The Alakol Biosphere Reserve (established 2013) is a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

Biosphere 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, funga, or features of geologic ...

located in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, within the desert zone of

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

in the central part of the Alakol inter-mountain depression. The reserve lies on the Central Asian–Indian bird migration route. The

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

s of the reserve are of global significance as a habitat and as a nesting site for water birds. The Alakol State Nature Reserve manages the area.

Geographical location

The Alakol-Sasykkol system of lakes occupies a desert depression between the mountain systems of the Jungar Alatau and Tarbagatai in the South-Eastern part of Kazakhstan. In the center of the depression is a system of large lakes: Alakol, Sasykkol, Koshkarkol, Zhalanashkol. The territory of the reserve is scattered throughout the basin and is divided into 6 geographical areas: the Northern coast of the lake. Sasykkol and the Thousand lakes system; the Delta of the Tentek river; the Araltobe Islands on the lake. The Alakol lake; the Delta of the rivers Emel and Suganthi; Small Alakol Bay; East coast of oz. Zhalanashkol and the tract Kizilkian in Dzungarian gate.

Also, according to the forest Management project, the territory is divided into 12 inspection rounds, and they, in turn, are divided into blocks.

Ecological Characteristics

The biosphere reserve includes the Alakol- Sasykkol lake system and is situated at the limits of the Alakol depression, delimited by

Tarbagatai Tarbagatai, Tarbagatay or Tarvagatai may refer to: *Tarbagatai Mountains in the north-western parts of Xinjiang, China and East Kazakhstan * Tarvagatai, a sub-range of the Khangai massif, Khövsgöl Province, Mongolia * Tarvagatai River, in the Tes ...

ridge in the north, Dzhungarian Alatau in the south, and Barlyk ridge in the east and south-east. The biosphere reserve lies on the Central Asian–Indian bird migration route and is a wetland of global significance as a habitat and aggregation site for water birds. This territory, inscribed on the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on We ...

's Internationally Important Wetlands List in 2009, is the nesting habitat for 203 bird species out of the 342 registered here. More than half of these nesting species (110) are water birds, 22 of which are rare and endangered and are listed on the Red Data Books of Kazakhstan and IUCN. These include the

Dalmatian Pelican The Dalmatian pelican (''Pelecanus crispus''), also known as the curly-headed pelican, is the largest member of the pelican family and among the heaviest flying birds in the world. With a wingspan typically ranging between 2.7 and 3.2 meters (8.9� ...

(''Pelecanus crispus''), the

Eurasian Spoonbill The Eurasian spoonbill (''Platalea leucorodia''), or common spoonbill, is a wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae, native to Europe, Africa and Asia. The species is partially migratory with the more northerly breeding popu ...

(''Platalea leucorodia''), the

Greater Flamingo The greater flamingo (''Phoenicopterus roseus'') is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family. Common in the Old World, they are found in Northern (coastal) and Sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian Subcontinent (south of the Him ...

(''Phoenicopterus roseus'') and the

Ferruginous Duck The ferruginous duck (''Aythya nyroca''), also known as ferruginous pochard, common white-eye or white-eyed pochard, is a medium-sized diving duck from Eurosiberia. The scientific name is derived from the Ancient Greek word, (), an unknown se ...

(''Aythya nyroca''), among others. In the main and buffer zones there are 269 recorded bird species, of which 110 are water birds. These are prevalent in spring and especially during autumn migrations. The biosphere reserve contains 678 species of higher plants and 25 plant species of aquatic flora, including two plant species listed on the Red Data Book of Kazakhstan: '' Tulipa kolpakowskiana'' and '' Tulipa brachystemon''. About 40 per cent of all floristic diversity found in the reserve is represented by economically important species. The main plant associations are represented by five main types – desert, meadow, marsh,

tugai Tugay is a form of riparian zone, riparian forest or woodland associated with fluvial and floodplain areas in arid climates. These wetlands are subject to periodic inundation, and largely dependent on floods and groundwater rather than directly ...

and underwater – and fragmentally by two more types – shrub and large-leaved forest.

Socio-Economic Characteristics

The biosphere reserve has a population of about 33,000 people living in the transition area. The local economy is based mainly on agriculture (cereals, oilseeds), cattle breeding and, to a lesser extent, processing of agricultural production. The principle industries of the Alakol district are large sugar and fish factories, tank farms and agro corporations.

Sources

References

Almaty Region Almaty Region ( ), formerly known as the Alma-Ata Region until 1993, is a region in Kazakhstan, located in the southeastern part of the country. It surrounds, but does not include, the eponymous city of Almaty. Its capital is Qonaev. Geography ...

{{Circular reference, date=October 2020 Biosphere reserves of Kazakhstan Ramsar sites in Kazakhstan