National Parks and Preserves.

National Parks and Preserves. I INTRODUCTION National Parks and Preserves, unique public lands or bodies of water within a country, set aside by the government to protect ecosystems, plant and animal species, scenic landscapes, geologic formations, or historical or archaeological sites. National parks are managed primarily for public recreation, providing exceptional locations where visitors can view wildlife and enjoy the outdoors. Generally, these protected public lands are off-limits to hunting, livestock grazing, logging, mining, and other activities that exploit natural resources. Some parks commemorate significant historical events. For example, Gettysburg National Military Park (1895) in Pennsylvania conserves the 13 sq km (5 sq mi) site of the pivotal battle in the American Civil War (1861-1865). National preserves, sometimes called nature or wildlife reserves, often are located within or near national parks. These lands are managed by national governments primarily for wildlife protection or scientific research instead of recreation, and provide "living laboratories" in which scientists observe plant and animal species in their natural habitat. Hunting, fishing, and mining are permitted within many United States preserves if the activities do not harm natural resources. Many other countries specifically ban such activities in their preserves. The world's first national park, Yellowstone National Park, was created in the western United States in 1872 to reserve for public recreation 8983 sq km (3469 sq mi) of geothermally unique forest land. Since then countries around the world have established more than 4000 national parks and preserves. Many national parks and preserves protect remote, unspoiled natural environments, while some protect islands of wilderness within heavily populated regions. From Arctic tundra to tropical grasslands, national parks and preserves protect a vast diversity of plant and animal life on land and in water throughout the world. In North America, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve encompasses 30,352 sq km (11,179 sq mi) of Alaskan wilderness located entirely north of the Arctic Circle. Within the park's borders lie the central Brooks Range, glaciers, sloping Arctic valleys, raging rivers, and countless lakes. The park's southern slopes are dotted with taiga (a forest of dwarf spruce), while northern slopes are covered only with low-growing vegetation of the Arctic tundra. Massive caribou herds migrate through the park. In Africa, Tanzania's 14,760 sq km (5700 sq mi) Serengeti National Park and adjoining Masai Mara National Reserve, which covers 1510 sq km (583 sq mi) in Kenya, protect teeming herds of elephants, gazelles, impalas, wildebeests, and zebras. These and numerous other species of mammals, birds, and reptiles are nourished by the grasslands of this sprawling ecosystem. The Masai Mara National Reserve also provides grazing range for the Masai people's cattle in times of extreme drought. Argentina's Tierra del Fuego National Park encompasses seascapes and forests at the southern tip of South America. The 622 sq km (240 sq mi) park is bordered on three sides by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Its waters are home to seals, walruses, shorebirds, and migratory waterfowl. Inland the park's coastal mountains protect reindeer, beavers, and rabbits that were originally introduced by early European settlers. II EARLY NATIONAL PARKS Although Yellowstone National Park is recognized as the world's first legislatively created national park, it was not the first public land conserved by federal law in the United States. President Abraham Lincoln signed a grant in 1864 deeding 3079 sq km (1189 sq mi) of land in the Yosemite Valley to California. The grant specified that this area, now Yosemite National Park, be preserved for public recreation. Subsequent expeditions to the central Rocky Mountain region prompted naturalists to urge similar protection for the Yellowstone area in northwest Wyoming and bordering lands in Montana and Idaho. In December 1871 Congress received a proposal, modeled after Lincoln's Yosemite Valley land grant, to designate the Yellowstone area as a national park. President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Yellowstone Act on March 1, 1872, which conserved the first nationally owned lands anywhere in the world specifically for public recreation. The act set a global precedent for the preservation of public lands and their natural resources. Three more national parks were established in the United States during the 1890s: Yosemite National Park (1890) in the Sierra Nevada range; Sequoia National Park (1890), also in California, which protects 1629 sq km (629 sq mi) of giant sequoia trees unique to the western slope of the Sierra Nevada range; and 953 sq km (368 sq mi) Mount Rainier National Park (1899) with 26 major