Reserves of Turkmenistan

Sount-Khosardag reserve

Sount-Khosardag wildlife sanctuary. Still in the 30's academician N.I. Vavilov arrived at a conclusion that the Western Kopetdag was one of the world centres for formation of foetus species of arid subtropics. In those days he put forward a proposal to found a wildlife sanctuary here. However, only in 1977 an affiliation of Kopetdag wildlife sanctuary was instituted which was consequently restructured as an independent Sount-Khosardag wildlife sanctuary.
The reserve subdivides into Central, Aiderin and Chendyr sections and a mountainous game-preserve. Total protected territory is 30260 ha.
The flora of the South-Western Kopetdag is exceptionally original owing to the region location at the junction of Ghir-kan, Khorasan and East-Mediterannean floras. 11322 species of the highest plants are revealed here, including 190 endemic species, a great variety of ordinary almond-tree, walnut, pomegranate tree, fig-tree and forest vine.
Lots of volatile oil, resin-bearing, dyeing plants can find purposeful usage includ­ing decoration. The South-Western Kopetdagh is a sole place where a legendary mandragora grows, in the distant past antique people considered it to be a universal panacea against all diseases.
The fauna is represented by 76 species of mammals, 250 species of birds and 36 species of reptiles. A bearded golden eagle, saker falcon, a short-toed eagle, a black stork, a steppe kestrel, a black vulture and turag that is met only in the Western Kopetdagh valleys within Central Asian region are the rarest birds.
An administrative procrastination with the reserve founda­tion resulted in the disappearance of a Turan tiger, cheetah, Ruhara deer, Bezoar goat, kulan, bear, otter, beopard, moun­tain sheep (urial), hyena and even a wild boar happened to be on the verge of disappearance.
The wildlife sanctuary succeeded in re-acclimatization of kulans, having released 44 specimens in the Sumbar valley in 1987-1988. They settled down and within 12 years had increased the number of live-stock.
The researchers of a scientific department annually keep «Nature Chronicles». They published two scientific collections dealing with the nature of the South-Western Kopetdagh, tens of papers, and the Museum of nature is under preparation.