STRUCTURE OF CEREAL-LEGUME HERBALS WITH DIFFERENT METHODS OF SOWING AND IRRIGATION IN ARID CONDITIONS OF THE LOWER VOLGA

In recent years, livestock farms in the Astrakhan region have mainly used grasses from natural hayfields and pastures for fodder. But, due to the sharp aridization of the climate, and, as a consequence, the more frequent droughts, as well as the unregulated growth of the number of animals on farms, the reserves of natural herbage are often insufficient. Therefore, the region began to increase the area of sown hayfields for irrigation. The aim of the work is to study the effect of various irrigation methods on the productivity of cereal-leguminous mixtures with multi-cut use in the conditions of light chestnut soils of the Northern Caspian region. The studies were carried out in 2017-2020 in the Astrakhan region. All studied irrigation methods (sprinkler irrigation, drip irrigation with a belt laying depth of 0.0, 0.15, 0.25, 0.35 and 0.45 m, periodic flooding), with the exception of subsoil irrigation, with an ordinary method of sowing contributed to the development of both cereals and legumes. In these variants of the experiment, cereals occupied a significant part in the total herbage - from 40.0 to 61.0%. When using the spread sowing method, only in one variant, the share of cereal grasses was 54.0% (periodic flooding). In all others with this method of sowing, the amount of cereals in the total mass was insignificant, or they were completely absent. The widespread method of sowing was also the most productive in all the years of research. The maximum yield in the experiment was noted in all variants of the experiment in the third year of the life of grasses in 2019.The highest productivity with the spread method of sowing was noted in 2019 in the variants of the experiment with a belt laying depth of 0.25, 0.35 and 0.45 m and amounted to 98.1, 104.4 and 111.0 t/ha, respectively. In the variants with the row-sowing method, the yield was lower than with the wide-spread one. The highest yield with this method of sowing was also noted in 2019 in variants with subsurface drip irrigation with a belt laying depth of 0.35 and 0.45 m and amounted to 105.5 and 104.8 t/ha, respectively

Burial of a Hunnic Period Noblewoman at Karakabak, Mangystau, Kazakhstan

This study continues a series of publications describing the fi ndings of excavations at the Karakabak cemetery on the Mangyshlak Peninsula, dating to the Hunnic period. Burial 11 was that of a girl dressed in an outfi t imitating a royal vestment. The reconstructed headdress consisted of a cape decorated with round, gold plaques and a diadem-type headband of red cloth with mask-shaped plaques. The central forehead plaque is a replica of Hellenistic gorgoneia. Similar masks were found in the Volga basin and the Northern Black Sea region. Temporal mask-plaques, carved of wood and covered with gold foil, have no parallels but follow the archaic Scythian tradition. Belt and shoe buckles were not attached to belts and were not used in everyday life. In terms of style and technique, the gold casing with an embossed geometric design on a wooden base belongs to a series of artifacts of the so-called Shipovo horizon. The buckle frames are shaped as stylized birds of prey with spread wings. The forehead plaque and details of the shoe straps are paralleled by those from Altynkazgan. The Karakabak artifacts are unique for the Aral-Caspian region, providing yet another indication of close cultural ties with the Hunnic world. All details of the outfi t were likely manufactured at a nearby workshop (the Karakabak settlement) in the second half of the 5th or fi rst half of the 6th century for the burial of a nomadic noblewoman.

Role of different types of protective forest stands in fodder productivity of rangeland in the Western Caspian region

Forest pastures with different tree crown cover were studied. The seasonal dynamics of the yield and nutritional value of grass and twig-leaf fodder of forest pasture was studied. The unsystematic use of pastures in arid territories has increased the process of degradation and has become one of the factors of depletion of their natural vegetation. The use of forest reclamation in the 70s and 90s on sandy lands and pastures in the Western Caspian region made it possible to create significant areas of forest pasture land with strip and massive stands of Ulmus pumila L. and Robinia pseudoacacia L. Different types of tree stands created on pastures not only improve the microclimate and form a comfortable environment for grazing animals, but also are an additional source of valuable twig feed. The aim of the research was to study forage productivity of forest pastures with different types of plantings on the sands of the Western Caspian region. The objects of the research were forest pastures with different species composition and tree crown cover. Studies on the forage productivity of forest-reclaimed pastures were conducted in 2018-2020 on the basis of the North Caucasus branch of Federal Scientific Centre of Agroecology, Complex Melioration and Protective Af-forestation of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The research was based on field experiments and laboratory analyses. According to the results of the study, forest-reclaimed pastures with unsystematic grazing had 1.52-fold increase in productivity compared to natural ones. The largest amount of twig-leaf feed was formed in broad-band Robinia stands in summer-autumn period. The total gross stock of natural pastures of the Western Caspian region did not exceed 0.30.4 t/ha of dry weight, the consumed stock was 0.20.3 t/ha. With the help of strip and massive plantings on degraded pasture lands, it is possible to increase significantly their productivity and quality with the achievement of 7 MJ of exchange energy and 0.260.29 feed units in 1 kg of elm and robinia twig-leaf feed during droughts.

