On Friday, February 2, on World Wetlands Day, which is significant for the country and science, workers of the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve greeted Belarusians in the studio of the “New Morning” program of the RTR-BELARUS TV channel and dispelled some established myths about the swamp. In a conversation with the TV presenters of the morning program, the head of the scientific department of the reserve, Anastasia Ryzhkova, spoke about the value of swamps − the most important natural attraction of the protected area, and tourism specialist Alexander Volchek told viewers about various tour programs and excursions in the reserve, as well as to the protected swamps.
On the same day, a thematic seminar dedicated to this international environmental date was held at the reserve. The event was attended by specialists from four laboratories of the Institute of Experimental Botany named after V.F. Kuprevich of NAS of Belarus, as well as by the scientists of the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve.
After a welcoming speech by the director of the reserve Andrei Prokoshin, specialists from the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus presented reports on the implementation of the Ramsar Convention in the Republic of Belarus and on the results of swamp research.
Director of the Institute of Experimental Botany Dmitry Grummo and his deputy for scientific work Ruslan Tsvirko presented a new map of the reserve’s vegetation developed by their employees, the 4th volume of the fundamental publication “Flora of Belarus. Vascular plants" and a collection of scientific works on botany to the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve.
In response, Deputy Director for Research Valery Ivkovich transferred a sample of the rarest herbaceous fern - Cystopteris sudetica from the collection of the reserve’s scientific department to the herbarium fund of the Institute.
The scientists talked about the prospects and directions of joint research, discussed the issues of holding major international scientific events this and next year − a seminar on the vegetation of swamps and a youth school on forest phytocenology, which are planned to be held on the basis of the reserve. The participants of the current experience exchange seminar emphasized the great potential and mutual interest in further joint work.
As a result of the seminar, an agreement on cooperation in the field of scientific and technical research and environmental activities until 2030 will be concluded between State Institutions. The subject of the agreement will be the study and analysis of the species diversity of plants and fungi, the ecological relevance of certain groups of plant organisms; assessment of the status of populations of rare species of plants and fungi; study of the structure and distribution patterns of vegetation cover of the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve; studying the direction of successional processes in the phytocenoses of the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve and many other issues.
