On October 2, the Sumy Regional Council established a new local entomological reserve named “Urochyshche Sontsevykiv” (literally, “The Tract of the Sontsevyks”). Located on the outskirts of the city of Sumy, within the Striłka river system, the reserve spans 5.7 hectares.
Members of the Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group (UNCG) have initiated the establishment this and many other new protected areas. Currently, this process is extremely slow in many regions. For example, the petition for this particular reserve was under review for over four years after we submitted it.
In the Sumy region, over 85% of meadows and steppes have been plowed. This makes the remaining areas particularly valuable, as they preserve crucial meadow-steppe species of plants and animals.
Among the rare species identified here is the very rare butterfly, the large skipper (Heteropterus morpheus). You can also find the European green toad (Bufotes viridis), the grass snake (Natrix natrix), the sand lizard (Lacerta agilis), the European bee-eater (Merops apiaster), the Eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops), and the common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus). Species protected under the Emerald Network include the scarce copper butterfly (Lycaena virgaureae), the grey-headed woodpecker (Picus canus), the bluethroat (Luscinia svecica), the red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio), and the Syrian woodpecker (Dendrocopos syriacus).
We thank the Sumy Regional Council for their delayed, but correct, decision, despite the long wait. We also extend our congratulations to our colleagues!
We hope this doesn’t halt the pace of protected area establishment in the Sumy region. Several other sites are still awaiting approval.
