Students research Taganay Park in Chelyabinsk Oblast during summer field practice

Second-year students toured the park, observed local flora and fauna and mapped environmental tourism trails.

“During the practice session, the students mapped local plants and ant-hills, studied local birds, and visited the Geological and Mineralogical Museum of the Ilmen Natural Reserve. They also compiled a geomorphological description of the Black Rock and its plant associations,” notes field practice chaperone, Senior Lecturer of the Department of Geography and Cartography Rustam Farkhullin.

Interestingly, the location was proposed by one of the students, Alexandra Makhanova, who is a native of Chelyabinsk Oblast but had never visited Taganay before joining this summer trip.

The students also visited many objects in the Arskiy District of the Republic of Tatarstan – source of the Kazanka River, Arsk Forest Reserve, Surnar Game Reserve, and the Kazan Arts Museum.

The team then moved to the Kamsko-Ustyisnky District to visit Yuryevskaya Cave, one of the most famous karst caves of Russia (total length – 1,005 meters).

The practice session concluded with Apastovsky and Kaibitsky districts, where, in particular, the river Ulema, namesake of the therapsid ulemosaurus, is located.