Tajik National Park ( tg, Боғи миллии Тоҷикистон; russian: Таджикский национальный парк) is a
national park and
nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
in eastern
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
. It was established in 1992 and expanded in 2001 to include parts of the
Pamir Mountains. The park covers or a little over 18 percent of Tajikistan's total area.
History
From 1989 to 1992, Anvar J. Buzurukov (as the head of the Protected Areas Department of the Ministry of the Environment) initiated, planned and led (under the international scientific camp "Pamir-90") scientific feasibility studies towards establishing the first national and natural parks in the
Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic
The Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic,, ''Çumhuriji Şūraviji Sotsialistiji Toçikiston''; russian: Таджикская Советская Социалистическая Республика, ''Tadzhikskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialisticheskaya Resp ...
. An area of was designated Tajik National Park by Decision No. 267 of the Tajikistan government on 20 July 1992. A year later the same team established the first nature reserve in Tajikistan, Shirkent Nature Park.
In 2001 the area of Tajik National Park was increased to by the Order of the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan No. 253.
Ecology and wildlife
The national park features a mix of
steppe,
desert,
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...
and
alpine
Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to:
Places Europe
* Alps, a European mountain range
** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range
Australia
* Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village
* Alpine National Pa ...
regions. It has long cold winters and cool summers, with an average annual rainfall of 12.7 cm.
Species known to live in the national park include the
brown bear
The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is ...
,
snow leopard
The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a felid in the genus '' Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because the global population is es ...
,
wolves
The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...
,
markhor
The markhor (''Capra falconeri'') is a large ''Capra'' species native to Central Asia, the Karakoram, and the Himalayas. It is listed on the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened since 2015.
The markhor is the national animal of Pakistan, where i ...
,
Marco Polo sheep
The Marco Polo sheep (''Ovis ammon polii'') is a subspecies of argali sheep, named after Marco Polo. Their habitat are the mountainous regions of Central Asia. Marco Polo sheep are distinguishable mostly by their large size and spiraling horns. T ...
,
brown-headed gulls and
bar-headed geese.
World Heritage status
In 2008, the national park was submitted to
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
with a view to becoming a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. In 2013, the park was accepted as World Heritage.
[Mount Etna and the Mountains of Pamir inscribed on World Heritage List alongside El Pinacate and Gran Desierto de Altar]
whc.unesco.org, 21 June 2013.
File:Pamir Mountains, Tajikistan, 06-04-2008.jpg, The Pamir Mountains
File:Pamir protected area map-fr.svg, Map of eastern Tajikistan and the Pamir Ranges, showing Tajik National Park outlined in green
References
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National parks of Tajikistan
World Heritage Sites in Tajikistan