10 interesting facts about the Black Sea – the most popular holiday destination

The Black Sea is one of the main recreational water bodies and the famous inland sea of ​​the world. This marginal sea of ​​the Atlantic Ocean, located between Eastern Europe and Western Asia, has long been legendary. It was popular not only because of its name, which denotes a rather inhospitable character, but also because of a number of unexpectedly unusual features.

For a long time it was called an unfriendly sea, and the lack of hospitality of this reservoir was due to difficulties in navigation. Ancient sailors considered the Black Sea a difficult area to navigate, as its shores were inhabited by wild tribes.

In addition, the anoxic nature of the Black Sea water, due to which the decomposition process is slow in the lower layers, has also led to several scary rumors, making the sea infamous.

However, over time, the image of the Black Sea as one of the most difficult water bodies to navigate has changed. Home to a rich and beautiful collection of flora and fauna and over ten small islands, it has become one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world.

We bring to your attention a list of 10 interesting facts about the Black Sea – the most popular holiday destination for Russian and foreign tourists.

10 Maritime history: the landing site of Noah’s Ark?

Historians claim that Noah’s ark rested on the slopes of Mount Ararat in Turkey after the flood ended. From time to time, maritime archaeologists have argued for and against these claims. However, due to the lack of reliable scientific evidence, this particular history of the Black Sea is still a matter of debate.

9. The most important transport route

According to customs statistics, maritime transport is leading in exports: “More than 90% of all grain exports are sent to destinations outside of Russia by sea‘, – said the expert of the Analytical Center Dmitry Chernenok at the 15th International Transport Forum “YugTrans-2019”

According to the expert, ports in the Azov and Black Seas are an important channel through which agricultural products are exported from Russia: they account for about 94% of all grain transported for export.

8. Had many names given by different nations

One of the little-known facts about the Black Sea is the origin of its name, which remains unclear. There are various theories about how this sea should be called. Theories suggest that before being called the Black Sea, the reservoir was called “inhospitable sea”, mainly due to the presence of wild tribes on its shores. As soon as the Greeks took over its coastline, the name was changed to “hospitable”.

There are also references to the fact that the sea was called simply “the sea” for a long time. However, it has been given many names over the centuries by different people, but the current name turned out to be the most famous one believed to have been given by the Turks in medieval times.

Historical documents suggest that during the Ottoman period, the Black Sea was called by such names as Black Sea or Be black, which means “Black Sea” in Ottoman Turkey.

7. Poor fauna compared to other seas

An intriguing fact about the Black Sea is its anoxic water. The Black Sea is the largest body of water with a meromic basin, which means that the movement of water between the lower and upper layers of the sea is rare. This creates a significant temperature difference between these layers, and also makes the lower layers completely free of oxygen and therefore inactive.

At the same time, the Black Sea receives fresh water from its rivers and sediments. However, this only indicates water transport from the Mediterranean. Since transport occurs in the Bosporus and Dardanelles, the inflow of dense water from the Mediterranean Sea occurs at the bottom of the basin, while the outflow of surface water from the Black Sea occurs near the surface of the basin.

Because the mixing between the two layers of water in the Black Sea is very low, marine life cannot survive in the anoxic zone of the Black Sea. Only the oxygen-rich surface waters of the Black Sea support the marine flora and fauna.

6. There are 10 islands in total

The Black Sea is home to many small islands. There are about ten of these islands.and they are an amazing repository of fauna and flora that make this sea even more unique.

These islands, mostly owned by countries such as Bulgaria, Ukraine, Turkey and Romania, also include Snake Island, which is located near the Danube Delta. St. Thomas Island in Bulgaria is also known for the presence of fish-eating gray water snakes in the waters surrounding the island.

Among other noteworthy islands in the Black Sea are St. Anastasia (Bulgaria), Berezan and Giresun (Turkey), St. Cyric (Bulgaria), Dzharylgach (Ukraine), etc. Most importantly, these islands in the Black Sea have become major tourist attractions.

5. In ancient times, there was a freshwater lake on the site of the sea.

According to some marine geologists, The Black Sea was a freshwater lake about 7000 years agobefore rising waters in the Mediterranean caused salt water to enter the lake.

According to this theory, many argue that the so-called flood is the catastrophic rise of water mentioned in the story of Noah’s Ark in the Bible.

4. “Knipovich glasses” – a pair of non-dangerous gyres in the sea

In the coastal areas of the Black Sea, anticyclonic cycles are observed – eddy currents directed against the main stream. They are most noticeable off the coast of the Caucasus and Anatolia. In these areas of the Black Sea, the direction of coastal currents is usually determined by the direction of the prevailing wind and can change several times a day.

3. Terrible rumors: the dead lie under water?

An intriguing and almost frightening fact is that the dead are believed to remain in the waters of the Black Sea for a long time. The remains of ships and people, as well as other degradable materials such as ropes, wood, etc., can still be found on the seabed hundreds of years after they entered the Black Sea.

As strange as this fact may sound, the scientific explanation is that due to the anoxic nature of the lower layers of the water of this sea, the decomposition process is very slow.

2. The sea dragon is one of the most dangerous inhabitants of the sea.

There are two types of sea dragons: the leafy sea dragon and the weak sea dragon.. Although both species of sea dragons have a similar body shape and size, they are very different in appearance.

The leafy seadragon is a master of camouflage, and the ability to hide among plants so easily means that the leafy seadragon is rarely eaten, despite the presence of numerous potential predators in the surrounding water.

The weak sea dragon doesn’t look as intricate as it has only a few feather fins along its back. The weak sea dragon has adapted to life on the sea floor, as these feathery (weed-like) fins help the sea dragon camouflage itself in the debris on the sea floor.

Despite their small size, sea dragons are predatory animals and therefore feed exclusively on meat.

1. The most popular among Russian tourists

The Black Sea coast is the most popular resort region of the Russian Federation. This is one of the few places on the sea coast suitable for summer holidays in Russia. A huge number of tourists from many regions of Russia come to the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory and Crimea every year.

Many nations prefer to spend their summer holidays on the Black Sea coast of Russia, despite the popularity of resorts in countries such as Turkey, Greece, Spain or Thailand.