Oklan

The Oklan (Russian: Оклан; Koryak: Ыӄлан) is a river in Kamchatka Krai, Russia. The length of the river is 272 kilometres (169 mi) and the area of is drainage basin 12,600 square kilometres (4,900 sq mi).[1] It is the second most important tributary of the Penzhina after the Belaya.

Oklan
Оклан / Ыӄлан
Oklan is located in Kamchatka Krai
Oklan
Mouth location in Kamchatka Krai
Location
CountryRussia
Federal subjectKamchatka Krai
DistrictPenzhinsky District
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationIchigem Range
Koryak Highlands
 • coordinates63°34′36″N 163°43′03″E
 • elevation540 metres (1,770 ft)
MouthPenzhina
 • coordinates
62°33′11″N 166°32′50″E
 • elevation
23 metres (75 ft)
Length272 km (169 mi)
Basin size12,600 km2 (4,900 sq mi)
Discharge 
 • average138 m3/s (4,900 cu ft/s)

The name of the river comes from the Koryak "yalan" (Ыӄлан), meaning "icy way".[2]

History

Russian Cossack explorers reached the Oklan river basin in the 17th century and built the Aklansk fort. The fort was abandoned in 1804. At that time the indigenous Koryaks were engaged in reindeer herding and fishing. The settlement was revived in the 20th century as a state farm dedicated to reindeer-breeding.[3]

Course

The Oklan has its source in Mount Stolovaya, located in the western part of the Ichigem Range, at the NW end of the Koryak Highlands. It flows roughly eastwards along the southern limits of the range area, descending into a swampy floodplain with numerous small lakes where it splits into branches. Finally it meets the right bank of the Penzhina 97 km (60 mi) from its mouth in the Bering Sea.[4][5][3]

The river is fed mainly by snow and freezes in October, staying under thick ice until May. The melting of the ice in the river valley continues during the summer period. The main tributaries of the Oklan are the 62 km (39 mi) long Khayoklam (Хайоклан) from the right and the 91 km (57 mi) long Bolshoy Chalbugchan (Хайоклан) from the left.[1]

Basin of the Penzhina with its two main tributaries

Flora and fauna

The Oklan river basin is characterized by discontinuous permafrost with tundra vegetation, including mosses, lichens, dwarf shrubs, and sedges.[6] There are birches and poplars growing along the river banks in the floodplain.[3]

Among the fish species in the river the pike and the grayling deserve mention.[3]

See also

References
  1. "Река Оклан in the State Water Register of Russia". textual.ru (in Russian).
  2. Leontiev V.V. , Novikova K.A. Toponymic dictionary of the North-East of the USSR / scientific. ed. G. A. Menovshchikov ; FEB AS USSR . North-East complex. Research Institute. Lab. archeology, history and ethnography. - Magadan: Magadan . book. publishing house , 1989. - S. 290. - 456 p. — ISBN 5-7581-0044-7
  3. Water of Russia - Оклан
  4. "Топографска карта P-57_58 - Topographic USSR Chart (in Russian)". Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  5. Google Earth
  6. V. Yu. Neshataeva, Vegetation cover of the North of the Kamchatka Okrug (Kamchatsky Krai) and its geobotanical zoning // Ecology and geography of plants and plant communities: Proceedings of the IV International Scientific Conference. - Yekaterinburg, 2018. - April 16. — ISBN 978-5-7741-0341-6
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