The lynx is a fairly large cat, it has a large round head with vertically standing triangular ears, decorated with long tassels of black hair, and powerful, thick legs. With such high legs, the lynx appears to be a cat with a shortened body. The Yakut lynx is the largest subspecies. Lynx feels good in our deciduous forests. She is an excellent tree climber. The paws are large and densely pubescent in winter, so it can easily walk through deep snow. There is a place where you can make a den - these are hollows of old trees, windbreaks, crevices. It feeds on hares, hunts young deer, musk deer, crushes rodents, foxes, catches hazel grouse, wood grouse, partridges - there is enough such food in our forests. Lynx hunts at dusk. Despite all the caution, the lynx is not very afraid of people. Lynx meat is not only edible, but even tasty. In Ancient Rus', lynxes were served on the princely table.

Lynx tracks are round and large. The manner of placing the paw is reminiscent of that of domestic cats. Lynx footprint without claw marks. If on shallow snow the chain of lynx tracks is a straight line, then on deep snow it is zigzag.

The next animal of interest is the sable. It ranks first in terms of skin value among the inhabitants of our Yakut taiga.

This is a small predator that has long been persecuted by humans because of its expensive fur. The sable's skin is covered with thick, silky hair that protects it from frost. The sable feels at ease in the vicinity of our village, since its typical habitat is the larch taiga. Sable is considered an indigenous inhabitant of our area. The animal makes several nests on its site. They are permanent and temporary. In bad weather or very severe frosts, the sable does not leave its shelter for several days. The sable is an omnivorous animal. Its main food is mice, pika, chipmunk, and among birds - hazel grouse and ptarmigan, which it catches while they spend the night in the snow, and especially persistently pursues hares. In addition to animal food, he readily eats lingonberries, rowan berries and especially loves blueberries. In our places where dwarf cedar grows, the sable eats their nuts, along with the shells. The sable hunts on the ground, but in case of danger it easily jumps onto a tree and escapes from pursuit by jumping from tree to tree and leaves, as the hunters say, “on horseback.” The sable has few enemies in nature - these are birds of prey, fox, wolf and lynx.

Direct observations of sable in the taiga are very difficult, since it is a very secretive animal. At first impression, the sable's footprint in the snow is very large, similar to a fox's. This is because the sable’s paws are heavily furred in winter, adapted to our severe frosts, and he does not curl his toes into a ball, but keeps them spread out. Rarely does a sable track go in a straight line. Usually the animal moves by inspecting holes and snags that come across its path, and climbs under the roots of trees or into cracks between stones. Sometimes it dives under the snow and walks considerable distances under it.

We managed to find a photograph of this animal from local hunters. This is a musk deer. Here's what we found out about her.

This is a small deer-like animal, the hind legs are long, the tail is short, there are no horns, and the males have long curved fangs. The musk deer's fur is thick and long, so it is not afraid of our frosts. An alarmed musk deer holds its ears vertically, and not spread to the sides, like a roe deer. The eyes glow yellowish-green at night. The vicinity of our village is a suitable place for musk deer to live, because it usually lives alone in the remote taiga with rocky outcrops, often near a stream or a small forest lake. It lays a dense network of paths on its site; in winter, these paths turn into deep trenches. Along the paths she quickly escapes pursuit. The musk deer is a magnificent jumper; escaping from its pursuer, it, like a hare, confuses its tracks. It is very difficult to see a musk deer, since in the places where it lives it is practically impossible for a person to pass, but it makes its way without difficulty, easily jumps over, and never slips. The musk deer feeds on lichens and also eats pine needles. Musk deer have many natural enemies. Often a lynx lies in wait for her to feed, and she is pursued by a wolverine and a fox. Males have a gland on their belly that secretes musk, the most expensive product of animal origin. It is used in perfumery and medicine. Musk deer are shy, timid, but very careless. They easily fall not only under the bullets of hunters, but also into snares, nooses, and various traps. With the advance of humans into coniferous forests, the number of musk deer decreases. It is listed in the Red Book of Russia. In the vicinity of our village you can find this unique animal.

