jump to the content
Advanced search

The Putorana plateau (Putoransky State Nature Reserve)

Property names are listed in the language in which they have been submitted by the State Party.

Russian Federation (Europe and North America)

Date of Submission: 07/02/2005
Criteria: (vii)(viii)(ix)(x)
Category: Natural
Submission prepared by:
Commission of the Russian Federation for UNESCORussian Ministry of Natural Resources
Coordinates:
northern point: 69°53'N, 93°28'Esouthern point: 68°24'N,94°05'Ewestern point: 69°00'N, 91°45'Eeastern point: 68°42'N, 96°38'E
Ref.: 1999

Description

The Putorana basalt plateau stretches from the Northern polar circle to the north almost to 71° N and from 88° E to the east reaching 101°E. It occupies the major part of the rectangle formed by Yenisei river on the west, Kotyi river (in its upper and middle flow) on the east, Kheta river (in its middle and lower flow) on the north and Lower Tunguska on the south. The length of this mountain country is more than 500 km, the width is about 250 km. Average height of mountains is 900-1200 m. Depth of canyons is rather significant - up to 1500 m. The most typical amplitude of relative heights is 800-1000 m. The highest point of the Putorana mountains is Kamen' peak, which is 1701 m.

The Putorana plateau is the highest cupola-like elevation within Central Siberian plateau, which has round outlines in the foreground with slight roughness in its north- western part. Area of the plateau is about 250 000 sq. km, similar with Rumania in its outlines.

Perhaps no other geographic province of the former USSR has such contradictory hydrographic net as the Putorana. Here typical mountain waterflows abundant with rapids and waterfalls are combined with deep hollows with drained lakes with powerful alluvial and limnic sedimentations. In some parts of the plateau, rivers have silt covered beds, typical for plain rivers, as their waterflows haven't yet ragged through rapidly elevated surface.

Flora of the Putorana plateau has 569 species of vascular plants, which are related to 209 genuses and 57 families. They make 3 altitude complexes: forest - 224 species (39 %), mountain - 183 species (32 %), high-mountain - 162 species (29 %). In the Putorana flora is noted the prevalence of circum-polar species (250 species, 44 % of total flora). On the second place are Asian (Siberian) plants (178 species, 31 % of flora). Much less are Eurasian (86 species, 15 %) and Asian-American plant species (55, 10 %). The Asian group includes 3 central Siberian species, 2 endemic of the lower Yenisei and 5 endemic of the Putorana plateau.

On the Putorana lay southern and northern borders of areals of many species. Especially high is the number of plants with northern areal border (184 species, 32 % of flora), which is connected with the location of the plateau on the border between taiga and forest tundra. The major boreal (61 %) and mountain (64 %) species, and many alpine species are on their edge of spreading on the Putorana.

Within the territory of the Putoransky reserve dwell 34 species of mammals, 140 species of birds, 25 species of fish. Across the territory of the preserve lays the migration route of the worlds biggest wild reindeer Rangifir tclrardzu population (over 500 000 specimen). The plateau is the only habitat for one of the worlds largest poorly studied mammals - the bighorn sheep Ovis carmdensis nivicoln, which 15 000 years ago was separated from the main population and formed the subspecies. Most interesting representatives of the plateau's rare and disappearing bird species are white jer-falcon Fulco rtrsticoltrs and white-tailed eagle Haliueettls albicilla.