Spits, also called sandspits, are long, narrow coastal landforms that resemble sandbars or embankments and protrude into a body of water from a headland. Spits are formed by the process of longshore drift, in which waves impact the headland at a sharp angle, depositing sediment and causing the water's currents to transport the sediment down the beach, allowing it to accumulate in the area of the spit. Through the process of wave shoaling, this accumulated sediment becomes increasingly curved, mirroring the appearance of a fish hook as the waves refract around the spit's end.[1] [2] [3] Often lagoons and salt marshes will form behind spits.[4] [5] There are numerous spits across the territory of Ukraine and, amongst the country's nine most geographically prominent spits, seven are located along the shores of the Sea of Azov. The remaining two spits, Kinburn Spit and Bili Kuchuhury, are located in the northwestern Black Sea, with the Kinburn Spit located close to the Dnipro–Buh estuary at the far western end of the Kinburn Peninsula and, located in the Gulf of Tendra, between the mainland Yahorlyk Kut peninsula and the far western half of the Tendra Spit. Although called a spit, the Tendra Spit (Ukrainian: Тендрівська Коса|Tendrivska Kosa) in western Kherson Oblast is separated from the mainland by a narrow strait, thus making it geographically an island. In classical antiquity, Tendra Spit and the nearby island of Dzharylhach to the east both connected to the mainland coast to form a single, continuous spit called Achilles' Run. Based on the combined current land areas of Tendra Spit and Dzharylhach, Achilles' Run would have had a total area of approximately 68.89km2, making it one of the largest spits in Ukraine at that time.
The largest spit in Ukraine currently, and one of the largest spits in the world, is the Arabat Spit, which separates the western parts of the Sea of Azov from the Syvash, a large area of salty, shallow lagoons in Crimea.[6] [7] [8] Following the Russian occupation and annexation of Crimea in 2014, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea-portion of the Arabat Spit, as well as additional smaller spits located on the Crimean peninsula, came under the control of Russian forces, who de facto administered the territory as part of the unrecognized Russian Republic of Crimea.[9] [10] Parts of the small, northern segment of the spit administratively located in Kherson Oblast, including the village of Strilkove, were also briefly occupied by unmarked Russian soldiers beginning from 15 March before their withdrawal on 9 December 2014.[11] [12] After the Donbas war, the Kryva Spit located in Donetsk Oblast was also occupied in 2014, with pro-Russian militants taking the spit's area and neighboring settlement of Siedove.[13] [14]
From the withdrawal of the Russian troops in December until the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the northern parts of the Arabat Spit were amongst the few areas geographically part of the Crimean peninsula that stayed under the control of Ukrainian authorities, while the Kryva Spit remained under the control of separatist forces as part of the Russian-backed Donetsk People's Republic. After the start of the full-scale invasion, the remaining northern segment of the Arabat Spit as well as the rest of Ukraine's Azov Sea coastline (including the five spits still under the control of Ukrainian authorities before 2022), were occupied by Russian forces.[15] In addition, following their offensive into and occupation of Kherson Oblast, Russian troops also occupied the Kinburn and Bili Kuchuhury spits.[16] [17] [18] The occupied spits were all integrated into Russia following its unilateral annexation of separatist-controlled and other Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine on 30 September 2022.[19] Since 2022, many of Ukraine's spits, including all of its Azov Sea spits, have been under Russian de facto control while the United Nations and most of the international community continue to recognize the territories as de jure part of Ukraine.[20] [21] [22] [23]
| Ukrainian name | Administrative division | Geographic location | Water body | Area | Highest elevation | Coordinates | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arabat Spit | Арабатська Стрілка | Crimea/Kherson | Separates the Syvash lagoons from the Sea of Azov | Sea of Azov | 395km2 | — | 45.7°N 35°W | |
| Arrow Spit | Коса Стрілка | Odesa | Located southeast of the nearby village on the Tylihul Estuary's western shore< | --there are multiple other spits located closeby in the estuary---> | Tylihul Estuary | — | — | 46.9308°N 31.0011°W |
| Bakalska Spit | Бакальська коса | Crimea | In the northwestern Crimean peninsula, extending from the village and north of | Black Sea | — | 1.3m (04.3feet)< | ---Due to the separation the former peak elevation on the spit located on the northern end's territory (what's the number of the former peak elevation???) became separate and the spit's peak elevation became 1.3m--> | 45.7667°N 33.1833°W |
| Berdiansk Spit | Бердянська коса | Zaporizhzhia | South of the city of Berdiansk | Sea of Azov | 7km2 | — | 46.65°N 36.7833°W | |
| Bili Kuchuhury | Білі Кучугури | Kherson | Extends from the far western half of the Tendra Spit towards the mainland Yahorlyk Kut peninsula through the Gulf of Tendra's waters | Black Sea | — | 0.6m (02feet) | 46.2461°N 31.6678°W | |
| Bilosaraiska Spit | Білосарайська коса | Donetsk | In the northeast of the Azov Sea, extending from the spit's namesake village of | Sea of Azov | 44.45km2 | — | 46.8917°N 37.3306°W | |
| Byriuchyi Island | Бирючий Острів | Kherson | In the northwest of the Azov Sea extending from Fedotova Spit | Sea of Azov | 27.92km2 | — | 46.1267°N 35.1033°W | |
| Fedotova Spit | Федотова коса | Kherson/Zaporizhzhia | In the northwest of the Azov Sea, extending from Kyrylivka | Sea of Azov | — | 3.6m (11.8feet) | 46.2978°N 35.3036°W | |
| Kinburn Spit | Кінбурнська коса | Mykolaiv | Westernmost end of the Kinburn Peninsula | Black Sea | — | — | 46.5583°N 31.5278°W | |
| Komysh-Burunska Spit | Комиш-Бурунська коса | Crimea | In the southern part of the city of Kerch | Black Sea | — | 1m (03feet)< | ---Камыш-Бурунская коса - Russian wiki article say 2m--> | 45.2681°N 36.435°W |
| Kryva Spit | Крива коса | Donetsk | In the northeast of the Azov Sea, extending from Siedove | Sea of Azov | 0.05km2 | 2m (07feet) | 47.05°N 38.1328°W | |
| Obytichna Spit | Обитічна коса | Zaporizhzhia | In the northern Azov Sea, separating from | Sea of Azov | — | 2.2m (07.2feet) | 46.5322°N 36.205°W | |
| Ruska Spit | Руська коса | Mykolaiv | Located on the left bank of the Buh estuary northwest of and across from Voloska Spit | Southern Buh river | — | — | 46.7467°N 31.9403°W< | ---MORE INFO needed to verify: |
| Seribna Spit | Серібна коса | OBLAST_NAME | Was located at the confluence of the Samara and Dnipro rivers, near the small Shevsky (Шевський острів) and Hryniv (Гринів) islands (both located on the left bank of the Dnipro), upstream of the Dnipro dam; the dam's construction led to the spit almost completely becoming submerged; on the other side of the spit, on the right bank of the Dnipro, the Stanovy island (Становий острів) was also located. | Dnipro river | NaNkm2 | NaNm (-2,147,483,648feet) | ---> | |
| Spaska Spit | Спаська коса | Mykolaiv | Located in the neighborhood of Mykolaiv, on the city's left bank shore of the Buh estuary | Southern Buh river | — | — | 46.9592°N 31.9372°W | |
| Voloska Spit | Волоська коса | Mykolaiv | Located on the right bank of the Buh estuary near and across from Russian Spit | Southern Buh river | — | — | 46.7275°N 31.9175°W |