Rafting on the Ural River in Kazakhstan and Russia -
The Ural, known as the Yaik until 1775, is a river flowing through Russia and Kazakhstan in Eurasia. It originates in the south of the Urals and flows into the Caspian Sea. At 2,428 kilometers (1,509 mi), it is the third longest river in Europe after the Volga and Danube, and the 18th longest river in Asia. The Ural River is conventionally considered part of the border between the continents of Europe and Asia.
The Ural River originates at Kruglaya Mountain in the Ural Mountains, flows south parallel to and west of the northern Tobol River, through Magnitogorsk, and around the southern end of the Urals, through Orsk, where it turns west for about 300 kilometers (190 mi). ), in Orenburg, when the Sakmara River flows. From Orenburg, it continues west, crosses into Kazakhstan, then turns south again in the Urals and wanders across a wide flat plain until it reaches the Caspian Sea a few miles below Atyrau, where it forms a shallow digital delta at (46°53'N 51°37'E).
Geography
The river begins at the slopes of Kruglaya Mountain in the Uraltau range in the Southern Urals, in the Uchalinsky district of Bashkortostan. There, it has an average width of 60 to 80 meters (200-260 ft) and flows like a typical mountain river. Then it falls into the Yaik swamp and expands to 5 kilometers (3 miles) after exiting. Below Verkhneuralsk, its course is typical for a plain river; there it enters the Chelyabinsk and Orenburg regions. From Magnitogorsk to Orsk, its shores are steep and rocky, and there are many cracks at the bottom.
After Orsk, the river turns sharply to the west and flows through a 45-kilometer (28 miles) long canyon in the Gubernia Mountains. After Uralsk, it flows from north to south through the territory of the West Kazakhstan region and Atyrau region of Kazakhstan. There, the river widens and has many lakes and channels. Near the mouth, it splits into the Yaik and Golden distribution and forms extensive wetlands. The distribution of the Egg is shallow, there are almost no trees on the shores, and it is rich in fish; whereas the Golden One is deeper and more navigable.
The Ural River has an impressive tree-like (or "digital") the delta shape (see image). This type of delta naturally forms in slow rivers that deliver large amounts of precipitation and flow into the calm sea. In the delta, 13.5 kilometers (8.4 miles) from the mouth of the Golden Distribution Strait lies Shalyga Island, which is 2.5 kilometers (1.6 miles) long, 1 to 2 meters high and 0.3 kilometers wide. (980 feet).
The tributaries located upstream are Kushum, Derkul, Chagan, Irtek, Utva, Ilek (major on the left), Bolshaya Chobda, Kindel, Sakmara, Tanalyk (major on the right), Salmys, Or (major on the left) and Suunduk.
According to the most authoritative sources, the entire length of the Ural River is considered the Europe-Asia border. Rarely, the smaller, shorter Emba River is declared a continental border, but this pushes "Europe" much further into "Central Asian" Kazakhstan. The bridge over the Ural River in Orenburg is even marked with permanent monuments, on one of which the word "Europe" is carved, on the other - "Asia". Despite this, Kazakhstan has some European territory and is sometimes a member of European political and sports organizations.
Hydrography
The river is mainly fed by snowmelt (60-70%); the contribution of precipitation is relatively small. Most of its annual flow (65%) occurs during spring floods, which occur in March and April near the mouth and in late April to June upstream; 30% runoff in summer and autumn and 5% in winter. During flooding, the river widens to more than 10 kilometers (6 miles) in the Uralsk area and to several tens of kilometers in the mouth area.
The water level is highest in late April upstream and in May downstream. Its fluctuations range from 3 to 4 meters (10 to 13 ft) in the upper reaches, from 9 to 10 meters (30 to 33 ft) in the middle of the river and about 3 meters (10 ft) in the delta. The average water flow is 104 cubic meters per second (3,700 cubic feet per second) in the Orenburg region and 400 cubic meters per second (14,000 cubic feet per second) in the village of Kushum, which is 76.5 kilometers (47.5 miles) from the mouth.
