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The Kola Peninsula is a north-eastern projection of the Fenno-Scandinavian crystalline block. Its peninsular situation is conditioned by the Barents Sea in the north and by the isthmus of the White Sea in the east. The coastline of the peninsula isn`t very winding and has the length equal to 1500 kilometers. The boarder between the Barents and the White Sea is the cope Saint Nose to the north-west of which the Kola shore is situated and the south of which, gradually turning to the north-west, the Tersky shore stretches out washed by the White Sea. The seas washing the Kola Peninsula differ in hydrological properties: the Barents Sea is warm due to the influence of the Gulfstream and consequently has a seashore which is never covered with ice; the White Sea situated further to the south is isolated from the warm Gulfstream and according to its hydrological property is colder and covered with ice under a long period of time.

The Murmansk region borders on Karelia in the south and on Finland in the north-west and the west. The territory of the region is 128500 square kilometers which corresponds to the territory of Holland, Denmark and Belgium together. Its coordinates are: 66-70° of northern latitude and 29° 42`- 41° 40` of western longitude.

As for the landscape the Kola Peninsula is a low plateau which gradually goes down to the isthmus of the White Sea in the east. Almost in the central part of the peninsula a group of highlands is situated: the Hibinsky, the Lovozersky, the Monche-tundra and other mountainous chains. In geological respect the Kola Peninsula is the continuation of Fenno-Scandinavia and is built of the most ancient crystalline slates.

Rivers of the Kola Peninsula have rapids and waterfalls quite often. The number of lakes is great and is almost equal to that of the neighboring territories of Karelia and Finland. There are 700 lakes on the Kola Peninsula. The biggest lakes are: the Imandra, the Umbozero, the Lovozero which are situated at the feet of mountainous chains in the central part of the Kola Peninsula. The economical importance of the lakes consist in the possibility of using them as the means of transport communication and fish resources represented not even by the quantity of fish but by valuable species of salmon and whitefish.

The biggest lake is the Imandra. Its surface is about 815 square kilometers and the lake`s deepest place is 67 meters. The surface of the Umbozero is less than that of the Imandra - 500 square kilometers. But its deepest place is 100-115 meters. It is interesting to know that the Umbozero is covered with ice rather late - in the second part of December. A comparatively shallow Lake Lovozero has a big economic impotence as fishing base for the inhabitants of Lovozero.

The largest rivers of the Kola Peninsular are: the Niva, the Umba, the Tuloma, the Teriberka, the Voronjya, the Iokan`ga, the Ponoi and the Varzuga. Besides there are hundreds of rivers and streams which quite often don`t have names. As for the quantity of fish the majority of these rivers and streams are places of salmon and salmon-trout spawning while their mouths and lower reaches are industrial places.

The climate of the Kola Peninsula is warm in comparison with the regions lying on the same latitude. The reason for it is the warm current Gulfstream flowing along the northern seashore almost to the cape Saint Nose. The climate in the central part and on the south-eastern coast is more continental and the average annual temperature is lower than that on the northern coast. The reason for it is not only a less influence of the Gulfstream in the central part of the peninsula but also a cooling influence of the White Sea not influenced by the Gulfstream.

Winter comes when rivers are covered with ice, between the 25th of October and the 15th of November. By the end this period or a bit later all the lakes begin to be covered with ice. First frosts can come in the second part of August. Days become short but it is never completely dark during 24 hours. Even on the shortest winter days in December and January there 2-3 light hours. There are often strong snowy storms which may last several days in January and February. The shift from still to windy weather doesn`t take long.

By the end of February days become longer. In March in spite of the sun it is hard to say that spring has come. March and April are the most favorite months for the inhabitants of the Transpolar region. Starting from the second part of April snow begins to melt quickly due to the intensive influence of the sun. From the 20th of May rivers break up the ice, then lakes follow them. But in late spring lakes break up the ice till the 20th of June. In the beginning of July in the central part of the peninsula the temperature often goes up to 30 degrees above zero.

Mosquitoes and midges become unbearable and reduce the amount of a man`s useful activity to a great degree. Coming of autumn is accompanied by the disappearance of insects (the second part of August), by rains, fogs, frosts and winds.

The vegetation of the Kola Peninsula can be divided according to two zones: tundra and taiga. Tundra almost reaches the central part of the peninsula and mainly covers north-eastern part of the country. Here one can see a kind of small bushy vegetation: Arctic birch and bushy willows, widely spread berry bushes - cloudberry and cranberry (on the swamps), great bilberry, blueberry, cowberry.

The animal kingdom of the Kola Peninsula is presented by a number of tundra and taiga species. The majority of animals are those for hunting which have a commercial value. White polar fox is one of tundra species. It`s seldom that one sees a blue one. The majority of other fur-bearing and industrial animals is widely spread and can be seen in tundra and forest. Even forest animals often pass the boarder of the forest zone. The most spread species are: glutton, ermine, fox, wolf (it avoids thick forests), and otter. Typical forest species are: marten, squirrel, bear (it sometimes leaves the forest and climbs the mountains). Wild reindeer which earlier was widely spread on the Kola Peninsula is almost exterminated now. Among the game birds we should first name partridge, which lives in forests and bushy zones, and tundra partridge, which lives in tundra, on bare slopes and tops of highlands. Wood-grouse is a widely spread typical forest bird. Hazel-grouse can be also seen in forest area. Blackcock is a usual bird in the southern part of the Kola Peninsula; it has a tendency to spread towards the north. Aquatic birds are represented by a large number of species, which live on seashores as well as on lakes. Typical aquatic birds are: swan, goose, leaf-roller weevil, eider, duck, redheaded pochard, scoter, etc. Everywhere on water basins one can see diver and merganser, different kinds of seagull.

The majority of water species in lakes and rivers are industrial ones. According to the economic importance we should salmon on the first place. It moves to the most rivers for spawning from spring till autumn and then moves back into the sea. Among typical freshwater fish one should name loach. Salmon trout is represented by two species: migrating (which moves from the sea for spawning in the rivers like salmon and then moves back to the sea) and lake fish (which lives in the lakes and spawns in the rivers flowing into the lakes). Salmon in represented by a number of species: migrating and lake fish; it`s widely spread as the most important industrial fish. Vendace belongs to the class of whitefish, which can be found only in some water basins, and in most cases it is not used industrially. Grayling is a widely spread lake and river fish, which has industrial value. Other species such as perch, pike and burbot can be found in small quantities in many water basins but they are not so important industrially. Ide and ruff are very rare and can be found only in some water basins of the southern part of the Kola Peninsula, including the Imandra Lake. Smelt can be found in the same basin (the Imandra) in a large quantity.

Among the sea fish the following species have an important industrial value: cod, wolfish, bass, different kinds of plaice including halibut, haddock and herring.