz from Turkmenistan. There were only 19 kulans in 1953. The number of these animals reached sharply for about 300 in 1986. By 90’s the kulans were transferred to other reserves in the country. According to the data, their number of animals reached about 520 in 2016.
Except for kulan, the reserve is the homeland of different types of two thousand invertebrates, 30 mammals, 178 birds, 12 reptiles, 2 species of amphibians and 20 species of reptiles. The number and type of birds on the island increases during the spring and summer periods.
The reserve is also home of venomous snake of the thyroid. This is a very rare species of snake. Its poison is the most popular and indispensable substance in the field of medicine.
Now it is time to give an information from the world of plants. There are 354 species of plants might be encountered, which 14 species of them are endemic in Barsa-Kelmes.
Consequences of sea attraction for inhabitants.
The attraction of the sea does not pose a threat not only to people living in the region, but also to other inhabitants of the reserve. Particularly saigaks, gazelles, and kulans suffer from decreasing level of the sea.
«Barsa-Kelmes» is that a place where no one will come back, or why is it considered an unusual island?
Despite the fact that the reserve was established in the last century, the local people are good at telling legends. Even in the era of Genghis Khan, Khorezm chakh, who was killed by Genghis Khan, hide himself in this reserve.
The island’s time is different from another region.
Expedition group went to the island discovering Barsa-Kelmes in 1930. However, they were lost for three months. They were searched, but no result. After that, after a short period of time, the group returned. According to researchers, they took pictures of the region on the map for three days. And during this time, three months have passed in other regions of the country.
The reserve is connected to the world biosphere network.
The international coordinating Council of the UNESCO program «Man and the biosphere» has included the conservation status in the number of World biosphere reserves.
How to reach to the reserve?
The distance between the capital and the city Kyzylorda is 1155 km. The distance between the regional center and the Aral region is 448 km. The all daily types of transports, such as train, plane, bus, and taxi goes from all regions of the Republic to Kyzylorda city. Public transports leave every day at 11am. and 9 pm. to the Aral region.
