“NAPP-phantoms” of the south of European Russia: problems of functioning

Using the example of the protected areas of regional significance of the Volgograd region “Protected landscape “Sviridovsky Lakes”, the problems of the functioning of protected areas in the conditions of degradation of the natural complex are considered. The concept of “NAPP-phantom” is proposed - a protected natural area that is unable to perform environmental tasks due to a radical change in natural conditions and the loss of biota components, for the protection of which the protected area was created. The protected area under consideration is located in the floodplain of the Chir River, the right tributary of the Don. Due to climatic changes in the Don basin in the last two decades, there has been a steady trend towards a decrease in the amount of winter precipitation, and as a consequence - a decrease in the height of floods. Moisture-loving landscapes of floodplains are xerophitized, and many lakes cease to fill with water. The hydrological and hydrogeological conditions of the existence of the Chir floodplain are analyzed. During the entire existence of the protected areas (since 2009), the lakes have been filled with water only twice. The protected landscape is organized to protect clusters of near-water birds, including species listed in the Red Book. But in the absence of lakes, these bird species cannot live here. The return of lakes to their original state of annual filling with water in high water is possible only with a significant change in the amount and intra-annual distribution of precipitation. It can be stated that the protected landscape “Sviridovsky Lakes” has completely lost the function of preserving the rich fauna of near-water birds, including those included in the Red Book. However, the task of using the territory of the NAPP for research and environmental education purposes is feasible. When organizing regular monitoring of protected areas, it can serve as a good example of successional changes in floodplain landscapes of the Don basin under changing climate and hydrological conditions.