glaciers and old-growth Douglas fir forests in Washington's Cascade range. In 1916 Congress created the National Park Service (NPS), a bureau of the Department of the Interior, to manage the growing number of national parks. By the late 19th century the Canadian government had long been committed to conservation, having created extensive forest reserves after Britain established the Dominion of Canada in 1867. But the Yellowstone Act spurred the young nation to establish its own park system. In 1885 Rocky Mountain Park (now Banff National Park) was set aside on 6641 sq km (2564 sq mi) of pristine wilderness in western Alberta, where three Canadian Pacific Railroad workers had discovered natural hot springs. In 1911 Canada enacted legislation permitting establishment of national parks that would be maintained for the benefit and enjoyment of the nation's citizens. Protection of Canada's parks was strengthened in 1930 when parliament passed the National Park Act, which prohibited commercial uses of park resources. A 1988 revision of this act directed that park management plans give higher priority to protection of the natural environment than to visitor recreation. Land preservation in Mexico dates to the 16th century when Montezuma II, ruler of the Aztec Empire, created botanical and zoological preserves. Mexico's first national park in modern times was created by presidential decree in 1917. During the tenure of President Lazaro Cardenas (1934-1940), 40 national parks and 7 preserves were established. These include 18 sq km (7 sq mi) Palenque National Park, which protects ruins of ancient Maya cities and the dense rain forests surrounding them. Argentina's national parks movement started in 1903 with the donation of unspoiled private land high in the Andes Mountains to the federal government. The land, now within 3277 sq km (1437 sq mi) Nahuel Huapi National Park (1934), was donated with an understanding that the area would be maintained in its natural state. In 1934 Argentina created its National Parks Service, which in 1980 defined three types of protected areas: national parks, national monuments, and national reserves. Unlike North and South America, where the creation of national parks initially involved preserving large tracts of unspoiled wilderness, Europe had few remaining expanses of untouched land by the late 19th century. However, emerging conservation movements in many countries reflected concerns about the preservation of wildlife and open spaces. In Britain both the National Trust (1894) and the Council for the Preservation of Rural England (1926) focused on regaining natural habitat lost to industrial expansion and restoring wildlife. The national parks movement gained a foothold in Sweden with the establishment of two national parks in 1909: Abisko National Park, covering 78 sq km (30 sq mi); and 153 sq km (59 sq mi) Peljekajse National Park. Switzerland followed in 1914 by creating Swiss National Park, which covers 168 sq km (65 sq mi). In 1918 Spain set aside a 155 sq km (60 sq mi) collection of lush valleys, meadows, steep limestone slopes, and alpine terrain in Ordesa National Park. Many countries in Europe expanded the national parks movement to restore areas that had been tamed and rebuild wildlife populations that bordered on extinction. Some ibex raised in Italy's 700 sq km (220 sq mi) Gran Paradiso National Park (1922) were transferred to aid herd restoration elsewhere in the country. Switzerland returned lynx to Swiss National Park to keep red deer populations in check. The growth of national parks also enabled many European countries to restore forests that had given way to industrialization by the early 20th century. Africa's wildlife was hunted heavily from the late 19th century well into the 20th century. By 1920 big-game hunters had depleted wildlife populations and settlers had deforested large tracts of land. The once-vast herd of elephants that had roamed Eastern Cape, a province in southeast South Africa, was reduced to just 11 animals. Bontebok antelope were reduced to fewer than 30 animals by 1930, and the zebra also faced extinction. South Africa took the first steps to reverse these trends by creating several parks and preserves. Addo Elephant National Park, established in 1931, now has more than 200 elephants within its borders. The park, encompassing 241 sq km (93 sq mi), also is home to Cape buffalo, black rhinoceros, and 180 species of birds. Bontebok National Park near South Africa's southern tip, also created in 1931, is a 31 sq km (12 sq mi) sanctuary for more than 300 bontebok antelope and more than 470 plant species. Mountain Zebra National Park (1937) in South Africa protects more than 200 mountain zebra, several antelope species, and 200 bird species. Within the 62 sq km (24 sq mi) park are mountains, steep ravines, several aloespecies, and numerous varieties of flowering shrubs. Kenya's federally