“Swimming the sea is necessary. Living is not so necessary.” A familiar phrase from childhood flashed on the Internet page, which, as far as I remember, belonged to one of the Roman generals. Desperate dedication, in its literal sense, does not evoke in me the unambiguous admiration today that it did in my youth. Rather, it frightens with its recklessness.

Pompey Sextus, commander of the Roman fleet in ancient times. I would like to know more about him. I'm searching online and suddenly I find an advert and offer:

Book.
“Ice splashes. Victor Konetsky."
This is the seventh book in the series by V. Konetsky
Travel prose, that is, prose about the sea
Labor, marine production.
Hardcover book in perfect condition
condition. I'll exchange it for something
love story.

A book by V. Konetsky on “some kind of...”! Who is this madman?

What a wonderful sea romance the reading of my childhood was filled with. "Captain Grant's Children", "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", "The Fifteen-Year-Old Captain", "Treasure Island", " Scarlet Sails”, “The Island of Lost Ships”, “The Old Man and the Sea”, “Amphibian Man”... But even after that the maritime theme did not let go. Thor Heyerdahl appeared and captivated with his “Kon-Tiki”, “Ra” and “The Secret of Easter Island”. Zh.I. Cousteau and his "Whales".

My latest hobby is Viktor Konetsky. A wonderful singer of the sea. Smart, ironic, subtle psychologist human souls in extreme circumstances. Once again I am indignant - V. Konetsky’s book is just some kind of love story! Yes, just listen to how this one writes

“All around there was a green swell, the expanse of the ocean, fluttering fields of seagulls over a school of fish, red-black hulls of trawlers, a breeze, and the sun, and distant streaks of fog, empty bottles on the swell overboard, soggy pieces of bread that the spoiled seagulls did not pay attention to . And the first thing we heard fifty miles from New York on the radiotelephone was:
- “Dostoevsky”! "Dostoevsky"! “Dobrolyubov” says. Reply via communication!
“Well, I’m Dostoevsky,” answered an old, grumpy voice, “why are you rushing?”
“Hello, Fyodor Mikhailovich! – I thought – there’s someone I didn’t expect to meet in the Gulf of Maine, it’s you!”

***
Or more:

“Nearby is Vera Fedorovna Panova:
- It seems to me, Viktor Viktorovich, that you forgot our first meeting.
It was a terrible meeting. Vera Fedorovna Panova called for a conversation after I asked her to read my next opus and sat sweaty with fear on the edge of her chair.
Vera Fedorovna slowly and carefully put on her glasses and stared at my opus:
-You wrote here on page sixteen “the cow that my father bought when he returned from the front died.” Did you write this?
“Yes,” I said and laughed, because in my youth I was funny. And suddenly I clearly imagined that my cow defended Moscow and reached Berlin, and when she returned from the front, the poor thing died.
But Panova did not smile. She was full of severity. There is no humor when it comes to something sacred."

No, it’s incomprehensible, Konetsky, writing a sea captain, no matter what kind of love story, I’m indignant at the monitor.

And, however, now my love for the sea extends no further than the pages of books. For some time now, I firmly know that I will never set foot on the deck of a ship again. Anyone. I'm afraid of the sea.

In the early eighties, or more precisely, in 1982, my husband and I worked at one of the defense facilities. It's been a busy, stressful summer. And no light was expected until the construction was commissioned. The commission that arrived “cut down” the vacations, including for me. And when, as a “consolation prize,” they offered me a business trip with my husband to Sevastopol in August to coordinate documentation for the technical development of the “product” for a period of 20 days, I happily grabbed it, deciding that without telling anyone, I could take it with with my eight-year-old daughter. We’ll get settled somehow, so we can’t leave the child without the sea this year.

We immediately left the plane, allowing ourselves a two-day break from the exhausting race of stage-by-stage delivery of work, buying a separate compartment on the train. I loved the train, shopping at stops for hot smoked fish, lightly salted cucumbers with steaming potatoes in a bag made of rough gray paper, sugared tomatoes, melons, fruits, and most importantly, relaxed doing nothing, a rare pleasure in those years.

The train arrived at about two o'clock in the morning. Sevastopol in those years was a Soviet “closed” city, entry into which required special passes. Only the phone number written on the back of the travel ID gave hope for solving housing and other problems in an unfamiliar city. However, for this it was necessary to wait until morning.

From the hot stuffy carriage we went out onto the platform and, residents of the dry steppe, where by mid-summer the leaves begin to turn yellow and become gray and prickly grass, plunged into the damp coolness of the southern Crimean night. I still don’t even know how the Sevastopol station works. We didn’t have time to look into it to try to settle in for the night when locals surrounded us with an offer of lodging for the night. The old woman, resembling Baba Yaga, as far as the station lighting in the night allowed her to be seen, literally dragged her husband along with her by the sleeve. We looked at each other, it didn’t matter, tired, with a stumbling child, we obeyed.

Apparently, there had been a little rain recently, invisible on the asphalt, but the old woman led us, gliding along a barely noticeable path somewhere up the mountain. We walked, without speaking to each other, through some thickets, barely keeping up with her. And she climbed up the steep hill as quickly as a goat, so much so that her agility was amazing. The image of Gogol’s lady-witch flared up more and more brightly in my mind. But finally, a light flashed between the trees - they came.

