The Danube Biosphere Reserve (DBR), was organized by the Decree of the President of Ukraine of 10 August 1998, №861 on the base of ‘Dunayski Plavni’ Nature Reserve (1981) and is its legal successor. By a decision of UNESCO of 2 February 1999, the Danube Biosphere Reserve was included in the International net of biosphere reserves as a part of the bilateral Romanian-Ukrainian Biosphere Reserve ‘Danube Delta’. By the Decree of the President of Ukraine of 2 February 2002 №117, its territory was enlarged by 3850 hectares and now amounts to 49676.46 hectares. Within its structure, the following departments operate: the research department, the department for Reserve conservation and that for environmentalist education and tourism. Besides, Information Center operates under it. The subject of scheduled and state-financed research is observation and studies under the ‘Annals of Nature’ program, shared by all reserves of Ukraine.
Reserve’s scientists provide monitoring of flora and vegetation state, of ornithofauna and bird population, of theriofauna, ichthyofauna, hydrofauna, of herpeto- and batrachofauna. In the last 5 years, over 70 scientific papers and 3 monographic works were published. The flora of the Reserve involves 955 species of vascular plants that belong to 380 genera and 101 families. 16 species are entered in the Red List of rare plants and animals (Red Book) of Ukraine, 10 species – in the European Red List. Vegetation of the Reserve is represented by groups of genetically different types – from aquatic to semi-desert ones. 12 groups of vegetation are entered in the Green Book of Ukraine.
Of the vertebrates of the Reserve, birds are most numerous. 263 species were registered – i.e. 79% of all known species of the Danube delta and nearly 64% of all species of Ukrainian ornithofauna. 42 bird species were found in the Reserve, which are under special protection. These are, in particular, Pelecanus crispus, Phalacrocorax pygmeus, Rufibrenta ruficollis and Haliaetus albicilla, entered in the Red List of the International Union of Conservation of Nature. In the last decades, 42 mammal species were registered here, 14 of those entered in the Red Book of Ukraine. The ichthyofauna of the Reserve numbers 101 species, belonging to 34 families. All fish species entered in the European Red List can be found in its waters. Of the 32 fish species listed in the Red Book of Ukraine, 16 are found here.
The Reserve was the first in Ukraine to develop and implement the Management Plan for the reserved territory. Under it and provisions of effective laws, the Reserve implements a range of measures towards biodiversity conservation in combination with the rational use of natural resources – fish, reed etc. Reserve’s administration gives a lot of attention to green tourism as an important means of environmentalist education and self-financing.
The Danube Biosphere Reserve collaborates with numerous research institutions, state organizations, NGOs, both national and international, with mass media: since 2003 it has published its own newspaper “The Delta and Man”. Reserve’s scholars provide advice and scientific supervision to students of local institutions of higher learning, teachers and schoolchildren.