protected lands date to 1940 when Marsabit National Reserve and Park was established. Within the park are herds of elephants and greater kudu antelope that roam its 360 sq km (139 sq mi) of forests and deserts. Mostly photo caravans now stalk wildlife in Africa's national parks and preserves. However, hunting still plays both environmental and economic roles on that continent. Guided hunting safaris in designated preserves beyond park borders help control populations of non-threatened game animals. III NATIONAL PARKS SINCE WORLD WAR II Politics, economic recovery and prosperity, and emerging environmental science influenced the development of national parks and preserves on every continent following World War II. In the United States and Canada, peacetime prosperity made vacations possible for more people than ever before. More families also owned their own cars, and national parks quickly became popular destinations. Rebuilding from the devastation of the war, Europe's political and social leaders recognized a need to preserve and restore natural areas along with economic recovery. Calls from naturalists for the establishment of new national parks and protection of both plants and animals gained public support and resulted in positive government action. Movements for national independence from Europe's colonial powers arose across Africa and southern Asia, and included efforts to protect natural resources from exploitation by foreign governments. A Conservation Conservation, the controlled use and systematic protection of natural resources, has always been the primary reason for creating national parks. But the Great Depression and World War II limited the scope of conservation efforts in the 1930s and 1940s. With the return of peace in 1945, naturalists promoted conservation through the establishment of national parks with an even greater intensity. In the 1930s, Britain's conservation movement influenced Parliament to commission a study on how national parks might work in that country. After World War II, the final report convinced Parliament to adopt the National Parks and Countryside Act (1949), through which 10 national parks would be created from 1951 to 1957. Today these parks not only preserve plant and wildlife resources, but also ecosystems, natural beauty, geologic formations, recreation sites, archaeological treasures, and historic towns and villages. In 1971 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the New York Zoological Society, two of many conservation groups that promote the establishment and enhancement of national parks, successfully encouraged Ethiopia to create Bale Mountains National Park. The 2471 sq km (954 sq mi) park encompasses Africa's largest alpine ecosystem, preserving mountains, forests, swamps, and grasslands that support 64 mammal species including mountain nyala antelope, Simien wolf, and Menelik's bushbuck. A leading organization in the creation and protection of national parks and preserves since the 1960s has been the World Wide Fund For Nature, known in North America as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). One of WWF's major accomplishments occurred in 1973 when it helped the government of India organize Project Tiger, a cooperative program for protecting tigers and their native habitat. Tigers are threatened throughout Asia by the black-market trade of their body organs for folk medicines, and by deforestation and population growth that reduce both the tiger's habitat and its natural prey. Efforts to help the tiger population rebound involves water, soil, and vegetation conservation, which also benefits entire ecosystems. Significant areas of several dozen tropical rain forests in Central and West Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America have been protected as national parks or preserves through a WWF-sponsored campaign begun in 1975. WWF was instrumental in the 1991 creation of Nigeria's 3999 sq km (1544 sq mi) Cross River National Park, a sanctuary for what may be the country's last lowland gorilla population. Since 1985 WWF has invested more than $1.1 billion in more than 11,000 conservation projects around the world. In response to growing environmental concerns, the United States set aside its first national preserves in 1974 to protect a variety of plant and animal resources. A number of national parks and preserves, including extensive wilderness areas in Alaska, were added to the national park system in 1980. In 1996 a vast national preserve was established for wildlife conservation in the Siberian republic of Yakutia, also known as the Sakha Republic. The fragile Arctic ecosystem within the 699,297 sq km (270,000 sq mi) preserve provides habitat for the endangered Siberian crane, polar bears, reindeer, and walruses. B Nationalism Since the end of World War II, dozens of new nations have emerged around the world. The spirit of nationalism (a desire for