Armenia Postcard

Yerevan

Yerevan (Armenian: Երևան or Երեւան), sometimes written as Erevan, former names include Erebuni, Revan, and Erivan - is the capital and largest city of Armenia. It is situated on the Hrazdan River, and is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country. It has been the capital of Armenia since 1918 and the twelfth in the history of Armenia.The history of Yerevan dates back to the 8th century BC, with the founding of the Urartian fortress of Erebuni in 782 BC at the western extremity of the Ararat plain.After World War I, Yerevan became the capital of the Democratic Republic of Armenia as thousands of survivors of the Armenian Genocide settled in the area. The city expanded rapidly during the 20th century when Armenia became one of the fifteen republics in the Soviet Union. In fifty years, Yerevan was transformed from a town of a few thousand residents during the first republic to the principal cultural, artistic and industrial center as well as becoming the seat of the political institutions of the country.With the growth of the economy of the country, Yerevan has been undergoing a major transformation as construction sites have appeared all over the city since the early 2000s. Today, the appearance of new buildings, roads, restaurants, boutiques, quarters etc. have started to erase the traces of 70 years of Soviet dominance.In 2007, the population of Yerevan was estimated to be 1,107,800 people with the agglomeration around the city regrouping 1,245,700 people (official estimation), more than 42% of the population of Armenia.

Armenia Postcard
Post Marke ; 17.05.2008 Yerevan

27.10.2007 Flora and Fauna of Armenia
Aegypius Monachus
Face Value ; 200 AMD
Size ; 31,5 x 31,94

The Eurasian Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus) is also known as the Black Vulture, Monk Vulture, or the Cinereous Vulture. It is a member of the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers.This bird is an Old World vulture, and is not related to the New World vultures, which are in a separate family, Cathartidae. It is therefore unrelated to the American Black Vulture despite the similar name and coloration.It breeds across southern Europe and Asia from Spain to Korea, but is endangered throughout its European range. It is resident except in those parts of its range where hard winters cause limited movement.It is the largest bird of prey (Falconiformes) in the world, though nearly equalled by the Lappet-faced Vulture and the Himalayan Griffon Vulture. The Andean Condor (in the Cathartidae) is however slightly larger. This huge bird is 98–110 cm (39-44 in) long with a 250–300 cm (99-119 in) wingspan and a weight of 7–14 kg (15.5-31 lbs), and is thus one of the world's heaviest flying birds.[1][2] It breeds in high mountains and large forests, nesting in trees or occasionally on cliff ledges. It has all dark blackish-brown plumage, and even at a distance can be distinguished from Griffon Vulture by its evenly broad "barn door" wings. It has the typical vulture unfeathered bald head (actually covered in fine down), and dark markings around the eye give it a menacing skull-like appearance. The beak is brown, with a blue-grey cere, and the legs and feet are grey.It is averages larger than largely sympatric Griffon Vulture. Among the vultures in its range, the Eurasian Black Vulture is best equipped to tear open tough carcass skins, using its powerful bill. It is dominant over other vultures at carcasses.It can fly at a very high altitude. It has a specialised haemoglobin alphaD subunit of high oxygen affinity which makes it possible to take up oxygen efficiently despite the low partial pressure in the upper troposphere.