Reserves of Kazakhstan and their significance

Reserves of Kazakhstan were created at different times in order to protect these zones from human influence and preserve them for the habitat of rare species of birds, animals and plants. Today there are 10 reserves in Kazakhstan.

Almaty Reserve was organized in Zailiyskiy Alatau, in 1931. Today the territory of this high-altitude reserve occupies 80 thousand hectares.

The main goals and tasks that the Almaty Reserve, like other reserves in Kazakhstan, solve is the study and protection of natural biocenoses, the dissemination of conservation ideas , and excursion activities.

The landscape of the reserve is extremely diverse, it covers foothill steppes, forests, coniferous and deciduous forests, as well as alpine meadows and glaciers. The glaciers give rise to the mountain rivers Issyk, Talgar and Chilik and occupy more than 30% of the entire territory of the reserve. On its territory there is an interesting natural object - sand dunes "Singing Sands".

The wildlife of the reserve is extremely rich, there are 38 species of mammals and more than 190 species of birds. In the reserve there is a rare beast - a snow leopard, as well as many different animals, including eagles, deer, deer, gazelle, argali. From predators you can meet Tien Shan brown bear, fox, wolf, marten. A large number of species of plants and animals that live in the reserve are recorded in the Red Book of Kazakhstan.

At the reserve there is a museum in which you can see representatives of fauna and flora living on its territory. Of great interest are the works of the museum on the acclimatization of bison in the Tien Shan and the restoration of valuable species of coniferous trees.

In 1934 the reserves of Kazakhstan were replenished with one more security zone. Naurzum reserve is located in the Kustanai region, its territory is 80 thousand hectares. It was created to protect the Naurzum boron, which is one of the southernmost pine forests in Kazakhstan, and lakes are nesting places for waterfowl. On its territory sandy landscapes with pine forest and forest fescue feather grass steppe plains predominate, as well as solonetz-solonchak coasts and water areas of the Zharkol, Sarymoyin, Chushkoly, and Aksuat lakes.

More than 140 species of birds and 20 species of mammals live in the reserve, and the local fauna is characterized by the presence of both steppe and forest species. On its territory is inhabited by a rare white heron, and on the lakes there are a great many waterfowl, including such rare ones as the red-headed duck and the gray goose. On the lake Sarymoyin, Aksuat and others, hundreds of thousands of water birds from Western Siberia and from all over Northern Kazakhstan gather in the summer and autumn.

In the Naurzum Nature Reserve, scientific work is being carried out to study the interaction of steppe, forest and lake fauna, to solve the problems of restoration of the pine forest, much of which was destroyed in 1964 by fire.

Reserves of Kazakhstan are of great importance, which can not be overestimated. They protect the gene pool from complete extinction and give an idea of the natural biocenoses characteristic of this territory.