Organized on November 12, 1968 by a Resolution of the Council of Ministers of UkrSSR. Then the Reserve consisted of two departments: Stanychno-Luhanske and Striltsivsky steppe. In 1975 a new department was added – Provalsky steppe (Resolution of the Council of Ministers of UkrSSR №1003-P of 22 December 1975). By the Decree of the President of Ukraine №466/2004 of 21 April 2004 ‘About the expansion of the territory of Luhansk Nature Reserve’, the area of Striltsivsky steppe was enlarged by 514.5 hectares. Nowadays the Reserve includes three departments (Stanychno-Luhanske, Striltsivsky steppe and Provalsky steppe), their total area being 2122.0164 hectares.
The main research line of the Reserve is long-term monitoring of abiotic components of the environment, plant and animal life of reserved areas and nearby territories, and more profound studies of bioecological peculiarities of certain biota elements in natural and human-transformed ecosystems. The results of studies and observations are published in “Annals of Nature” and proceeds of three specialized research projects.
A significant part in research team’s activities is taken by theoretical and practical studies towards enlarging Luhansk Nature Reserve as the key object in preserving biodiversity in the east of Ukraine in conditions of heavy anthropogenic transformation of the natural environment.
In 2006, plants, animals and typical black soils of Luhansk Nature Reserve were added to the list of scientific objects that are the National Asset of Ukraine (Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine №665-р of 27 December 2006).