Arshan-Zelmen Reservoir

Arshan-Zelmen is a reservoir located in the valley of the Arshan-Zelmen River, Sarpinsky district of Kalmykia. Its volume is 26.6 million cubic kilometers, the average depth is 5.5 meters, and the maximum is 10.6 meters. The main sources of water supply are groundwater and precipitation. Arshan-Zelmen is a weakly euthorphic reservoir, the degree of overgrowth is about 15%. The southwestern and western parts of the reservoir are most susceptible to overgrowth.

The higher aquatic vegetation of the reservoir is represented by individual curtains of the reed of the lake and reed. On the west coast in small formations there is a bird mountaineer. Tamarix grows along the coast of the reservoir. Soft aquatic vegetation is developed rather poorly: it is available only in the mouths of the beams and the tail part of the reservoir. Ichthyofauna is represented by only a few species of fish, the most numerous: silver carp, roach and carp. On the coast of Arshan-Zelmen there are recreational bases.