The hostess opened the door of the tiny shed, in which there was nothing but a wide bed and a small sofa, disappeared for a minute and returned with two sets of excellent starched linen, took the money and disappeared. We didn't see her again.

We woke up to the sound of a rooster crowing right under our ears. Then the goat bleated. It turned out that our home was only separated by a plywood partition from my grandmother’s barnyard, which we didn’t care about at night. When we went out and looked into the yard, we saw... a beige llama and a gray peacock, eagerly spreading its tail, among the fussy chickens.
The morning was warm, quiet and we, despite early hour, hurried to leave the “hospitable” lodge. However, going down the path to the station, we were amazed at what a cockroach darkness we decided to climb into at night. All that remained was to marvel at my provincial gullibility.

The phone call had a magical effect and after a couple of hours we settled down perfectly in a departmental hotel, where our daughter did not turn out to be a hindrance for the administration, and until tomorrow we set off to get acquainted with the city, the legendary and beautiful Sevastopol.

We had enough time during these twenty days to wander the streets to appreciate the marvelous topography of this city, when in the rain the streams rush down noisily and we, along with everyone else, took off our shoes and merrily ran to the bus stop. The legendary Count's pier. Primorsky Boulevard. Monuments to Nakhimov, Kornilov. Malakhov Kurgan. Brotherly Cemetery. A touching monument over the Mass Grave of Russian and French soldiers, erected in 1892. Panorama "Defense of Sevastopol". Plane trees, chestnuts, and walnuts are unusual for our eyes. Peaches, luxurious huge peaches, were sold on every corner. Excellent grapes and books, which we imprudently “attacked” on the first day, and then, like a great temptation, avoided them - it was impossible to grasp the immense wealth lying on the street ruins. We made do with Balzac, Shakespeare, Zola and Ozhegov’s new Dictionary, which replaced ours, which was completely worn out.

The enterprises that interested us were located in the wonderful town of Balaklava, with its amazing landscape, embankment, Cliff... And the sea, of course, the delightful sea splashed at our feet.

The designers turned out to be good guys with a concept and, according to the agreed schedule, we carved out a few days at the end of the business trip and enjoyed the luck that accidentally befell us, until one of the last days this event did not happen.

That Sunday, we once again went on a pleasure boat to a distant beach. Excellent, I must admit, with the finest sand. Now I don’t remember its name. By noon there was nowhere to step. Vacationers kept arriving. We sat away from the water near the steep sandy wall of the shore under an umbrella and carefreely played “city” with our daughter. The husband went deeper into Zola.

We did not attach any importance to the fact that the wind had freshened. On the contrary, seeing how suddenly the waves began to reach our bare heels, carrying us along with them, we mischievously threw ourselves into the water, flying back with the next wave, almost to the wall of our cliff. My daughter was delighted. We're hungry. We went up to the summer glass cafe, standing over the cliff.
While having a carefree snack, we suddenly noticed how boats flashed by, taking out vacationers. It was announced through a megaphone that the next flight was the last, due to the danger of a storm. The spray from the waves had already reached the mirrored walls of the cafe. But we trustingly boarded that last flight, onto a boat full of people. We set sail in very rough seas.

Traveling on a ship along the Volga, I never felt fear. But here! The sun has disappeared. The rain began to drizzle and intensify. The sky and water somehow quickly merged into one gray mass of water. The unimaginable has begun. We flew up to the ridge and fell down. The crowded ship tilted, and all the people, screaming, first in delight, and then in horror, fell first to one side and then to the other. Waves began to wash over the deck. Two elderly women began to pray. We, wet from head to toe, hugged the child to us with all our might and I, it seems, for the first time in my life, without knowing a single prayer, began to ask God: Lord, help! Help us get to the shore alive! I knew that I would never, never set foot on the deck of any ship in the world again.

The only thing that inspired any hope was the sailor worker on the deck, who seemed to be calmly reeling in some kind of rope.

And suddenly, in this horror of waves, splashes and rain, right next to us, completely indistinguishable a second before against the backdrop of the heaving sea, the silhouette of a huge cruiser appeared. He seemed to pass very close to us along the high gray wall of the building. It looks like you could touch it with your hand. I managed to catch a glimpse of guns, antennas, masts, almost invisible in the darkness, and he disappeared again in the shroud of rain, invisible and inaudible, like a ghost.

A general cry of horror drowned out the noise of the breaking waves, and the sailor who was nearby on the deck suddenly, with a changed face, earnestly crossed himself.

Exhausted, we went ashore. There was no strength to thank or answer the captain’s gloomy question:
"No losses?"

Exhausted, we sank down onto the steps of the pier. However, like many others...

But I remember, in the late seventies, during our fun cruise trip along the route Saratov-Moscow-Astrakhan-Saratov, somewhere in the Ulyanovsk region, where the Volga looked like a sea, we woke up early in the morning from a request for loudspeaker communication from the captain bridge of our luxury liner:
- The chief mate urgently goes to the captain!

The ship stood there, humming continuously, and for some reason the bell was ringing. Dense milky fog outside the cabin window. And again, already irritated:
- First mate to the captain!

