A wonderful herbaceous plant, the lotus is found in a vast territory - from Australia to the Far East. Despite the impressive range and ancient history of the species, due to environmental problems, this amazing flower has become a rarity in nature. Therefore, the discovery by Russian scientists of new lakes with blooming lotuses became a real sensation.
Topographic maps of the Khabarovsk Territory were enriched with two new lakes, the existence of which was unknown until recently. This became possible thanks to the scrupulous study of photographs from space by researchers.
Much credit for the sensational discovery belongs to Maria Kryukova, a leading researcher at the Institute of Water and Environmental Problems of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, who has been specially engaged in the study of lotus plants for many years. The expert was interested in how reservoirs with blooming relic flowers look from the height of the earth's orbit.
It turned out that lotus lakes are distinguished by a unique turquoise-blue color. In the process of studying space maps in the Vyazemka area, scientists were interested in two objects of a similar shade, which were presumably water bodies. The scientific expedition has confirmed the assumptions of biologists.
Ecologists are amazed: one of the most whimsical, capricious plants “slept” in polluted water bodies for decades. The revival of "flowers of purity" (this is how the lotus is called by representatives of some nationalities) was due to the decline in some agricultural work in the valley of the Amur River. This is how the biologists of the Far East explain the wonderful flowering of the lost lakes.
The lotuses of the Khabarovsk Territory have been preserved since the ancient geological era, and since then they have acquired excellent frost resistance. The stems of relict plants are immersed in the bottom substrate; on the water, the funnel-shaped petals quickly unfold and grow. One lotus blooms for only a few days, and the whole lake can please the eye for a month.
Local residents are ready to work as guides for those wishing to admire the miracle of nature. It is believed that he who sees the lotus bloom becomes happy for life. However, picking flowers is strictly prohibited - the local "Komarov's lotus" is listed in the Red Book. A torn flower will wither within two hours. Scientists are going to take new lotus lakes under constant surveillance.
