In the Moscow part of the Losiny Ostrov National Park, six young white hares were released. The event was part of the work to restore rare animal species with the support of the Moscow Government and the Department of Nature Management and Environmental Protection (https://www.mos.ru/eco/).
The white hare is one of the indigenous species of the Losiny Ostrov fauna. Today, its numbers have decreased here. According to experts, this happened about 25 years ago due to viral infections. The species is listed in the Red Book of the city of Moscow.
"Last year, the Department of Nature Management and Environmental Protection of the capital, together with the scientific community, conducted a unique ecological and biological survey of the territory of the Moscow part of the Losiny Ostrov National Park. Scientists discovered more than 1.5 thousand species of plants and animals. Today's event on the release of the mountain hare is dedicated to the restoration and conservation of rare species. The natural environment of Losiny Ostrov is suitable for the mountain hare, it will be good here, since it is a forest species and the park has all the conditions for it to survive, reproduce and its population to become sustainable. The return of animals to the natural environment became possible thanks to the systematic work of the rehabilitation center and scientific support. We hope that monitoring with camera traps will confirm the successful adaptation of the hares, and the data from genetic analysis will help in further work to preserve the population," said Natalya Chukhrayeva, Deputy Director of the State Nature Conservation Center.
The hares released into the wild were born in the specialized rehabilitation center "Hare's House". Adult individuals who ended up there for various reasons regularly give birth to offspring. Grown-up animals adapted to independent life are released into a natural environment suitable for their survival.
Scientific support for the release of the white hares was provided by employees of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Before this, specialists took blood samples from the animals. The immune analysis data will allow us to study what infections the animals encounter during their lives, understand whether there are potential carriers of diseases dangerous to humans among them, and establish family ties in the future if new individuals are recorded in the park.
"Losiny Ostrov" is a unique natural complex, one of the main assets of Moscow. Rich biodiversity is preserved here, including due to systematic scientific work. Thus, in 2024, a large-scale ecological and biological survey was conducted in the park, in which more than 80 scientists from five scientific institutes took part. They identified over 1.5 thousand species of animals and plants. More than 200 of them are rare and protected. Based on the results of the survey, experts gave recommendations for supporting vulnerable animal species, and programs for the conservation and restoration of rare species were developed.
In addition, field research continues in Losiny Ostrov. In April, scientists began studying the biodiversity of water bodies using the Babaevsky Pond as an example. During the first surveys, specialists took samples of phyto- and zooplankton, and also selected benthic organisms living in the soil of the reservoir.
Source: mos.ru