Altai State University scientists study nature together with schoolchildren of Altai Krai
In early July, children from the Vita school forestry of the Solonovskaya school in the Novichikhinsky district, together with biologists of Altai State University, explored the territory of the Lake Pesyanoe natural monument of regional significance.
The mini-expedition took place within the framework of two projects: “Practical Science for Schoolchildren. University Level” of Ecoclub, which received support from the Presidential Grants Foundation, and “Let's Save the Pesyanoye Lake Nature Monument Together”.
Nastya Chukavina, 9th-grade student, shares her impressions:
“The expedition helped me to expand my knowledge in biology. Particularly exciting was the excursion with Tatyana Kopytina, an employee of the South Siberian Botanical Garden, Candidate of Biological Sciences, who taught us not only how to lay a herbarium of the plants we encountered, but also how to identify them. Especially memorable were our Siberian orchids - early marsh-orchid and marsh helleborine. Together with my friend Angela Khanzhinova, we prepared passports for about 150 plants and we will continue to collect herbarium and identify species".
Victor Tuchin, 7th-grade student:
“I have learned so many surprising and interesting things during these days from Elena Kuchina, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Ecology and Physiology, about the world of invertebrate insects, about the peculiarities of their structure, lifestyle, and significance in nature. Together with Yulia Chukavina, we skillfully collected insects and collected about 80 insect specimens for the future school collection. I learned about different types of dragonflies, butterflies, how the species differ among themselves. And most of all we were surprised by the large accumulation of antlions ant larvae, which we found during the entomological excursion. It turns out that there are few such places in Altai Krai".
Sergey Fancheli, 9th-grade student:
“I remember most of all the excursions with Viktor Petrov, Associate Professor of the Department of Biological Sciences, who taught us to recognize different types of gulls by color and flight. We were able to hear the voices of birds: warblers, orioles, pipit, yellowhammer, and rosefinch. On our way we met nests of the great spotted eagle, listed in the Red Book of Russia, and of the common species - the gray heron, as well as two whole colonies of gulls”.
We are grateful for the research expedition of biologists who came to us and helped us to learn the amazing things next to us, and to decide on new topics of research and projects.
They are amazed by their hard work, professional skills, love for all living things and a great desire to help us, schoolchildren, to understand the nature around us. We are looking forward to the next meetings!
We are grateful for the cooperation of the gamekeeper of the Egoryevsky reserve Alexander Tuev for the excursion to the places of growth of the Red Book species of the lady's shoe, the driver of the Novichikha Forrest company Evgeny Shiller (Head – A. Tratonin) for providing transport and delivery of food, Alexandr Bykov - chief economist of the Novichikha Forrest company - for organizational measures during the expedition, Zakhar Poluekov and his cooks for preparing delicious meals.
During the expedition, the sanitary and epidemiological rules were observed in the current situation regarding coronavirus infection: wearing mask, social distance, disinfection of hands and household items.