Despite the fact that we did not move, I began to feel motion sick and lightheaded. Those who went out into the corridor were asked to return to their cabins. We listened with frivolous curiosity as the service began. But the cheerful music played over the broadcast drowned out even our signs of anxiety.

Gradually, the fog cleared, and we moved on, without delving into the details of the crew’s excitement. It’s just that then, in the late seventies, we didn’t yet know that on June 5, 1983 (a year after our Sevastopol), the passenger ship “Alexander Suvorov”, when approaching Ulyanovsk, would go at full speed under the non-navigable eighth span of the railway bridge across the Volga and would be demolished the entire upper deck, where the disco was going on, and the train with coal and grain would fall on the beautiful liner. 176 were announced dead, and there were countless injured. A cross on the shore in Ulyanovsk stands in memory of the victims.

And further! I remember the magnificent steamship Admiral Nakhimov. While vacationing in Gelendzhik, we came to Novorossiysk and wanted to visit the memorial cemetery. We sat on the embankment, watching this luxurious snow-white liner getting ready to sail. A well-dressed crowd of passengers walked on board in an endless stream. Merry, happy people. I remember we were surprised at how many boxes of wines, champagne, boxes of fruits and vegetables with foreign labeling were loaded into the hold. The cars drove up hastily, and the loaders, moving in an endless chain along the ramp, in identical black clothes, looked like ants.

We, very close by, fed the tame dolphins with delicious white buns made from Kuban wheat flour. And who then could have imagined that on August 31, 1986, when leaving Novorossiysk Bay, the steamer Admiral Nakhimov would collide with the dry cargo ship Pyotr Vasev and sink two miles from the nearest shore. More than 500 people died. Eternal memory to them.

Never again have I tempted fate on the water. And sailing on the sea, of course, is necessary.

Photo from the Internet.

Elk- a noble and powerful owner of our forests, with whom even the Bear will not always dare to argue.

What is the moose called?

Sometimes moose also called elk due to the shape of the horns, which resemble a plow.

What does a Moose look like?

Elk it is not for nothing that it is considered one of the largest animals, since males often reach sizes of about 3 meters in length and 2.5 meters in height, and weigh up to 600 kg. A distinctive feature of the Elk is its beautiful sweeping antlers, which have an average of 18 branches.

Researchers count about 7 subspecies of Elk, which differ in size and structure of horns.

What do Moose eat?

IN Moose diet includes herbaceous and tree-shrub vegetation, mosses, lichens, mushrooms and berries. Moose eat bark pine trees, willows, birches, aspens, love young raspberry branches. Depending on the time of year, the Elk’s lunch consists either preferably of leaves or aquatic plants: water lilies, horsetails, marigolds. Interestingly, a portion of Elk per day ranges from 10 to 35 kg of feed, and per year this figure reaches 7 tons.

Where does Elk live?

Elk lives almost throughout the entire forested zone of the Northern Hemisphere, it can often be found in the taiga or steppe part.

Swampy areas are an important component of the life of Elks, since in the hot season the animals feed on aquatic vegetation and escape from overheating. These animals are found in Poland, the Baltic states, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Belarus, northern Ukraine, Scandinavia, the European part of Russia and the Siberian taiga. Russia is home to approximately half of the total animal population.

Currently, the number of Elk, like other ungulates, is declining due to the rise of poaching.

Are Moose dangerous for humans?

If you are in the forest see the moose- freeze and stand still until the animal leaves. During the rut, Elks can be quite aggressive, but they will not see a person even a short distance away, since they have poorly developed vision. In general, Elks rarely attack first; to do this, you need to provoke the animal or come too close to the place where the offspring are located. The Elk is dangerous for motorists, since a collision on the road with an animal of this size will cause great damage to both the car and the animal itself.

Reproduction of Elks

Single Elks They live separately in small groups of up to 4 individuals; females with elk calves sometimes unite in small herds of up to 8 animals. Elks are monogamous by nature, unlike other relatives.

The elk rut takes place in early autumn and is accompanied by the loud, characteristic roar of the males. At this time, it is better not to go deep into the forest, as Moose can be aggressive and can attack a person.

There are also famous Elk fights, where rivals in the fight for the best female can not only be seriously injured, but even die. Pregnancy in the Moose lasts 225-240 days from April to June. Usually one calf is born, but older, experienced females can give birth to twins. The baby has a light red color and can get up a few minutes after birth, and after 3 days he can already move freely.

Maturity in Elks occurs at 2 years, and by 12 they are already aging, although in captivity with good care they live up to 20 years.

Enemies of the Moose

First enemy of the Moose, of course, a man with a weapon.

Moose are hunted wolves and bears (brown bear, grizzly). The prey is usually young, sick and old Elk. Wolves are practically harmless to healthy adults unless they attack in a large pack.

Elk It is difficult to maintain a perimeter defense in open spaces. The picture looks completely different when the Elk is in the thicket. Here he often takes a defensive defense: covering his rear with some tree or thickets of bushes, the Elk defends itself from attackers with blows from its front legs. Moose is capable of these signature blows crack a wolf's skull and can easily defend itself from a bear. Therefore, predators avoid meeting Elk “face to face.”

Elk are excellent swimmers and can hold their breath underwater for more than a minute.

