The Chyornaya Rechka is known for famous duels that took place there, including the 1909 duel between Nikolai Gumilyov and Maximilian Voloshin over the matter of a fictitious poet called Cherubina de Gabriak [in the Finnish language: Kaprijakin (Kaprion) Kerubitar], and the fatal duel between poet-playwright Alexander Pushkin and Georges d'Anthès. The Chyornaya Rechka contributes to St. Petersburg's weather – since water absorbs and radiates heat slower than land it makes temperatures less extreme in a place so close to the polar zone.[citation needed]