The maximum flow rate is 14,000 cubic meters per second (490,000 cubic feet per second), and the minimum is 1.62 cubic meters per second (57 cubic feet per second). The average turbidity is 280 grams per cubic meter (0.47 lb/cubic meter). Yard) in Orenburg and 290 grams per cubic meter (0.49 lb/ cubic meter) near Kushum. The river freezes at the source in early November, and in the middle and lower reaches - at the end of November. It opens in the lower reaches at the end of March and in early April in the upper reaches. The ice passage is relatively short.
The average depth ranges from 1 to 1.5 meters (3 to 5 feet) near the source, and it increases in the middle current and especially near the mouth. The density of underwater vegetation also increases from the source to the mouth, as well as the richness of the animal world. The bottom in the upper reaches is rocky, with pebbles and sand; it turns into silt-sand and occasionally clay downstream. The river basin is asymmetrical - its left side of the river is 2.1 times larger than the right side; however, the right side is more important for feeding the river. The density of tributaries is 0.29 km/km2 in the right part and 0.19 km/ km2 in the left part of the basin. The right tributaries are typical mountain rivers, while the left tributaries have a flat character.
Approximately 200 kilometers (120 miles) from the mouth there is a dangerous place for navigation called Kruglovskaya Gap (in Russian: Kruglovskaya gap, which means Kruglovskaya abyss). Here the river narrows and creates a strong vortex over a deep pit. The climate is continental with frequent and strong winds. The typical annual rainfall is 530 millimeters (21 inches).
Fauna
Wetlands in and near the Ural River Delta are especially important for migratory birds, as they are an important stop on the Asian flyway. Many endemic and endangered species live here, such as the great white pelican, Dalmatian pelican, great cormorant, cattle egret, little egret, great flamingo, white duck, ferruginous duck, Eurasian spoonbill, glossy ibis, bustard bustard, great black-headed gull, thin-beaked gull, squash heron, common crane, beauty crane, curly-haired with thin beaks, black stork, red-bellied goose, white-fronted goose, small kestrel, whooping swan, tundra swan, osprey, pale harrier, short toothed eagle and many others. The pygmy cormorant was observed sporadically until 1999 and more regularly thereafter. The cattle heron has been observed since 1990 between April and September (like most other migratory birds in the area), with a total population of several dozen pairs. It feeds on frogs, shellfish and small fish. Upstream, there are more bird species such as grouse, wild pigeon and partridge.
The Ural River is also important for the many fish species of the Caspian Sea that visit its delta and migrate upstream to spawn. There are 47 species from 13 families in the lower reaches of the river. The family Cyprinidae accounts for 40%, sturgeon and herring make up 11%, perch and herring 9% and salmon 4.4%. The main commercial species are sturgeon, roach, bream, perch, carp, aspen and welsh. Rare species include Caspian salmon, sterlet, white salmon and kutum.
About 48 species of animals belonging to 7 orders live in the river delta and nearby areas; the most common are rodents (21 species) and predators (12). Among them, serotine and the marbled ferret of Bobrinsky are endemic. The key species are the raccoon dog, muskrat (recently introduced), European hare, house mouse, brown rat and wild boar. In 2000, wild boars had a density of 1.2–2.5 per hectare, and they are hunted for commercial purposes. Others include moose, fox, wolf, dwarf thick-tailed carcass, gerbil, northern mole and saiga antelope. The Turkmen kulan (Equus hemionus kulan) lived on the Ural River. They may have become extinct from this region.
Reptiles are represented by marsh turtles, common water snakes, rat snakes and sand lizards. Marsh turtles are found in all waters. Common water snakes live on the banks of the canals. Rat snakes and sand lizards are few in number and inhabit relatively high land areas. Two more reptiles, the Caspian whip and the snake, are extremely rare. The lake frog and the green frog are common among amphibians.
