Station Manager:
Elena D. Lapshina

Collaborator in the project until spring 2022

STATION NAME AND OWNER

The Numto Park Station belongs to the UNESCO Chair on Environmental Dynamics and Climate Change at the Yugra State University, Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.

LOCATION

The Numto Park Station is located in Western Siberia (south of Yamal Peninsula), c. 300 km south of the mouth of the Ob River in the regional park “Numto” (63°42’ N, 70°54’ E).

HISTORY AND FACILITIES

The Numto Park Station is a newly built station at the location of the old meteorological station of Roshydromet. The station was officially opened in 2011 and welcomes guests from 2012 on. It has basic field accommodation and welcomes foreign and national guests for research cooperation and educational purposes. The station includes an automatic meteorological station.

BIODIVERSITY AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

The station is located at the southern margin of the forest tundra zone. The area includes frozen and unfrozen peatlands and mires (discontinuous permafrost). Typically, the landscape consists of raised flat palsas, fens, raised bogs, and numerous lakes which are partly the result of thermokarst. The higher parts, i.e. flat palsas, are underlain by permafrost. Between the palsas unfrozen fens and raised bogs (“ryam”) are present. Also some of the thermokarst lakes have been drained by thawing of permafrost and have changed into fen like vegetation. Numto Regional Park is famous for the high number of birds, both breeding and migrating species. It is a major stop-over area for migrating birds.

GENERAL RESEARCH AND DATABASES

The Numto Park Station is a site under development. Staff from Yugra State University (including specialists in vegetation science, climatology, and land classification) is involved in setting up and developing the station. One major research topic will be the effects of climate warming and permafrost thawing on the frozen and unfrozen peatland ecosystems. Breeding and migrating birds as well as other fauna are being monitored by rangers of the Numto Regional Park. The Numto Regional Park has historical meteorological and faunal data.

HUMAN DIMENSION

Small groups of indigenous people live in Numto Village and in the Numto Regional Park where they fish and hunt. Few families herd reindeers in isolated areas.

ACCESS

Numto Park Station is located near the small Numto Village, which can be reached by helicopter and 4WD car (snowmobile in winter). The nearest airports is in Surgut (200 km by normal and 100 km by dirt road). In winter, the station is easier to reach by winter roads. From the international airport Khanty-Mansiysk, the distance by helicopter is 260 km, by road 350-450 km (depending on the road). There is no summer road connection between the station and the nearest Numto Village.

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