During one of the classes, while exploring the surroundings of the village, we saw traces. Of course, we recognized them, because while studying the literature before, we read that this animal’s hind legs are longer than its front legs, this was clearly visible in the snow - these are the tracks of a white hare. The white hare is a typical northerner, adapted to existence in a cold climate. It has long, sharp, excellent teeth, which allows it to gnaw and chew rough food - branches of trees and bushes, even frozen through. He has wide, densely pubescent paws - snowshoes, his paws - snowshoes - are clearly imprinted on the snow, they are very reminiscent of children's shoes with small heels. For the winter, he acquires a wonderful warm snow-white fur coat, which hides and warms him. The hare feels great in the vicinity of our village, as it loves flat and hilly places with thickets of forests and bushes. He loves his home very much - the habitat where he was born and raised. The hare usually feeds at night and lies down during the day. Walking from the feeding place to the resting place, he diligently confuses his tracks, making “doubles”, that is, he turns and follows his own trail back, we also observed this in the forest - this is a mandatory ritual on the way to the resting place. At the end of the "double" the hare always makes a smart move - as if he flies away from his trail, breaking it with one jump to the side by 2-3 meters, digs a hole and lies there. He sees well, his senses are good, his hearing is excellent, and he sleeps lightly. The hare has plenty of enemies: a wolf, a lynx, a wolverine, birds of prey, and even a crow tries to attack him. The white hare has long been a favorite object of hunting. Hunters in our village also catch it using loop fishing.

And here are some more traces! This animal was running across the clearing. Following the tracks deep into the forest, we discovered many more such tracks. But here he was digging up something. Who is this? After reading the literature and observing, we found out that these are traces of a pika from the order Lagomorpha. This is a small animal with short legs, rounded ears, and a tail invisible from the outside. The color of pikas is brown. Winter fur is longer and thicker. The voice is a sharp ringing squeak, similar to the cry of a woodpecker. Active at any time of the day, but most often during the day. The surrounding area of ​​our village is a convenient habitat for pikas, as they love rocky mountain slopes near forests, bushes and grassy areas. Uses herbaceous plants, shrubs, berries, seeds, mosses, lichens, and cap mushrooms for food. For the winter, the pika prepares a supply of food. Stozhkov does not make food and hides food reserves under the canopies of stones, under the roots of trees and in the cracks between them, which means she dug out her supplies under the roots of the trees. In the past it was hunted as a fur-bearing animal. The main natural enemies of the pika are weasel, ermine, sable, and birds of prey.

We received interesting information from literature, observations and about the life of birds. Here is one of the most common birds in our taiga - the nutcracker.

This is a small bird, brown in color with large streaks scattered throughout the body. Her beak is large, strong, thin and sharp. With this, the nutcracker deftly extracts nuts from the pine cone. The legs are tenacious, with strong toes and long claws. We watched as she sat at the very top of the larch and looked down with curiosity; noticing us, she loudly welcomed our appearance. We learned that this bird makes a variety of sounds. The surroundings of our village are favorable for the habitat of the nutcracker, as it needs coniferous forest, rocks and mountain elfin wood. It feeds on cedar seeds, hence the name of the bird; it has the habit of hiding seeds in secluded places in reserve. In winter, she finds them and digs them up. While exploring the winter forest, we found places where the nutcracker dug up its reserves. But the bird then does not remember about most of the “storehouses”, and the seeds subsequently germinate. Mass destruction of pine nuts causes harm to nutcrackers. But the benefits from it are enormous! The nutcracker is the only mass distributor of cedar - after all, pine nuts, unlike the seeds of other conifers, are not carried by the wind. Forest burnt areas and wastelands are re-overgrown with cedar only with the help of this mobile, noisy bird.

One of the tit species that lives in our village is the brown-headed tit.

Her back is brown, she has a black cap on her head, and there is a spot on her throat like a goatee. The beak is short and thick. Brown chickadees call to each other with ringing voices. Since the beginning of March, their song has become louder. They love our larch forests, the proximity of forest streams, rivers and swamps. It nests in tree hollows and rotten stumps. Brown chickadees are very active and even fidgety: they won’t sit still for a minute. They scurry deftly through the tree branches. Her black little eyes vigilantly look out for prey. She feeds on every little thing and, looking for food from morning to evening, manages to fill her stomach well. Only in winter, in frosts and snowstorms, do the birds have a bad time. They then hide in dense thickets, where wind and snow do not penetrate. In autumn and spring they appear near human habitation, so we can now see them and hear their sonorous songs. If you hang a feeder, they will fly in to feed.

Here is another permanent inhabitant of our forests. This is a common spotted woodpecker.