national independence, frequently associated with a unique ethnic or cultural identity) that fostered these nations' rise also prompted new conservation efforts in many of these nations. Nations that inherited conservation missions from the colonial governments preceding them at last developed national parks and preserves in their own national interest. Nationalism has not always benefited the national parks movement. The need to develop national economies and defense establishments, often at the expense of natural resources, coupled with regional conflicts between nations, frequently has been at odds with conservation programs. However, over the past 50 years national pride increasingly has been identified with protecting and enhancing both plant and animal resources within national boundaries. In Ukraine, imperial hunting preserves were protected as early as 1913. But the country did not actively protect plants, animals, and their natural habitat until it passed a forestry code in 1979 and the Ukrainian Law on the Protection and Use of Wildlife in 1981. Preservation efforts have increased since Ukraine declared its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991. Estonia, which also broke away from the former Soviet Union in 1991, created 104 sq km (40 sq mi) Karula National Park two years later to protect a landscape of small farms, hills, lakes, and resident wildlife. Most of the park is covered with diverse forests that range from swampy woodlands to stands of pine in dry, sandy terrain. Wolves, moose, otter, beaver, golden eagles, and black storks are among the species that make their home here. The park also preserves the character of the region's small farms, which escaped the Soviet Union's communal farming practices. In southern Africa, Botswana gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1966, and since has devoted 17 percent of its land to national parks or game preserves. Many of the parks are in the Okavango Delta region, a lush plain during flood season that lures vast numbers of diverse wildlife. Botswana both protects and capitalizes on these wildlife resources. Tourists put tens of millions of dollars into the country's economy annually through photo and hunting safaris. C Historic Preservation and Education Along with growing nationalism came increased interest and pride in historic events. Nations worldwide set aside key locations that marked historical incidents. In the United States, the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (1976) protects 10 sq km (4 sq mi) of trails at the north end of Alaska's Inside Passage over which prospectors traveled to the Yukon Territory during the legendary stampede of 1897-98. Guatemala's 575 sq km (222 sq mi) Tikal National Park (1957) preserves the ancient Maya city of Tikal--home to more than 10,000 people prior to AD 900--and habitat for 300 bird species that nest in stands of Spanish cedar and mahogany. Norway preserves archaeological sites of several 17th century whaling stations and graveyards in 3560 sq km (1375 sq mi) Northwest Spitsbergen National Park (1973). Spain emphasizes education combined with strict preservation in several of its national parks. Within Covadonga Mountains National Park (1918), a historic shrine that commemorates the battle in AD 772 between the Spanish Christian army and Islamic Moors, are caves with prehistoric drawings on the walls. The 189 sq km (65 sq mi) park provides refuge for golden eagles, griffon vultures, goshawks, peregrine falcons and other raptors (birds of prey), dozens of butterfly species, and 40 orchid species. IV CHALLENGES FACING NATIONAL PARKS AND PRESERVES Despite the official protection granted them by governments, national parks and preserves worldwide face threats from outside their boundaries. These threats range from logging, mining, and livestock grazing to the encroachment of growing human populations. In addition, poaching, the illegal capture or killing of fish and wildlife within a national park or preserve, produces at least $5 billion in global business annually. A Threats from Development, Overuse, and Misuse In the United States, the 6097 sq km (2354 sq mi) of wetlands protected within Florida's Everglades National Park were endangered by development even before this area became a national park in 1947. Since then continued construction of canals and levees for water resource management upstream from the park slowly has strangled the swampy Everglades. These canals and levees reroute the natural downstream flow of water from Lake Okeechobee, which feeds the park's fragile ecosystem. Farms near the park's borders compound the problem by further rerouting other natural water flows to irrigate cropland and by indirectly poisoning the ecosystem through runoff water containing fertilizer. To restore the park's natural water flows, in 2000 the United States Congress passed the Everglades Restoration Act. The 