Approximately 5,000 to 10,000 insect species outperform all other animals in the region in terms of diversity and biomass. Terrestrial and aquatic insects make up a significant part of the birds' diet. Many species parasitize birds and transmit the infection. Other dominant inhabitants of the river are protozoa, rotifers, cladocerans, and copepods. Mollusks are mainly represented by gastropods and bivalves.
Industry
Water from the upper reaches of the Ural River is used to supply the famous Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, built in the early 30s) and Orsko-Khalilovsky metallurgical plants, and the lower reaches are used for irrigation. Two reservoirs were created near Magnitogorsk, and in the area of the village of Iriklinskaya there is a hydroelectric power station with a corresponding reservoir.
There is another reservoir below Uralsk and the Kushumsky Canal. The river flows to Uralsk, and there is a port in Atyrau. Fishing is well developed; commercial fish species include sturgeon, perch, herring, bream, carp, and catfish. The Ural River Delta accounts for about half of the watershed in Kazakhstan. Agriculture is also widespread, especially the cultivation of melons and watermelons. Atyrau is a major oil producing center of Kazakhstan.
Etymology
The river was named δάϊκος (Daïkos) By Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD. Julian Kulakovsky reads this as the Turkic "Jajyk" or "Yaik" and on this basis identifies the Huns as Turkic-speaking. However, Gerard Clauson disputes that the name could have had a Turkic origin as early as the 2nd century, and instead attributes it to the Sarmatian origin. The name Yayıq is currently used in Bashkir and Zhayıq in Kazakhstan. In later European texts, he is sometimes referred to as Rhymnus fluvius, and in the Russian chronicle of 1140 as Yaik. Russian Russian name of the river was given to the Ural River in 1775 by Catherine II of Russia.
History
In the X-XVI centuries, the city of Sarai-Zhuk (or Saraychik, which means "little Barn") on the Ural River (now in the Atyrau region of Kazakhstan) was an important trading center on the Great Silk Road. In the 13th century, it became a stronghold of the Golden Horde. It was destroyed in 1395 by Timur's army, but then rebuilt and became the capital of the Nogai Horde in the 15th and 16th centuries. In 1580, the Ural Cossacks finally turned it into a village.
After the Russian conquest of the Ural basin at the end of the 16th century. The Ural shores became a home for the Yaik Cossacks. One of their main activities was fishing for sturgeon and related fish (including true sturgeon, star sturgeon, and beluga) in the Ural River and the Caspian Sea. Russian Russians used a wide variety of fishing methods; the most famous of them were bagrenye (in Russian: bagrenye, from bagor, in Russian: bagor, which means "pike"): to breed wintering sturgeons in their underwater dens in the middle of winter. Bagrenye was allowed only on one day of the year.
On the appointed day, a large number of Cossacks gathered on the shore with sticks; after the signal was given, they rushed onto the ice, broke it with poles, pierced and pulled out the fish. Another way to catch fish was to build a dam across the river, known as uchug (uchug), to catch fish going upstream to spawn. Until 1918, a pond was created near Uralsk in the summer and autumn so that fish would not go upstream beyond the borders of the land of the Cossacks. While uchug dams were also famous in the Volga Delta, bagrenye was considered a unique Ural technique.
The Ural Cossacks (originally known as the Yaik Cossacks) resented the central government's attempts to impose rules and regulations on them, and in some cases rebelled. The largest uprising, the Pugachev Uprising of 1773-75, swept not only the Urals, but also most of the south-east of Russia and led to the loss of state control there. After its suppression, Empress Catherine issued a decree on January 15, 1775, renaming most of the places involved in the uprising in order to erase the memory of it. Thus, the Yaik River and the city of Yaitsk were renamed Ural and Uralsk, respectively, and the Yaik Cossacks became the Ural Cossacks.
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