Ukraine's Protected Landscapes on Postage Stamps

On 27 June, Ukrposhta will release a new stamp sheet dedicated to Podilski Tovtry National Nature Park, continuing its long-running series Nature Reserves and National Parks of Ukraine. Previous issues have celebrated the Danube, Black Sea and Carpathian Biosphere Reserves, Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve, Karadag and Crimean Nature Reserves, and the Gorgany Nature Reserve.

Since 2014, many of the protected areas depicted on these stamps have been occupied by russia or severely damaged by the Russo-Ukrainian War. Unlike cities or infrastructure, many natural ecosystems cannot simply be rebuilt. Their recovery may take centuries—if it is possible at all.

Askania-Nova: Europe's Last Virgin SteppE

Askania-Nova protects one of the world's largest remaining expanses of untouched feather-grass steppe — an ecosystem that has never been ploughed. For more than a century, it has served as a natural laboratory where scientists could observe how a pristine steppe functions without human intervention.

The russian occupation has dramatically changed its fate. In 2023, the occupation authorities removed the Ukrainian administration from the reserve and began illegally transferring rare animals to Crimea and Russia. Since the occupation began, at least seven major wildfires have swept through the reserve. The largest burned more than 3,500 hectares, including over 2,200 hectares of its strictly protected core zone of international importance. Some fires were reportedly caused by missile launches from Russian military positions established within the reserve, while others resulted from the collapse of conservation management.

Black Sea Biosphere Reserve: Nature Cannot Be Evacuated

Established in 1927, the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve covers more than 100,000 hectares of coastal steppe, islands, bays and wetlands. It is part of UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves and protects around 3,500 species of plants and animals. Every year, more than 300 bird species use the reserve as a breeding site or a stopover along one of Europe's most important migratory flyways linking Europe, Asia and Africa. It is often called Ukraine's bird nursery.

After the full-scale invasion began, much of the reserve fell under Russian occupation. Military fortifications and defensive positions were built within protected areas, while the occupation authorities unilaterally reduced the reserve's official territory by at least 123 hectares. Satellite monitoring has also documented hundreds of fires across the reserve since the occupation began, devastating valuable steppe habitats.

One symbol of hope emerged on 25 June 2026, when Ukrainian Defence Forces once again raised the Ukrainian flag on the Kinburn Spit. We look forward to the day when the entire reserve — and all of Ukraine — is free again.

Karadag Nature Reserve: An Ancient Volcano Under Occupation

Karadag Nature Reserve protects a unique volcanic massif formed around 150 million years ago during the Jurassic Period — the only landscape of its kind in Europe. Within a relatively small area, mountains, steppe, forests and marine habitats converge, creating extraordinary biodiversity. More than half of all plant and animal species found in Crimea occur here, including about one-third of the peninsula's endemic species.

For over a century, Karadag has been one of Ukraine's most important field research stations, where scientists have studied geology, climate, marine ecosystems and biodiversity. Since Russia occupied Crimea in 2014, Ukrainian researchers have lost access to the reserve, and long-standing cooperation with Ukrainian and international scientific institutions has been severed.

The surrounding Black Sea has also become one of the ecosystems most affected by the war. Constant military activity, underwater explosions and naval sonar contribute to severe underwater noise pollution that disrupts marine life, particularly dolphins and other cetaceans. Fuel spills, military debris and the ecological consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam have further altered coastal ecosystems, affecting the marine environment that forms an integral part of the Karadag reserve.

Crimean Nature Reserve: Forests That Have Endured for Centuries

The mountain forests of today's Crimean Nature Reserve have survived thanks, in part, to their geography. During the era of the Crimean Khanate, the remote mountain plateaus known as yaylas remained largely untouched because of their rugged terrain. For the Crimean Tatars, these forests provided freshwater, timber, honey and summer pastures rather than land for permanent settlement, allowing extensive beech and oak forests to survive.

After Ukraine regained independence, the reserve became one of the country's leading centres for conservation research in Crimea. Even so, environmental organisations repeatedly warned against attempts to weaken its protected status and expand recreational use during the early 2010s.

Following Russia's occupation of Crimea, the threats changed fundamentally. Researchers have documented changes to the management and boundaries of protected areas, with valuable land being removed from conservation status and opened to tourism and commercial development. Once protected forests or coastal landscapes are replaced by roads, hotels or residential complexes, restoring the original ecosystem becomes virtually impossible.