Natural Conditions and Adaptation to them Among the Population of the Caspian Region in the Early Iron Age

The article presents the results of research on the reconstruction of natural and climatic conditions and human adaptation to them. In order to identify the evolutionary stages of the natural environment of the Western Caspian region in the second half of the Holocene, buried sub-kurgan soils and bone remains in the Bogomolny Sands 1 mound were analyzed. Spore-pollen, anthropological and isotope analyses were carried out on soil and bone samples. Bioclimatic fluctuations of the natural environment were established based on the reconstruction of paleolandscapes (soils, vegetation) and associated changes in socio-cultural factors (changes in paleo-diet, anthropological characteristics).

“Hand Drawn Portolan of the Caspian Sea of 1519” by Vesconte Maggiolo: A Source of Historical Geography for the Caspian Region

Research objectives: To conduct a detailed comparative analysis of the toponymic source known as “Hand Drawn Portolan of the Caspian Sea (1519)” by Vesconte Maggiolo, and ascertain the range and chronology of its sources. Research materials: At the turn of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, there were a few navigational maps – portolan charts – created in Italy which contained rather precise outlines of the coastline of the Caspian Sea. The present Portolan excels all earlier items in terms of precision of the depicted topographical realities of the region. The quality of the map we are examining was surpassed only in the seventeenth century after Peter I’s hydrographic expeditions. The high level of shoreline’s precision also strongly suggests that the map was based on authentic topographic input. Maggiolo’s map contains 136 geographical names. Results and novelty of the research: For the first time ever in domestic scholarship, we conducted a comparative historical analysis of the hand drawn portolan chart of the Caspian Sea. We also proved the correlation of some toponyms of the West Caspian region with the Timurid and local sources that covered the military campaigns of Amir Timur in the region. In our view, the “Hand Drawn Portolan Chart of the Caspian Sea (1519)” created by Vesconte Maggiolo is one of the most notable among similar works. It finds many common features with the portolan from the island of Lesina, but also contains some common elements with the Mallorca cartographic school and Fra Mauro, Egerton MS 73, and Egerton MS 2083. This research allows us to extend and systematize our understanding of Italian cartography in relation to the Caspian region. It also details or adds some facts about the presence of Europeans in this region during the Golden Horde era. Based on this topographic and toponymic analysis, we furthermore come to a conclusion that the portolan in question is derived from a protograph created in the first half of fifteenth century, reflecting the realities of the turn of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

Polityka bezpieczeństwa energetycznego Azerbejdżanu w regionie kaspijskim

In contemporary international relations, the energy security is becoming a key issue. Access to energy resources is the existential need of every state, conditioning its economic and social development. Interdependencies in the energy field are a key determinants of international relations, where the participants are not only states but also non-sovereign actors. The research problem of the study is the analysis of Azerbaijan's energy security policy priorities in the Caspian region. The main aim of the research is to present its interests, conditions and activities in the energy security policy dimension. Pipeline geopolitics and security threats influence the strategic goals of Azerbaijan's policy, a pioneer in the development of the energy sector in the Caspian region.

THE CASPIAN REGION: DEVELOPMENT RESULTS AND NEW TRENDS

The Caspian region came into the focus of attention of the Caspian and non-regional states even prior to the collapse of the U.S.S.R. The increased global attention to this region was associated with the presence of proven and potential reserves of hydrocarbon resources, which increased the region’s geopolitical significance. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Caspian region found itself in the center of geopolitical rivalry. From that time on, the subject of energy acquired a new meaning in the Caspian region. Western oil and gas companies and government agencies began to demonstrate an increased interest in the hydrocarbon resources of the Caspian region. Moreover, for decades the West has maintained a close focus on the Eurasian space, in particular, on the problems associated with the production and transportation of hydrocarbon resources. The most acute geopolitical standoff occurred between Russia and the United States, which supported various pipeline projects. For Russia, the key task was to preserve its regional dominance, which had been growing over the course of several centuries. The United States supported the geopolitical turn of the new Caspian states, advocating the creation of new hydrocarbon supply routes that would bypass Russian territory. The key task for the Caspian states was to increase hydrocarbon production and provide reliable routes for their export to foreign markets. Based on these goals, the Caspian states built their own foreign policy, including intraregional policy. Thirty years later, the results of geopolitical rivalry are visible. The Caspian countries, which rely on financial resources and political support from non-regional actors, have implemented large-scale hydrocarbon export projects. The new pipeline architecture has changed the balance of power in the Caspian region, increasing the involvement of the Caspian states in the energy policy of Turkey, China, and the EU. At the same time, the regional states have managed to solve the problem of the international legal status of the Caspian Sea in a five-sided format. A new trend of the last decade has involved projects related to the construction of coastal infrastructure and expansion of shipping. The Caspian countries are growing increasingly more interested in participating in international transport projects, considering them as an important component of their foreign policy. Despite the attained agreements and solutions to key problems, competition between the Caspian states, which is greatly influenced by non-regional actors, is intensifying.

The Caspian Region in the Conditions of New Geopolitical Challenges and New Tasks of Public Administration

The article is devoted geopolitical features of the Caspian region and the factors that determine its importance for Russia. The author analyzes in detail the risks of a change in the situation in the Caspian in the face of geopolitical challenges, including the war and the end of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, changes in Turkey's foreign policy and EU sanctions against Turkey. The article also touches on the issue of a possible change in the cooperation ties of the Caspian states in connection with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the image of the China in the international arena.