The spotted woodpecker is a small bird, slightly larger than a starling. There is a large white round spot on the wing, the back is black, the sides are white, and the young have a red cap on their head. The legs are four-toed - two toes forward, two toes back. We watched him fly - wave-like, after every few strokes he folds his wings, flies down, and then gains altitude again. We met a woodpecker in a coastal forest, they apparently have a hollow there, because every time we observed them in almost the same place, this means that in winter the woodpecker has permanent habitats. The drumming was heard from afar. He accompanied us through the forest with his harsh voice. In summer, the woodpecker feeds on tree insects - beetles, longhorned beetles, bark beetles and collects ants on the ground, in winter - on seeds of coniferous trees. It turns out that the woodpecker drinks birch sap in the spring, leaving neat small holes in the birch bark on the trunks. The woodpecker is a sedentary bird. In winter, we observed only single birds, but already in early March we noticed that the woodpeckers had become much more sociable, they gathered in groups, drummed, and chased each other. This is one of the very useful birds of our forests; unlike other insectivorous species, it does not fly away for the winter, working all year round to destroy pests.

Another woodpecker lives in the vicinity of our village. But it is significantly different from the ordinary spotted woodpecker. This is a black woodpecker or yellow woodpecker.

Zhelna is a large, coal-black bird, the top of its head is bright red. The black woodpecker is a noisy bird, sometimes it “rejoices” and “laughs,” sometimes it suddenly “cries” protractedly, and in flight it makes a sharp cry. The spring shot is booming. Here it lives in larch forests, making a hollow at a height of 20 m. The black, white-eyed, red-headed yellowtail is one of the most noticeable and interesting birds. In winter, she loves to take a snow bath - swimming, diving in a snowdrift, showering her back with stars of snow. Zhelna is a trusting bird, she can let you come within 8-10 meters and give you the opportunity to observe herself, we managed to take advantage of Zhelna’s gullibility and see what a hard worker she is! In our forests there are many trees where longhorned beetle larvae, bark beetles, beetles, and large wood ants hide, so the sage patiently hollows them out, since this is its usual food. Having found a tree with a large supply of food, the female returns to it day after day. Zhelna, by destroying insects, benefits forestry. In forests it is also beneficial because it hollows out hollows in which forest animals and birds live for many years.

It was very interesting for us to observe another inhabitant of the outskirts of our village. First we found tracks. These were the tracks of a white partridge. This bird makes peculiar sounds. In winter, the snow-white partridge. In winter, the feathers are longer and the down is more developed. This is what we learned from scientific and journalistic literature, white feathers are devoid of pigment and contain air - a poor conductor of heat, so winter feathers better protect the partridge from the cold. Its legs are covered with thick feathers right down to its toes, even its feet are feathered and in winter resemble a hare's paw; long, flat claws develop on its toes, which help the bird run through loose snow and dig holes for rest. In summer it feeds on berries, and in winter mainly on birch and willow buds and fresh shoots. We watched the partridge feeding. The usual habitats of partridges are tundra, forest-tundra and moss swamps among the forest, but winter is a difficult time for partridges, as snow covers the berry fields, and in the mountains there are low-growing bushes. Due to lack of food, partridges begin to wander, gathering in flocks, so we can observe these birds in the vicinity of our village.

Every living organism in nature is found only where it finds all the conditions for life: warmth and light, protection from enemies, enough food and water. This is a habitat. A living organism feels at home in it, but in another place it may die. During the research work, we established that the habitats of animals and birds in the vicinity of our village depend on the natural and climatic features of the area; they adapt to existing conditions. Main adaptations: seasonal migration, accumulation of subcutaneous fat, storing supplies for the winter, thick fluffy fur and fluff, digging holes in the ground and in the snow, hibernation. To preserve animal and bird species, people need to know them. We must take care of the future of our village and the republic, take care and protect nature, because man and nature are one whole. And one cannot exist without the other!

Our work can be long-term; research can be carried out at other times of the year. And now we would like to show our presentation to elementary school students so that they know our little brothers. For Earth Day, we want to design a poster calling for respect for the environment.

I would like to end our speech with the words of the wonderful writer, connoisseur and nature lover Mikhail Prishvin:

For fish - water, for birds - air, for animals - forest, steppe, mountains. But a person needs a homeland. And protecting nature means protecting the Motherland!

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