30-year plan was designed to return the natural flow of water to the Everglades by removing levees. It also included plans to restore the quality and quantity of water flowing into the Everglades. Mineral production and water pollution from mining threaten some preserves in India. In 1992 mining was permitted in Sariska Tiger Reserve (1958), which covers 492 sq km (190 sq mi). Logging, which destroys forest habitats and causes water pollution from soil erosion, and water projects for irrigation and flood control were allowed in 1598 sq km (617 sq mi) Melghat Tiger Reserve (1985). Hunting and logging threaten protected areas in northern Argentina, while overcrowding from tourism threatens southern parks and preserves. Livestock grazing harms protected areas throughout the country. As the number of visitors to national parks throughout the world continues to rise, conflicts among tourists, scientists, and wildlife increase. Cars, trucks, and recreational vehicles jam popular destinations, polluting wilderness environments with vehicle exhaust emissions, litter, and noise. Streams of hikers wear down park trails. Many visitors trample native plants by walking beyond designated trails, and some carry in non-native plants that threaten native vegetation. Poachers have no regard for national park and preserve boundaries. In Africa the black rhinoceros is endangered because poachers sell its horns for folk medicines. Elephants are slaughtered for ivory, despite an international ban on ivory sales. Both elephants and giraffes are killed for meat. Wild parrots and lizards are trapped for sale as pets; crocodiles and snakes are killed for their skins; monkeys are captured for sale to circuses and zoos. Not even Yellowstone National Park is immune from poachers, who hunt trophy elk there. Wildlife spooked by park visitors needlessly burn energy required for survival in harsh winters as they run away. Conflicts between bears and humans often cause bears to be killed by park rangers to protect the human population. In Arizona's 4931 sq km (1904 sq mi) Grand Canyon National Park (1919), the popularity of scenic flights over the canyon has resulted in noise pollution for canyon hikers as well as deadly plane crashes. Even nature threatens some national parks and preserves. In the United States, erosion and shifting beaches threaten historic lighthouses on Cape Hatteras National Seashore (1937), which covers 181 sq km (70 sq mi) of North Carolina coastline, and 122 sq km (47 sq mi) Cape Cod National Seashore (1961) in Massachusetts. B Protecting Natural Migration Corridors Political boundaries that define the shape of national parks and preserves cannot restrain the natural migration of wildlife. Migration corridors, routes that animals travel annually between habitats for summer and winter grazing and for giving birth, often lead them beyond protected areas. As a result, wildlife that wanders beyond a particular sanctuary sometimes clashes with animals and humans on neighboring, unprotected lands. Elk and bison herds protected in Yellowstone National Park often roam beyond the park's northern boundary for traditional wintering grounds in the sheltered, milder climate of Montana's Paradise Valley. Because migrating bison often carry a disease that causes cows to abort their unborn fetuses, federal and state wildlife officers kill many bison to keep them from spreading the infection to other wild herds and domestic livestock. Gray wolves, which were returned to Yellowstone in 1995, travel beyond park boundaries as they roam the northern Rocky Mountain region in search of prey. The wolves once thrived in Yellowstone National Park and surrounding regions, but were eliminated as agricultural development increased around the park because they threatened livestock. These predators were returned to Yellowstone to restore a natural balance by controlling elk and bison populations. Wolves have been killed by ranchers for attacking livestock on range land beyond the park's boundaries. Logging, mining, and oil and natural gas exploration near national parks in Canada's western provinces disrupt natural migration corridors and destroy natural habitats beyond the protected areas. These activities threaten woodland caribou herds, which rely heavily on old-growth forests for food, shelter, and calving grounds. Woodland caribou also are drawn to salt spread on icy roads, where some are killed in collisions with cars and trucks. One herd of fewer than 25 woodland caribou already has been isolated in a remote area of Banff National Park. Proposed development in traditional caribou habitat north of Alberta's unspoiled 4597 sq km (1775 sq mi) Willmore Wilderness Park (1959) would further jeopardize herds that migrate through the park. C Ensuring Biodiversity National park management practices based on the concept of biodiversity are intended to protect all natural resources within