Растительность Астрахани (английский язык - 8 класс)

Astrakhan. Vegetation and Wildlife

The main plants of the semi-desert vegetable cover are presented by various cereals, wormwood and the so-called “solyanki”. Volga- Akhtubinskaya flood-lands and the Volga delta are the great nature oasis. In the flood land there are meadows which are used as pasture and hay-mowing. Willow poplar woods occupy only river-bed territory. In delta we can find chilim and other exotic plants, the stems and roots of which form water “carpet”. Lotus is the pride Astrakhan region. It is considered a sacred flower because of its beauty and medicinal properties. There are a lot of reeds. They are used as raw materials for cellulose-cardboard industry.

In the 13^th century water melons were sown near Astrakhan for the first time. In October 1966 the Scientific Research Institute of Irrigated Vegetable Growing and Melon Cultivation was founded and sorts of water melons, melons and vegetable marrows were raised. The most popular vegetable culture is tomatoes. We can get tomato juice, paste, puree from this culture. In 1613 first vineyards appeared in Russia and in Astrakhan region. Then people began growing rice. Now apples, quince, grapes, strawberries and many other fruits are grown in our region.

The wildlife is rich and various. The Volga delta is called “ birds” hotel. Geese, ducks, snipes, sea – gulls fill up the land. air and water. One of the most interesting birds is remez. It is a very small bird and its nest is often hung above water. It looks like a mitten. The other interesting bird is a pelican. It feeds on fish and other water animals. The most beautiful bird we can find is a swan.

The Volga delta is rich in hares, foxes, raccoons, wild – boars, and saigaks. We can meet also a wolf. It is a wood attendant. But the main valuable richness is fish such as sturgeon, carp, zander, pike, sheatfish etc. People all over the world like our black caviar.

New words:

cover - покров

cereal - злак

wormwood - полынь

hay mowing - сенокос

willow - ива

poplar -тополь

stem - стебель

space -пространство

sacred -священный

property - свойство

snipe - кулик

valuable - ценный

raccoon - енот

wild – boar - кабан

sturgeon - осётр

zander - судак

pike – щука

sheatfish - сом

river bed – русло реки

attendant - санитар