Of the sense organs, the Moose has the best developed hearing and smell. Moose's eyesight is poor- motionless standing man he cannot see at a distance of a few tens of meters.

In a fight with predators, the Elk uses its strong front legs, so even bears sometimes prefer to give the Elk a wide berth. These animals run well thanks to their strong and long legs, and can reach speeds of up to 56 km/h.

Moose milk, which they feed their offspring, contains 5 times more protein than cow's, and 3-4 times fatter. Currently, there are two moose farms operating in Russia, which produce milk used in medicinal purposes, as well as meat and leather.

At first, long-legged Elk calves cannot reach the grass and graze on their knees.

Picture of heavenly Elks or Deer were characteristic of many hunting peoples. The constellation Ursa Major in Russian tradition was called Elk. Among the peoples of the North there are widespread legends about the creation milky way when hunters were chasing Elk, and also about how Elk carried the sun into the heavenly taiga. Sometimes taiga hunters figuratively imagined the sun in the form of a living creature - a giant Elk, running across the entire sky during the day and plunging into the endless underground sea by night.

These two animals terrify larger predators. They themselves are predators, they eat everything they catch and find. One of them is found throughout Europe and Asia, is found in Russia and is famous for its ferocity. And the second is an African aborigine, and with a rather peaceful name.

Well, do you have any idea who it could be?

We are sure that many people named the bear first and were mistaken. Bears themselves do not risk contacting a beast called wolverine. And the second animal is the African honey badger, which belongs to the badger family. But let peaceful name do not mislead you - the honey badger is a very dangerous predator, which is feared by all large cats, including lions. Even elephants and rhinoceroses try to avoid it.

And here's your confirmation!

Wolverine

This beast is small, the size of average dog, but in terms of strength she is compared to a bear, and in terms of ferocity - to the devil himself. Refers to mustelids.

• She's incredible strong jaws, its teeth can bite through even the largest bone, and its claws are the longest and most powerful among animals. These are the only predators that even eat the teeth of their prey!
• The scientific name of the wolverine is Gulo Gulo, which translates to Glutton. In a day, an animal can eat as much food as it weighs.
• Wolverines smell very foul, which is why they are also called skunk, devil or stinky bear, nasty cat. Many experts believe that the wolverine is the mysterious chupacabra that destroys dozens of domestic animals and birds.

• Wolverine can easily kill an animal even 10 times its size. It is also dangerous for humans, but only if it provokes an attack.
• It has the largest claws, its paw looks like a snowshoe, the animal swims and dives well, and can hunt fish.

• Wolverines are thieves worse than forty. In the den of one male they found a bunch of things completely unnecessary to him: a pot, a charred log, an old pistol, a bottle of alcohol and much more that he apparently found in hunting lodges.
• In summer, wolverines love to feast on wild berries, even driving away bears from raspberry fields.

• There are hunter witnesses who saw how a small wolverine took the caught salmon from a huge bear and calmly left, and the victim went to catch a new fish. In one of the zoos in Canada, a wolverine dug into a cage with a polar bear and strangled it.

African honey badger

The reputation of this animal from the badger family is no better than that of the northern wolverine. The honey badger got its name from its love of honey, although this is not its main diet. He is a real predator, like wolverine - he hunts animals even much larger than himself, and takes prey from leopards and lions.

He has many names - bald badger, black bastard, angry bear. He received the nickname bald because his fur on top is light and from a distance it seems that he is not there.

The honey badger's paws are exactly the same in structure as those of the wolverine. Also, the honey badger has the same thick skin as an elephant. Not even lions can bite through it! Therefore, if a honey badger falls into their mouth, it only loses a few tufts of fur. But the kings of beasts can suffer very badly, and lions prefer not to get involved with this monster.

Poisonous snakes cannot bite through a thick skin, so the honey badger easily catches them, even cobras and spectacled snakes, and feasts on them.

And here is a video of how a honey badger “builds” an entire lion family.

Guys!

For those of you who want to learn about the life and habits of animals and birds that inhabit the expanses of our great Motherland, this book is addressed. It is like the first cherished path leading to the fascinating world of knowledge about living nature. However, we can tell you here not about all animals, but there are many species. We will tell you only about the most interesting ones. Each animal or bird, be it a polar bear or a lynx, a squirrel or a pink pelican, is remarkable in its own way, each of them has its own place assigned to it by nature. So, let's go! Meet the fluffy, winged, mustachioed and tailed kingdom of wildlife!

Tundra

The tundra stretches along the Northern coast Arctic Ocean. Winter here is very long, snowy and frosty. Summer is short and cold. In July, the warmest month of the year, the temperature does not exceed ten degrees. There is still thin, loose snow here and there, and the winds whistle at night. During the day it can be damp and cloudy. A heavy layer lies in the soil at a shallow depth permafrost. It’s not easy for animals and birds to live here. Large spaces are covered with swamps, mosses, and grasses. Dwarf birches, willows, and aspens grow here. In autumn there are a lot of mushrooms and berries: blueberries, lingonberries, cloudberries.