park boundaries. This involves managing plant and animal species to accommodate both genetic and species diversity. However, biodiversity management often conflicts with public access in national parks that promote recreation as well as wildlife conservation. Tourism development in Yellowstone National Park has greatly reduced the protected habitat for grizzly bears. If the loss of grizzly habitat is not reversed, the bears could end up in isolated breeding populations with a small gene pool. (The gene pool is the collection of genetic, or inheritable, traits within a breeding population.) If the gene pool becomes too small, it would decrease the bears' ability to reproduce and increase the probability of cubs being born with genetic defects. Fire plays a natural role in biodiversity by clearing space in forests for new growth of grasses, wildflowers, and trees. New growth benefits wildlife by creating lush meadows for browsing and grazing. However, while lightning-caused fires are allowed to burn in some wilderness areas, they are battled if there is a threat to buildings in or near parks. Some of the fires that raged through parts of Yellowstone National Park in 1988 initially were allowed to burn unchecked, but all fires were battled by the summer's end. Human-caused fires, set to counterattack the naturally occurring forest fires, burned some forests that might otherwise have remained standing. Human-caused fires also controlled the progress of the lightning-caused fires, which were part of the Yellowstone ecosystem's natural life cycle. D Securing Funding Increasing demands on national budgets since the 1980s have reduced funding for national parks and preserves in most countries. Rising costs of health care, education, and supplemental income programs for retired and low-income persons take ever larger percentages of available tax revenues, even as national parks and preserves around the world are asked to meet growing demands for conservation programs and recreational opportunities. In the United States, a series of annual cuts by Congress in the National Park Service budget has prevented the hiring of adequate numbers of rangers, slowed maintenance of roads and buildings and development of interpretive exhibits, and curtailed some scientific research. By 1996, the NPS faced an $8 billion backlog of needed building and maintenance projects alone. Lack of funding reduced the number of both full-time and seasonal employees, limited the open season some parks are open to visitors, and closed campgrounds in many parks. Management planning in some European and South American countries is limited by financial constraints. Many African countries are unable to afford adequate numbers of game wardens. Funding problems have adversely impacted tiger protection in both India and Russia. China's parks and reserves suffer from pressures of overpopulation and a lack of scientific management, which result in deforestation and fragmented habitat (habitat divided by natural resource development, agricultural, or housing projects) around protected areas. V NATIONAL PARKS AROUND THE WORLD The following discussion highlights a few of the world's key national parks. Other important national parks are described throughout this article. A North America More land is protected in the national parks and preserves of North America than on any other continent. In Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone with its two spectacular waterfalls cuts through a broad plateau, which provides habitat for grizzly bears, bison, elk, and a growing wolf population. More than 10,000 geysers and hot springs dot this rugged landscape, making it the world's largest geothermal region. Great Smoky Mountain National Park (1934) preserves 130 tree species and 26 salamander species in 2165 sq km (813 sq mi) of virgin woodlands in Kentucky and Tennessee. Denali National Park and Preserve (1917), encompassing 20,233 sq km (7812 sq mi) in Alaska's Interior, protects subarctic tundra habitat for grizzly and black bears, caribou, moose, wolves, and bald eagles. The park surrounds towering Mount McKinley--at 6140 m (20,130 ft), the tallest mountain in North America. Canada's Wood Buffalo National Park (1922), which stretches 44,807 sq km (17,300 sq mi) from Alberta into the Northwest Territories, is a sanctuary for the largest members of wood buffalo and wolves. Grasslands National Park (1981) in Saskatchewan preserves 907 sq km (350 sq mi) of windswept prairie. The 10,000 sq km (3861 sq mi) of arctic tundra within Ivvavik National Park in the Northwest Territories (1922) provides habitat for the 152,000-head Porcupine Caribou herd. National parks in Central America protect lush tropical rain forests with a seemingly infinite diversity of plants and animals. Hundreds of reptilian, amphibian, and bird species inhabit these dense forests. Costa Rica established its park system in 1970 to