Wildlife Attractions in Armenia

Posted in Asia | January 17, 2012 | Comment Now

Armenia is a land of diverse culture, interesting attractions and amazing wildlife. The fauna here is as diverse as the various habitats found in this region. The mountainous terrain here is greatly responsible for such a plethora of fauna and flora found here. This country has the most important zones for all kinds of migratory animals and at least 350 varieties of birds. Most of the domesticated animals actually have their origins ere in Armenia. The mouflon is believed to be the ancestor of the domesticated sheep and is found here in the land of Armenia. Most of the animal species that have been protected here are endangered and Armenia takes the credit of having patronized these precious species. These mouflon decline due to loss of habitat and poaching and thus becoming very valuable species. The Sevan trout is another variety which constitutes around 30% of the main population of the Lake Sevan has totally vanished now.

Armenia wildlife
The southern and the south western portion of Armenia is the mainstay for the survival of another interesting species – the Persian leopard. In the entire Caucasus, this species is still existing. The entire Persian leopard population in Armenia is not more than 10 or 20 in number. The juniper filled forests of Armenia are home to these fascinating creatures and their extremely rugged habitats have cliffs surrounding the entire zone and there are traces of the existence of these leopards by the trails they leave such as the scrapes, tracks and scats. The entire region of Armenia is subject to lot of threat of these animals getting extinct so efforts are being made to curb activities that would lead to this. The Shikahogh State Preserve houses some of the more precious existing Persian leopard.

In the southern part of Armenia, there are evidences of a carcass being found and it has been identified as the carcass of a hyena thus confirming the presence of hyenas here in this part of the world. The species has become extinct in this region and today the earlier hyena habitat has got converted into cropland.

Human influences are the major factors which affect the wildlife in Armenia and it is required that these are attended to thus contributing to more wildlife views in Armenia tourism.

For example there are orchards in the regions of Syunik and Meghri provinces where the brown bears are found to the excitement of the tourists coming here. These are registered under the Red Book of Endangered Species. These orchards are protected and taken care of by the residents of the villages and there are various techniques to take care of them. The Arevik National Park is another wildlife park here in Armenia which houses some of the wild animals and ensures that they are taken care of.

Tourists are also impressed by the Armenia Tree Project which is a program to ensure that the wildlife here have enough greenery and seeks to reduce deforestation. The biologically diverse areas of the Caucasus regions need a lot of greenery for the kind of wildlife that exist here. So tourists coming here find at least 3, 50,000 trees planted here and it are a satisfaction that these are not being ignored.

Much of the livestock has originated from Armenia and it is interesting to note that the wolves and the Caucasian bear and the lynx are all species that used to exist in the Armenian forests. Besides the native species of Armenia has the Short Toed Eagle and the Syrian Brown bear as an attractive feature of wildlife tours here.