Uzbekistan’s Nature Reserves
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Enthusiasts of ecological tourism have always been very much attracted by Uzbekistan's exotic nature with its contrasts, diverse flora and fauna, abundance of sunny all the year round, and friendly climate. Now there are nine functioning nature reserves in Uzbekistan. They embrace as diverse types of the environment as deserts with their sand-dunes, blossoming oases, riverside tugai woods and alpine meadows. The forces of nature seem to have created this part of the world for keeping and development of its sound genetic fund – the fund that cannot be restored if damagedIt is common knowledge that a journey starts with the first step. It is really worth taking step forward to such 'temples' of nature as the desert Lake Aydarkul, the alpine Fedchenko glacier, the grove of the relict Central Asian juniper on the slopes of the Pskem mountain ridge. One of the oldest and biggest nature reserves is Ugam-Chatkal National Park, which was founded in 1947 in the spurs of the Western Tien Shan. It is situated in a rather close vicinity of Tashkent, only 80 kilometers from the city. Man began developing this area in prehistoric times. The mountains appealed to ancient settlers by abundance of fruit and game. Plenty of rock paintings depicting hunting scenes are evidence of this. There are still such traces of ancient man's presence in the area as mines, primitive smelting furnaces, remains of settlements and burial grounds. The Western Tien Shan is one of the most ecologically clean regions in the world. At present the fauna of the reserve remains as diverse and abundant as it was thousands of years ago: according to the scientists the region is the natural habitat to 44 species of mammals, 230 species of birds, 1168 species of plants that include endemic ones, growing only in the area. In the valley of the river Pskem, from the foothills and up to the alpine zone, there lives the white-claw bear. In the area surrounding the tributaries of the Maidantal and Oygaing rivers one can meet wolves. There can also be found Tien Shan fox, red marmot, stone-marten, whereas in the river basin area you can meet Turkestan lynx and snow leopard. Almost everywhere in the reserve there lives wild boar. Badgers are also common. The reserve is also home to Siberian roe and mountain goat. Frequent visitors from the neighboring territories are Tien Shan wild rams. There are lots of birds in the mountains. On the grassy slopes there live wild turkeys and mountain partridges. Higher on the cliffs one can find nests of golden eagles, bearded vultures, eagle vultures. The slopes of the Pskem ridge are covered with lush vegetation. There grow walnut-trees, wild fruit trees and wild bushes. The banks of the river are occupied by archa – Central Asian juniper. Uzgam-Chatkal National Park is notable for its Chimgan-Charvak-Beldersay Resort Zone, which is almost 100,000 hectares in area. The zone has three health-recreation complexes: 'Charvak', 'Chimgan' and 'Beldersay'. Here you can have a good opportunity to get in touch with the pristine environment: to admire beautiful scenery, to enjoy fresh air, with your own eyes to watch rare specimen of flora and fauna. Escorted by experienced guides extreme tourism seekers can go in for a breath-taking rafting along the rapid mountain river Ugam, or visit the stalactite caves and the underground “banquet hall” at the Giza mountain pass. On the territory of Ugam-Chatkal National Park, at the upper part of the river Beldersay, there was recently opened Children's Ecological Reserve, where under the direction of instructors, young botanists, zoologists, geographers, forestry and soil specialists study the ecological systems of the reserve. Their studies are first of all aimed at research and protection of all the species of animals and plants that inhabit the area.
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