Polar bear

Polar bear lives in the Far North, in the cold and snowy Arctic. The huge rogue beast is rightfully considered the most ferocious and voracious predator on the entire coast of the Arctic Ocean.
He has a snow-white, slightly golden in the sun, thick and warm fur coat. Even the soles of the paws are “woolen”. And under the “fur coat” there is a thick layer of subcutaneous fat. Fat saves the ferocious tramp from blizzards, blizzards and severe frosts.

The polar bear runs fast, swims and dives excellently, has sensitive hearing and sharp eyesight. Wandering through the snow-white desert, he hunts seals and walruses, skillfully catches fish, and skillfully digs mice out from under the deep snow with his paws.
In the fleeting northern summer, the white giant feasts on mosses, herbs, and berries.

The polar bear's head is narrow, and its paws are wide and strong. With such paws it is easier for him to row in the icy water element. The tireless white giant easily and freely swims tens of kilometers in the Arctic Ocean.
It is safe to admire the beautiful mother bear and her cubs only in the picture. It’s a different matter in the wild - there, among the high ice hummocks and endless snow, beware of her!

Walrus

The cold salty waters of the Kara and White Seas are a native element for the walrus, one of the largest animals in the north, reaching a length of four meters. Instead of legs he has flippers. The walrus deftly steers them in the sea elements like oars.

Two large, sharp white tusks protrude from under the walrus' bristly mustache. He rests his fangs on the ice floe and, like a thick, clumsy leather bag, falls out of the foamy depths of the sea onto the shore. Walruses waddle along the shore, clumsily, using flippers. But they quickly dive from the shore into the waters of the cold sea. They quickly descend to the depths and, like a harrow, “plow” the muddy bottom with their fangs in search of food. The favorite “dish” of walruses is clams in shells. They crush hard shells with sharp teeth and gobble up the meat of mollusks along with algae by both cheeks. To put it bluntly, the appetite of sea fanged divers is enviable!

Seal

In December, when blizzards and gusty winds howl for weeks in the North, hundreds of large, two-meter heavy bald seals crawl out onto the ice White Sea. In water, seals feel as if in their native element, much better than on land. Instead of legs, they have flippers, and the front flippers serve them as oars when swimming, and the rear flippers serve as a rudder. A thick subcutaneous layer of fat protects them from the cold. Seals are wonderful divers and swimmers; they are skilled at catching fish in the sea.

In February - March, the seals give birth to funny snow-white seal pups with large dark curious eyes right on the ice. During the first months of life, their mothers feed them milk, and in the North they are aptly and affectionately called squirrels.

Tundra wolf

From the shores of the Arctic Ocean to the forest-tundra, among huge blocks of ice and the polar lights, lives this ferocious, intelligent and hardy, almost white, to match the endless snow-white fields, predatory beast. Northern tundra wolves are larger than their gray counterparts that live in forests. Their fur is light, warm, long, and their tail is down. They hunt alone or in small flocks. The pack is led by an experienced leader wolf. Tundra wolves chase herds of reindeer and musk oxen. They roam with them, moving in winter from the tundra closer to the taiga. Most often, their victims are sick and old animals that cannot run fast and lag behind the herd. In addition to deer, hares and arctic foxes, tundra wolves hunt geese and ducks, and in the summer feast on lush herbs and berries.

Reindeer

In the Far North almost all year round frosts and snowstorms. And summer is very short. You won't find horses or cows here, but there is plenty of reindeer. After all, reindeer are the child of endless snow-covered blue expanses and long dark polar nights. He has a thick wavy coat, fast slender legs, branched horns (both males and females). With its sensitive “plush” nose, the deer searches for tasty and nutritious moss – reindeer moss – under the snow.

It seems that Mother Nature herself created the deer for the North. Thanks to his wide hooves, he does not fall into snowdrifts or get stuck in marshy swamps. Reindeer sleds are indispensable for driving across the vast snow-white off-road.
A doe gives birth to one fawn per year. The baby quickly gets to his feet and runs after his mother. Do you know what he loves very much? Salt! If you want to make friends with a fawn, let him lick a handful of salt from your palm with his rough tongue.

Deer meat is tasty, and the milk is sweet and fatty. The peoples of the North sew warm fur coats, shoes (pimas), hats and mittens from reindeer skins.

Muskox

In the Arctic and tundra, among the “ice desert”, small herds of musk oxen graze in areas covered with mosses and lichens. The musk ox is as tall as a small horse - pony. However, it looks much larger than a pony due to its thick, long and warm coat. The bases of the steep, sharp horns (both male and female) of the musk ox close on the forehead into a strong horny shield. Brown, with a soft silky undercoat, the fur saves the animal from severe frosts and strong northern winds. Muskoxen feed on mosses, lichens, and shoots of dwarf aspens and birches.

If hungry tundra wolves begin to pursue the herd, the steep-horned male bulls become a tight ring, side by side, with their horns outward, forming a reliable all-round defensive barrier for predators. And in the middle of the circle hide the calves and their sensitive, caring mothers. As soon as the wolf rushes at the bull, he hits him with his horns and tramples him with his hooves. And the predators retreat from the herd, as they say, having slurped unsalted.

Arctic fox

Snow-white Arctic foxes are inhabitants of open rocky tundras. True, in the Arctic there are blue, light gray, and even black Arctic foxes. The fluffy fur of arctic foxes is very valuable. It’s not for nothing that hunters call them “polar foxes.”
Arctic foxes have plenty of freedom in the fleeting northern summer: they catch hares, destroy bird nests, feast on berries and sea creatures washed ashore by storms.