reverse the creeping destruction of wilderness areas. National parks, reserves for native peoples and their traditional lifestyles, biological preserves that protect a vast diversity of plant life, and wildlife refuges and corridors now blanket more than a quarter of the country. The diversity within these parks ranges from tropical rain forests and savannas to coral reefs. Costa Rica's parks support more than 850 bird species, 10,000 insect species, and 9000 plant species, including 1200 varieties of orchids. Jaguars, ocelots, margays, pumas, and tiger cats roam these protected areas. Visitors can observe two volcanic craters in the country's 57 sq km (22 sq mi) Poas Volcano National Park (1971). One crater steams with geysers and bubbling volcanic vents while the other lies dormant, filled with a deep, blue lake. At Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (1950s), three-toed sloths, jaguars, and tiny orchids are part of the complex ecosystems thriving under the canopy (the uppermost layer of branches) of the protected 106 sq km (41 sq mi) rain forest. B South America The 6436 km long (4,000 mi long) Amazon River, which supports thousands of ecosystems with its web of rivers, streams, and rain forests, dominates South America's landscape. Annual rainfall at the headwaters of the Amazon Basin can exceed 3 m (10 ft), and the river funnels one-sixth of the world's runoff of surface water into the Atlantic Ocean. Near the source of the Amazon River in the Peruvian Andes lies Manu Biosphere Reserve (1973), which sprawls 18,907 sq km (7,300 sq mi). Manu Biosphere Reserve is a combination of national park, natural preserve, and inhabited cultural zone. The inhabited cultural zone protects traditional lifestyles of native peoples who live and farm there, while the preserve is open for both scientific research and tourism. The biosphere (a group of interdependent ecosystems unique to the region) includes grassy, treeless slopes rising to 3965 m (13,000 ft) dry land forests with scattered groves of trees, ferns, and orchids, and dense rain forests that shelter dozens of plant communities, some older than the last Ice Age. Brilliant macaws, crested owls, storks, monkeys, and snakes are among the wildlife that populates its forests of mahogany and tropical cedar. Aquatic life navigating the Manu River and its tributaries, which lead to the Amazon River, includes turtles, piranha, stingrays, and caiman. Medical treatments for a variety of diseases eventually may come from life within the biosphere. More than 25 percent of pharmaceutical medications now comes from tropical plants, yet only about 10 percent of the biosphere's plants and animals have been identified, with only 1 percent of its plants tested for medicinal values. C Europe Unlike national parks in North and South America, those in Britain are not entirely owned by the government or managed primarily for recreation and wildlife. Many park lands are privately owned and encompass old settlements. Within 2331 sq km (900 sq mi) Lake District National Park (1951) are many quaint towns and villages. Working farms, rock quarries, and old mines are scattered throughout the park. These farms provide habitat for red deer, fox, swans, and trout. The hundreds of lakes within the park inspired its name, and England's tallest peak, 978 m (3,209 ft) Scafell Pike, stands here. Stone and earthen ruins as well as burial mounds of England's Stone, Iron, and Bronze Ages are sheltered in 1437 sq km (555 sq mi) Peak National Park (1951) and 694 sq km (268 sq mi) Exmoor National Park (1954). National parks in Norway protect colonies of seabirds, walrus, and reindeer herds. Forlandet National Park (1973) is a narrow island with several small glaciers clinging to high peaks. The 640 sq km (247 sq mi) island lies along the northernmost reach of the ocean stream from the Gulf of Mexico, which creates a mild climate, making this an important breeding ground for guillemot ducklike auks. Seals, eider ducks, and geese also depend on its habitats. Spain's Doana National Park (1969) provides a 507 sq km (196 sq mi) wildlife refuge where birds that nest in northern Europe feed while migrating to Africa. The last surviving wild lynxes in southern Europe find sanctuary there as well. D Africa Many national parks and preserves in Africa serve as valuable watersheds by stemming erosion while maintaining natural runoff. Numerous herds of land mammals on the savannas create channels in the ground with their hoof prints during migrations through the parks. In the rainy seasons, the channels fill and supply water for vegetation. Runoff that will sustain wildlife when the rains end streams through these channels into rivers, watering holes, and lakes on the protected lands. Zimbabwe's largest national park, Hwange, was established in 1929, primarily because poor soils and scarce water made it unsuitable for agriculture. Despite those