Abandoned Villages as a New Ecosystem Experiment

This article examines the process of ecological succession on the site of abandoned villages of the taiga zone, framing them not as symbols of socio-economic decline but as unique polygons of spontaneous rewilding. It classifies the stages of succession and the emerging communities, identifies the factors determining the speed and direction of succession, and assesses the ecosystem potential and services of these territories. The study integrates field research, GIS modeling, historical-archival analysis, and the comparative method. A three-level management model is proposed: zones of complete non-interference (rewilding core), zones of hybrid management (buffer zones), and zones of conservation and museumification. The work contributes to the theory of post-anthropogenic landscapes and proposes a new view of depopulation as a resource for ecological restoration.