During the long polar winter, arctic foxes are hungry, so they have to roam the tundra, making long journeys in search of food. Arctic foxes pick up leftovers from a polar bear's lunch and hunt mice whose burrows are deep under the snow. The arctic fox has an extremely keen hearing: a mouse squeaks somewhere - and he’s right there. It will bury its muzzle in the snow, rake it with its tenacious paws, click its teeth - and the mouse is caught. During snowstorms and severe frosts, Arctic foxes hide in burrows that they dig in snowdrifts. Animals often spend several days there until the thaw. In the spring, funny big-headed puppies are born in the sand dogs' burrows.

White or polar owl

On the islands of the Arctic Ocean and in the tundra there lives a large yellow-eyed bird - the white owl. Both in winter and summer it is snow-white with barely noticeable dark specks. Its beak and claws are sharp, black, and hooked. And the feathers on its legs allow the owl to walk calmly on loose snow without falling into it.

The white owl flies silently and sees vigilantly in the pitch darkness of the long polar nights. If you hear a light sound or rustle in the night snowy desert, the owl will immediately catch it, become alert and fly, smoothly flapping its wide wings. For a moment it will burrow into the snow and carry away a hare, mouse or partridge in its claws. No wonder the northerners nicknamed the prey owl “polar cat.”

Comb eider

In spring, numerous flocks of ducks fly to the islands, cliffs and coast of the Arctic Ocean. One of them has a large growth on its forehead, at the base, like a comb. For this growth the duck was nicknamed “comb”. A stately and large beautiful bird with a bright orange beak screams loudly, repeating three times: “Arr-arr-arr...”
Like all ducks, the eider is an excellent swimmer and diver. It feeds on mollusks, bugs and crustaceans crawling along the bottom and stones.

Waterfowl have webbed feet that allow them to row like oars without getting stuck in muddy mud.
Scallops nest in pairs, often far from the sea. Simple nests are built right along the banks of lakes or rivers under the cover of a bush or stone. They cover the bottoms and walls of nests with down, plucking it from their lush chest. Under such a warm downy “blanket” the baby comb chicks are not afraid of either night frosts or chilly winds from the ocean.

Pink seagull

The pink gull is the winged pearl of the north. She has soft pink feathers on her head, chest and belly; beak – black; the back and tail are gray-gray; the legs are red, and around the thin neck there is a dark necklace. In a word, the plumage of pink gulls seems to have absorbed the reflection of the polar dawns and the colors of the northern lights.

All harsh winter seagulls spend their time among the wormwood and the waters of the Arctic Ocean. They boldly rush into the waves, dive and catch fish and crustaceans with their beaks.
With the onset of spring, seagulls fly south. They nest in the lower reaches of the tundra rivers Indigirka and Kolyma. They build nests right on the ground among moss hummocks and stones.
Pink gull chicks are covered with warm down and look from a distance like funny plush toys. Over the years, the “pearls of the North” – pink gulls – are becoming less and less numerous, so scientists became alarmed and included them in the protective “Red Book of Russia”.

T?peak

On the coast and islands of the Arctic Ocean there lives a funny bird with a flat, thick beak, the front half of which is painted red. Polar explorers jokingly nicknamed it “sea parrot” or “winged clown,” and scientists call it “dead end.” The flight of this bird is amazing. When the puffin flies low, as if spreading over the ocean, it seems that it is running along its surface in a race with the wind, jumping from one wave to another. At the same time, the bird flutters its short wings and helps itself with its paws.

Dressed in thick, warm feathers, the “sea parrot” is not afraid of either bitter frosts or cold, piercing winds from the ocean.
Puffin is an excellent diver and successful fisherman. He catches several fish in the water with his beak at once and hurries to feed them to a single chick. And the chick waits for its winged parents in an earthen hole on a steep slope above the sea.

Whooper swans

In April, the snow in the tundra begins to melt, streams run, and the sun peeks out of the clouds. The wind drives the ice floes downstream. Clear water mirrors form on lakes and rivers. Sometimes the guttural, trumpet cry of swans is heard from the heavenly heights, and majestic white whooper swans, the largest of the swan family, smoothly descend and swim onto the mirror-like surface of the water, spreading their wings.

Swans fly to the north in flocks. On the banks of rivers and lakes, swan and cygnus build large, capacious nests in secluded coastal thickets. The swan hatches from four to six chicks from eggs. While the chicks are weak and defenseless, the swans set sail, carrying their babies on their backs. Soon the swans will grow up and begin to swim independently, catch insects and nibble grass. The swan vigilantly and bravely guards its nesting site. He does not allow uninvited predatory guests to approach him - no arctic fox, no wolf, no hawk. In a furious attack on a predator, the swan uses its beak and strong wings to drive it away and may even injure it.

With the onset of cold weather, swans fly in flocks to warmer regions for the winter. In spring they return to the shores of their native northern rivers and lakes.

Taiga

To the south, the snow-white tundra gradually darkens and turns into coniferous forests - taiga. In the Siberian taiga there are many coniferous evergreen trees: cedar, pine, spruce, fir.

