Saint Petersburg is home not only to its 5 million human inhabitants, but also to countless other forms of life: trees, annual plants, birds, amphibians and insects.

These creatures invade spaces either untouched or abandoned by humans, and create peculiar eco-systems on top of concrete, rust and gravel: nature abhors a vacuum. We will search for diversity of life in places that look barren, study different strategies that organisms use to thrive in their “unnatural” environment, and talk about evolution and “ecology” in a broad sense: not only the science of interaction between live organisms, but a way of perceiving at the urban landscape as a complex system where everything is interconnected. On our way across the scenic landscape in the middle of Saint Petersburg’s industrial belt, we’ll have a fresh look on common urban species, but will also encounter very peculiar ones. Among them, a rare Red data book orchid that feels at home on the wetlands contaminated with rust from the nearby railway tracks, and an ancient species of moss that remained unchanged for last 10 million years.
Notice: sturdy shoes and plain, resistant clothes are recommended for this walk.

Starting at: Moskovskie Vorota subway station
Finishing at: Kirovsky Zavod subway station
Duration: 3 hours