Kaluga Oblast lies in the central part of the
East European Plain. The oblast's territory is located between the
Central Russian Upland (with and average elevation of above and a maximum elevation of in the southeast), the
Smolensk–Moscow Upland, and the
Dnieper–
Desna watershed. Most of the oblast is occupied by plains, fields, and forests with diverse flora and fauna. The administrative center is located on the Baryatino-Sukhinichy plain. The western part of the oblast — located within the drift plain — is dominated by the Spas-Demensk ridge. To the south is an
outwash plain that is part of the Bryansk-Zhizdra woodlands, with average elevation up to 200 m. From north to south, Kaluga Oblast extends for more than , from 53°30′ to 55°30′ north latitude, and east to west – for 220 km. Its area is . The oblast's territory is crossed by major international motor and railways, linking Kaluga with Moscow,
Bryansk,
Kyiv,
Lviv and
Warsaw. Kaluga Oblast borders on: •
Bryansk Oblast to the south-west •
Oryol Oblast to the south •
Tula Oblast to the east •
Moscow Oblast to the north-east •
Smolensk Oblast to the north-west • the federal city of Moscow (from July 1, 2012)
Climate The climate of Kaluga Oblast is moderately
continental with distinct seasons: warm and humid summers, and cold winters with stable snow-cover. The average temperature in July is in north and in south, and in January in northeast and in southwest. The duration of the warm period (with the average temperatures above zero) is 215–220 days. The territory of the oblast is exposed to a substantial amount of
solar radiation — around 115 Kcal per cm2. The average annual air temperature varies from in the north and the north-east to up to in the west and the east of the oblast. The duration of the frost-free season is 113 to 127 days. The northern part of the oblast is the coldest, while the central part is moderately cold. In the south, in the zone of forest steppes, the climate is relatively warm. Precipitation is distributed unevenly, varying from in the north and the west and up to in the south.
Hydrography flowing through the oblast near
Borovsk The
Oka is the main river in the oblast's river system. Other rivers include the
Ugra, the
Zhizdra, the
Protva, and the
Vorya. Large lakes:
Bezdon and
Svyatoye.
Vegetation the total area occupied by forests is around 1,380,000 ha (, 46% of the territory of the oblast). As of the beginning of 2005, agricultural lands occupied an area of 1,350,000 ha (, 44% of the territory). The main crops grown include forage cereals, potatoes, vegetables, and feed grains (
wheat,
barley,
rye,
oats,
buckwheat), and
fiber-flax.
Fauna Mammals include typical forest animals:
brown bear,
lynx,
elk,
beaver,
wolf, polar hare, and
squirrel. The south of the oblast is sometimes visited by bison that were recently released into the
Orlovskoye Polesye national park. Aquatic fauna includes two kinds of
lamprey and 41 species of
bony fish. The diversity of fish is explained by the variety of habitats. Among 11 kinds of amphibians, the most common are crested and common
newts, red-bellied, common and green
toads, and various lake, pool, moor and grass
frogs. Reptiles are represented by 7 species, including snakes: the venomous
adder and the harmless
water snake and smooth
snake. There are 267 types of birds registered as visiting the oblast, including 177 to nest, 58 to migrate and 32 to occasionally transit. The most significant bird-of-prey habitats are located in the
Kaluzhskiye Zaseki Nature Reserve and the interfluve of the
Vytebet and the
Resseta. The largest populations are: waterfowl -
mallard; semi-aquatic –
black-headed gull; in forest –
chaffinch,
chiffchaff; along river banks –
sand martin; in settlements –
feral pigeon,
common swift,
rook,
tree sparrow.
Conservation and ecological condition According to the governmental report
On the Status of the Environment and Its Conservation in the Russian Federation published by the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Kaluga Oblast is one of the most ecologically pure regions of the Central Federal District. There are several successful eco-settlements: the nature reserve Kaluzhskiye Zaseki, the
Ugra National Park, the Tarusa natural reserve, and the Kaluzhski Bor natural sanctuary. The
Chernobyl disaster resulted in
radioactive contamination in the oblast's south and southwest. Radiation monitoring is conducted in nine districts. The radiation background complies with the established radiation situation. ==History==