And there are more animals and birds living here than in the tundra. Some hide in dens for the winter, others in bushes, and others in earthen holes. Winters here are cold and harsh, and summers are warm.

Brown bear

The brown bear lives in the dense coniferous forests - taiga. In Russian fairy tales, he is respectfully called the owner of the taiga, Kosolapy or Toptygin.

In a zoo, in an enclosure or a cage, a bear seems lazy and clumsy. However, in the taiga, in freedom, he looks completely different. This huge beast, sometimes reaching three meters in length, quickly and deftly climbs the trunks of tall hundred-year-old cedars, swims across stormy rivers, and moves heavy stones and boulders out of its path. And with a blow from a strong clawed paw he knocks down a mighty horned elk. The bear is very smart: if it smells smoke in the taiga or sees fire from afar, it immediately runs to a river or lake to escape.
For the winter, the bear goes to sleep in a den - a hole under the roots of old cedars or under the trunks of trees fallen by a storm. Cubs are born to a mother bear in her den in January–February. In the taiga at this time frosts crackle, blizzards howl, and in the den, covered with a lush blanket of snow, it is soft, warm and calm.

Bear cubs are born tiny, the size of a mitten. In the spring, when the snow melts, the mother bear stops feeding her cubs milk, rises from the den and goes with them to the forest. She teaches clubfoot to look for grass roots and cedar cones on the ground, under fallen leaves. The she-bear leads the cubs to the river for a watering hole, teaches them to swim and swim in the shallows. Suddenly two bear cubs decided to play mischief. One climbed to the top of an old dry pine tree and almost fell from there into the river. And the other began to hit the water with his paws as hard as he could - splashes flew in all directions! I scared away all the fish.
In the summer, bears, purring and smacking, eat raspberries straight from the bush, leaving only bare branches after a sweet berry lunch. But their favorite delicacy is honey from wild bees. Bears are mercilessly stung by bees for honey stolen from hollows; indeed, you won’t envy the club-footed sweet tooth!

Wolverine

Wolverine is a real nuisance to taiga hunters. She often empties traps with sables and martens caught there. For these insidious tricks, she was nicknamed “the damn bear.” Wolverine really does look a bit like a small bear. She is no more than a meter tall. She has long, thick black and white fur, strong and wide paws, sharp teeth and claws, fluffy tail.

The character of the wolverine is robber. She can kill a wolf and drive a predatory lynx out of her hunting area. She is also hardy and strong: she runs tens of kilometers through the deep taiga snow, chasing roe deer and arctic foxes. In winter, the wolverine hunts for hares, foxes, and squirrels, and in the summer it wanders through the taiga and gobbles up everything that comes in its way: if it catches a frog, lizard or mouse, it eats it; If he notices a wood grouse's nest, he will destroy it. She happily gnaws cedar cones and feasts on the remains of the prey of bears, wolves, and lynxes. By eating dead animals, the wolverine performs useful sanitary work in the taiga.

Wolf

As soon as the gray twilight turned into darkness, a wolf came out to the edge of the forest. Large, well picked, with a drooping tail. In the light of the moon his thick gray fur began to turn silver. The beast raised its big forehead and howled protractedly: “Uh-huh! Woohoo! Gu!” - called the flock to night fishing. Quietly, trail after trail, the pointy-eared wolves ran along the treasured snow-covered path to the village. Beware of sheep and goats, calves and pigs! Toothed predators went hunting.

In snowy, frosty winters, wolves are hungry. At this time they do not even spare people. Hunters have been shooting evil and treacherous predators for a long time.
In the taiga and foothills, wolves attack elk, roe deer, deer, and wild boars. Their prey most often becomes old and sick herbivores. A wolf pack, led by a seasoned leader, goes out hunting at night, and during the day the animals sleep in a secluded place, far from villages and roads - a den.

Wolves are very attached to their home-den and protect their taiga “lands” from uninvited guests: bears, wolverines, lynxes. On spring days, to the sound of woodpeckers' drumming, she-wolves give birth to blind, large-headed brown wolf cubs. They grow quickly, gain strength and start fussing and fighting over bones near a lair hidden in the reeds on the bank of a taiga river.

Lynx

The lynx is a large spotted predatory cat with a short, stubby tail. Her eyes are yellow-green, roguish. Ears with tassels. The paws are wide, soft, with tenacious sharp claws. It is a little over a meter long. The lynx walks silently on the ground and grass. She skillfully climbs trunks and deftly jumps along tree branches.

The lynx hunts at night or at early dawn, and always alone. For hunting he chooses a small area of ​​forest. It will lie down somewhere on a thick branch of a shaggy cedar, camouflage itself and, holding its breath, wait for prey. A white hare will gallop along the path or a small roe deer will run to the stream - the lynx will shrink into a ball, spring up... An instant jump down - and a tasty prey in the claws of a predator. The taiga cat also catches sleepy wood grouse and black grouse; neither mice nor rats can escape its sharp claws.

Ermine

In summer, the ermine’s “suit” is brownish-brown, inconspicuous in the taiga thickets and on mountain rocky areas. But in winter the animal dresses up in a chic snow-white “fur coat”. Only the tip of the tail remains black. Beautiful and durable snow-white ermine fur is highly valued.

