VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
Kuril Lake is another distinctive natural site in Russia, which covers an area of over 77 square kilometres. The lake is located in the Kamchatka Nature Reserve, which was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in the category "Volcanoes of Kamchatka" in 1996. This crater lake occupies a large caldera about 300 metres deep. It was formed more than 8,000 years ago after a powerful volcanic eruption, which was followed by the collapse of the Earth's crust in an area of 76 square kilometres. Subsequently, bulges rose to the surface of the lake, forming several islands. This is the second largest freshwater lake on the peninsula after Kronotsky Lake.
The lake derives its name from the Kurils, an ethnic group that inhabited the Kuril Islands. The Itelmens, who lived in the south of the peninsula around the lake and near Cape Lopatka, maintained close relations with the Kurils and borrowed not only their customs but also their language, often associating themselves with Kurils. The first European explorer to travel to Kuril Lake as a member of the Second Kamchatka Expedition was Georg Steller. The active exploration of the lake did not begin until 1908.
Kuril Lake is the world's largest salmon spawning ground. The only river flowing out of the lake is the Ozyornaya River, along which sockeye salmon travel from the Sea of Okhotsk to the lake. In some years, the number of salmon going to spawn in the lake could reach up to 8 million.
The abundance of fish draws bears to the shores of the lake. Usually, these predators avoid each other, but during the salmon spawning season they gather together at the lake: up to 18 members of the world's largest subspecies of brown bears can be seen there at the same time. The adult male can weigh up to 600 kilogrammes and measure up to 3 metres. The colour of the brown bears' coats in Kamchatka is not necessarily brown: it varies from sand and pale yellow hues to almost black. The bears have strong front paws with claws 10 centimetres long, which they use to defend themselves and attack, catch salmon, dig dens and plant roots, catch smaller prey from under rocks and roll over fallen trees in search of insects.
Although Kamchatka bears are large and omnivorous, fish is the main food source for them. The fact that Kamchatka bears prefer salmon over meat might be the reason why they do not have a reputation for aggressiveness, unlike bears living in other areas.
The behaviour of bears catching fish in Kuril Lake differs: some stand in the water to wait for fish, while others prefer to fish on the shore. When fishing at the lake together, bears tolerate each other, as there is sufficient food for all of them. Yet, the places richest in fish are controlled by adult males, while the young bears and the female bears with cubs fish at a distance.
In lean years, when salmon and nuts are scarce, bears abandon their habitats and travel to places where there is enough fish. It still remains unknown how bears communicate to each other about the abundance of fish in a certain river. But, whatever the circumstances, bears return home - to the den where they drew their first breath. Every year these predators travel up to several thousands of kilometers, following paths trodden by many generations of bears before. Bears generally travel when they are searching for food or places suitable for digging dens.
Scientists put the number of brown bears in Kamchatka at about 19,000 - this accounts for 15% of all bears in Russia and for 5% of all bears in the world.
Another appeal that Kuril Lake holds is the bulges, or islands created by lava that formed there. The most unusual of them is Serdtse Alaida Island (Alaid's Heart Island), a pink rock resembling a heart that rises from the bottom of the lake. According to the legend passed on by the indigenous people who witnessed tremendous volcanic eruptions, Alaid Island is the heart of a high mountain which left the lake in order not to eclipse the sun.
It is only by helicopter that one can reach the lake, which is located 210 kilometres from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. About 700 people on average visit Kuril Island every year.
The average daily temperature in August is 15.7 degrees Celsius.