conditions, wildlife now flourishes in the 14,651 sq km (5657 sq mi) park. More than 20,000 elephants roamed this area in the mid-1970s, but managed culling (selectively removing old or weak animals from herds) reduced their population to around 12,000 to ease the impact on the park's limited vegetation. Hwange National Park also supports buffalo, zebra, giraffe, kudu and sable antelope, and impala. Black and white rhinoceros have been returned successfully, and hippopotamuses and crocodiles reside in the park's water holes and small dam reservoirs. Predators including lions and leopards roam throughout the park. E Asia Corbett National Park became India's first national park in 1936. Serving as a preserve for tigers, the 521 sq km (201 sq mi) park also protects leopards, several species of monkeys, crocodiles, myna birds, parakeets, and woodpeckers. Tigers are more easily spotted in 392 sq km (151 sq mi) Ranthambore National Park (1980) than in any of India's other parks. The big cats can be spotted drinking from the park's lakes and even prowling about Ranthambore Fort, which was built when the park's land was a private hunting ground used by royalty. The Indian government also is working to preserve the Asiatic lion, a smaller cousin of the African lion. The Asiatic lion's only remaining natural habitat is in 259 sq km (100 sq mi) Gir National Park and Lion Sanctuary (1975), where the cat lives in thick forests of teak, ber, jamun, and babul trees. Asiatic lions once roamed from the Middle East to India, but hunting reduced the wild population to fewer than 100 animals by the end of the 19th century. Protection programs at Gir National Park helped the population rebound to nearly 300 by 1996. Nepal is another Asian nation working to preserve tigers. In 1980, the federal government launched a long-term tiger monitoring project in 932 sq km (360 sq mi) Royal Chitwan National Park (1973), to study the population, habitat, and conservation of tigers. The largest national park in Malaysia is Gunung Mulu (1974), which encompasses 529 sq km (204 sq mi). Gunung Mulu National Park is the site of the world's largest limestone cave system with over 200 km (124 mi) of underground passageways. On the surface are 15 different types of forests with thousands of flowering plants, ferns, and mosses, including 170 species of wild orchids and 10 species of the insect-eating pitcher plant. China did not begin conserving open lands until 1956, when 11 sq km (4 sq mi) Zhaoging Dinghushan Natural Reserve was established in Guangdon Province. Although China now has 463 protected areas, land preservation there still lags behind that of other Asian nations. Poorly defined boundaries, poaching, logging, mining, construction, over-grazing, and the growing human population threaten many areas designated for natural habitat and wildlife protection in the country. F Oceania The far-flung islands that straddle the equator in the western Pacific Ocean, collectively known as Oceania, contain a rich diversity of parks and preserves. Oceania's islands and surrounding waters contain some 2000 ecosystems, which range from watery reefs to dense rain forests. Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (1979), covering 343,784 sq km (132,739 sq mi) of the Coral Sea, is located off the east coast of the island continent of Australia. Rich populations of fish and marine mammals live among the brilliantly hued coral reefs there. Iron Range National Park (1977) covers 346 sq km (134 sq mi) of Australia's lowland rain forest. The continent's largest protected area, Kakadu National Park (1979), encompasses 20,000 sq km (7,700 sq mi) of diverse landscapes leased from aboriginal peoples. Located on the coast along the Timor Sea east of Darwin, Kakadu National Park includes wetlands, grasslands, eucalyptus forests, and gorges. It supports a third of the continent's plant and animal species, including saltwater crocodiles, frilled lizards, flying foxes, and black wallaroos, a relative of the kangaroo. Aboriginal paintings that date back 20,000 to 35,000 years appear on some of the park's rocky outcroppings. On nearby New Zealand, snowcapped peaks climb to 3776 m (12,349 ft) in 699 sq km (270 sq mi) Mount Cook National Park (1953). More than half an ocean away, two active volcanoes, Kilauea and Mauna Loa, emit fire and steam, and produce rivers of lava in 927 sq km (358 sq mi) Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (1961) in Hawaii. Stretching west from the Hawaiian islands is the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument (2006), the world's largest marine conservation area and home to thousands of species of animals, including the endangered monk seal. The national monument covers nearly 362,600 sq km (140,000 sq mi) of tropical ocean with coral reefs and uninhabited islands. Contributed By: Kurt Repanshek Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.