In former times, long, elegant white robes were made from ermine fur for kings. The “royal animal” lives in underground burrows with many storage rooms, bedrooms and exits. He hunts partridges, hazel grouse, and black grouse. However, his favorite dish is mice. Fast, agile animals destroy thousands in the taiga harmful rodents, bringing great benefits to nature.

Chipmunk

A chipmunk is very similar to a squirrel, only it is almost half its size. He has a squirrel-like muzzle, round ears, but without tufts. The eyes are bulging, black, like currants. The chipmunk’s “coat” is red, its short tail is erect, and there are five black stripes along its back. In a word, the animal is funny. He lives in the taiga.
The agile chipmunk quickly runs along the ground and along tree trunks, and hides from enemies in earthen holes. For this, the taiga residents nicknamed him “earth squirrel.”

In the fall, the chipmunk stuffs its cheek pouches with pine nuts and puts them in its holes as a reserve. With the onset of winter, the “ground squirrel” climbs into a hole and hibernates until spring. In April it wakes up, crawls out of the “earth bedroom” and feeds on the autumn reserves of pine nuts.
In the summer, before a thunderstorm, chipmunks sit on hind legs, they prop up their cheeks with their front cheeks and, swaying slightly, begin to whistle and cough dully. Both people and animals in the taiga know that since the chipmunks coughed, it means that it will soon rain or a strong thunderstorm with thunder and lightning will break out.

Golden eagle

This is the largest predatory bird from a large family of eagles. For its majesty and vigilance, the golden eagle was nicknamed “the lord of the skies.” Its feathers are wide, dark brown, and its wingspan reaches three meters.

Golden eagles live in the Siberian taiga on mountain slopes and along river valleys. Huge nests are built from thick branches on rocks or tall trees inaccessible to predatory animals. The “lords of the skies” have a strong guttural scream: “kyek-kyek-kyek...” They soar in the skies for hours, hunting for Arctic foxes, wood grouse, and hares. If a golden eagle sees a wolf, it will chase and claw it. In a word, the golden eagle is a brave, strong and vigilant taiga predator.

Owl

In the deep, dense taiga wilds, in the dark wilderness of the night, an eagle owl hooted loudly. The mice, gnawing on cedar cones, immediately rushed to run into different sides, rustling pine needles and fallen leaves.
The winged predator, having caught the rustle, smoothly flew after its prey. A quick, sudden landing - and the mouse is in his sharp claws. With the prey, the eagle owl flies to its nest, which is located in a ravine, in the crevice of an old stump. There, two yellow downy chicks are eagerly waiting for him.

In pitch darkness, the eagle owl, the largest owl, sees and hears well. It has large orange-red eyes, a strong hooked beak, and two tufts of feathers protruding from the sides of its head - sensitive “ears”. The flight of the nocturnal winged predator is silent. Hooting and laughing loudly at night throughout the entire forest area: “Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!”, the eagle owl scares and claws crows and hares, and hunts rodents: mice and rats.

Capercaillie

The largest bird living in old coniferous forests with berry patches and mosses is the capercaillie. If wood grouse are not disturbed and trees in their nesting areas are not cut down, then they will settle there for tens or hundreds of years. They feed on berries, grass seeds, pine needles, buds, peck fragrant resin, catch various insects, and along the banks of rivers and streams they swallow small pebbles. Pebbles, like millstones, help grind food in their stomachs.

In the spring, as soon as the snow begins to melt in the taiga, the swelling buds smell sweet and intoxicating, and the warm southern wind hums in the tops of the cedars, large, dignified wood grouse roosters sit on high branches and begin to sing their soulful songs - to display. In the taiga at this time it is still dark and quiet. But suddenly, from somewhere above, from the pre-dawn darkness, from the shaggy cedar paws, a light click is heard: “Buck!” and a wonderful song begins to sound. Tokuya, the handsome “taiga rooster,” whose dark plumage has a metallic sheen, spreads his tail like a fan, lowers his mighty brown wings, stretches his neck upward, raises his scarlet eyebrows and ruffles his black “beard.” It is not for nothing that the capercaillie, the same age as the ancient elephant – the mammoth, is popularly called the “king bird”. And his song is special! At the beginning there is a dull clicking: “Teke-Tek, Teke-Tek,” and then sharpening, as if with a knife on a block: “Scream, squeak, squeak...” At the end of this selfless song, the capercaillie stops hearing anything and goes deaf. Apparently that's why they called him that. But the capercaillie has a keen eye!

Crow

The raven is black as soot in a furnace. Its dense, strong feather casts a dark purple steel sheen in the sun. Of the large raven “black” family - jackdaws, crows, magpies, rooks - the raven is the largest, most dignified bird with a strong, thick beak and sharp claws. Crows build nests in coniferous forests, on tall spruce and cedar trees, and on rock ledges. Their flight is free and smooth. Easily, as if jokingly, they overcome long distances.

In the mornings, the crows go for prey. With a keen eye they will examine every path and ravine in the taiga, and examine the banks of rivers. If they notice carrion: the remains of an elk knocked down by a bear, or dead fish on the shore, they will immediately notify their relatives about it. Loud, guttural, inviting cries will be heard from the heavens: “Krruk!”, “Krruk!”