Selenga Highlands


The Selenga Highlands are a mountain area in Buryatia and the southwestern end of Transbaikal Krai, Russian Federation.
The highlands are named after the Selenga River. Protected areas in the highlands include the Baikal Nature Reserve and the Altacheysky Reserve.

Geography

The Selenga Highlands are located in central and southern Buryatia. They rise in the area of the basin of the Selenga River, including its large tributaries – Dzhida, Temnik, Chikoy, Khilok and Uda.
From the north, the highlands are limited by the valleys of the Khamar-Daban and Ulan-Burgas ranges; in the east they are bound by the watershed of the Uda, Vitim and Shilka, bordering on the Vitim Plateau; in the southeast they limit with the Khentei-Daur Highlands; in the south lies the Mongolia–Russia border and in the southwest and west, the Selenga Highlands are bounded by the northern slopes of the Dzhidinsky Range and the southwestern slopes of the Lesser Khamar-Daban. Lake Gusinoye is located in a basin between two ranges of the highlands.

Subranges

The Selenga Highlands include low to middle height mountain ranges with elevations ranging from to above sea level, generally oriented in a northeast and ENE direction.
In the Selenga Highlands some areas between ranges are occupied by significant depressions. These include:
The Selenga Highlands include taiga, steppe and forest steppe areas. Soils at heights from to are brown, from to black, and from to alfisols. Roughly two-thirds of the highlands are covered by mainly coniferous forests, but large areas of birch forests are also found. Of the rare plant species, the Siberian apricot, listed in the Red Book of Buryatia, deserves mention.
The climate of the highland area is harshly continental. The average annual temperature is. Annual precipitation in the middle reaches of the Selenga River is between and. Further up the watershed of its tributaries it reaches.