The protected areas of Nepal cover mainly forested land and are located at various altitudes in the

Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in northern India and southern Nepal that lies south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills, and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by tall grasslands, scr ...

, in the foothills of the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

and in the mountains, thus encompassing a multitude of landscapes and preserving a vast

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

in the

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

and

Indomalayan realm The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia. Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Indi ...

s. Nepal covers in the central part of the Himalayas. Altitudes range from in the south-eastern Terai to at

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heig ...

within a short horizontal span. This extreme altitudinal gradient has resulted in 11 bio-climatic zones ranging from lower

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

below to nival above in the High Himalayas, encompassing nine

terrestrial ecoregions An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecology, ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large a ...

with 36

vegetation Vegetation is an assemblage of plant species and the ground cover they provide. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic character ...

types. Botanists recorded 1,120 species of non-flowering plants and 5,160 species of flowering plants. Nepal ranks 10th in terms of richest flowering plant diversity in Asia. Zoologists recorded 181 mammal species, 844 bird species, 100 reptile species, 43 amphibian species, 185 freshwater fish species, and 635 butterfly species. In recognition of the magnitude of biodiversity the

Government of Nepal The Government of Nepal ( ne, नेपाल सरकार) is the federal executive authority of Nepal. Prior to the abolition of the Nepali monarchy in 2006 (became republic in 2008), it was officially known as His Majesty's Government. T ...

has established a network of 20

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

s since 1973, consisting of ten

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

s, three wildlife reserves, six

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

s and one hunting reserve. Additionally, nine

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

Chitwan National Park , iucn_category = II , location = Central Terai of Nepal , established = 1973 , nearest_city = Bharatpur , map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#India#South Asia , relief = 1 , label = Chitwan National Park , label_position = top , coordina ...

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Sagarmatha National Park Sagarmāthā National Park is a national park in the Himalayas of eastern Nepal that is dominated by Mount Everest. It encompasses an area of in the Solukhumbu District and ranges in elevation from at the summit of Mount Everest. In the north, i ...

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Langtang National Park Langtang National Park was established in 1976 as Nepal's first Himalayan national park and the country's fourth protected area. It exceeds an elevation range of and covers an area of in the Nuwakot, Rasuwa and Sindhulpalchok Districts of the ...

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Rara National Park Rara National Park is a protected area in the Himalayas of Nepal and was established in 1976. Covering an area of in the Mugu and Jumla districts, it is the country's smallest national park. Its main feature is Rara Lake at an altitude of . Th ...

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Khaptad National Park Khaptad National Park is a protected area in the Far-Western Region, Nepal that was established in 1984. Stretching over the four districts of Bajhang, Bajura, Achham and Doti it covers an area of and ranges in elevation from to . History Kh ...

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Shey Phoksundo National Park Shey Phoksundo National Park is the largest and only trans- Himalayan national park in Nepal. It was established in 1984 and covers an area of in the districts of Dolpa and Mugu in the Mid-Western Region, Nepal. The protected area ranges in el ...

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Bardiya National Park ; , iucn_category = II , photo = Bardiya_02.jpg , photo_caption = , photo_alt= , map_image = , map_caption = Location in Nepal , location = Nepal , map = Nepal , relief = 1 , coordinates = , area_km2 = 968 , established = 1988 , gov ...

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Makalu Barun National Park Makalu Barun National Park is a national park in the Himalayas of Nepal that was established in 1992 as eastern extension of Sagarmatha National Park. It is the world's only protected area with an elevation gain of more than enclosing tropical fo ...

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Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park is the ninth national park in Nepal and was established in 2002. It is located in the country's mid-hills on the northern fringe of the Kathmandu Valley and named after Shivapuri Peak of altitude. It covers an a ...

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Banke National Park Banke National Park is located in the Lumbini Province and was established in 2010 as Nepal’s tenth national park after its recognition as a "Gift to the Earth".DNPWC (2010)''Banke National Park'' Government of Nepal, Ministry of Forests and So ...

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Shuklaphanta National Park Shuklaphanta National Park is a national park in the Terai of the Far-Western Region, Nepal, covering of open grasslands, forests, riverbeds and tropical wetlands at an elevation of . It is bounded by the Mahakali river in the west and south. A ...

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Parsa National Park Parsa National Park is a protected area in the Inner Terai lowlands of south-central Nepal. It covers an area of in the Parsa, Makwanpur and Bara districts and ranges in altitude from to in the Siwalik Hills. It was established as a wildlif ...

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Wildlife reserves

Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve The Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve is a protected area in the Terai of eastern Nepal covering of wetlands in the Sunsari, Saptari and Udayapur Districts. It comprises extensive reed beds and freshwater marshes in the floodplain of the Kosi River ...

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Conservation areas

Annapurna Conservation Area Annapurna Conservation Area is Nepal's largest protected area covering in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. It ranges in elevation from to the peak of Annapurna I at . The conservation area stretches across Manang, Mustang, Kaski, Myagdi, an ...

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Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Kanchenjunga Conservation Area is a protected area in the Himalayas of eastern Nepal that was established in 1997. It covers in the Taplejung District and comprises two peaks of Kanchenjunga. In the north it adjoins the Qomolangma National Natur ...

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Manaslu Conservation Area The Manaslu Conservation Area is a protected area in Nepal. Established in 1998, it covers in the Mansiri Himal range of the Himalayas in the Gorkha District. The area comprises mountains, glaciers, and watercourses. In elevation, the area range ...

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Blackbuck Conservation Area ; ''Krishnasar Conservation Area'' , iucn_category = VI , photo = Blackbuck Antelope 00012.jpg , photo_caption = Male blackbuck , location = Gulariya, Bardiya District, Lumbini Province, Nepal , map = Nepal Lumbini Province#Nepal , relief = 1 ...

– * Api Nampa Conservation Area – *

Gaurishankar Conservation Area Gaurishankar Conservation Area is a protected area in the Himalayas of Nepal that was established in January 2010, covering in the Ramechhap, Dolakha and Sindhupalchok districts and encompassing 22 Village Development Committees. It is contig ...

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Hunting Reserve

Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve is the only hunting reserve in Nepal. Established in 1987 it covers an area of in the Dhaulagiri Himal of western Nepal in the Eastern Rukum, Myagdi and Baglung Districts. In elevation, it ranges from . Flora and faun ...

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Ramsar Sites

The following Ramsar sites were declared between 1988 and 2008: * Bishazari Tal – * Ghodaghodi Tal – * Gokyo Lake Complex – *

Gosaikunda Gosaikunda, also spelled Gosainkunda, also called Silu. is an alpine freshwater oligotrophic lake in Nepal's Langtang National Park, located at an elevation of in the Rasuwa District with a surface of . Together with associated lakes, the Gosaik ...

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Jagdishpur Reservoir The Jagdishpur Reservoir is a reservoir in Jahadi Village development committee (Nepal), Village Development Committee, Kapilvastu District, Nepal which was named after Er. Jagadish Jha who designed and supervised the construction of Banaganga dam ...

– * Kosi Tappu Wildlife Reserve – * Mai Pokhari – *

Phoksundo Lake Phoksundo Lake ( ne, फोक्सुण्डो, translit=Phoksuṇḍo, pronounced ) is an alpine fresh water oligotrophic lake in Nepal's Shey Phoksundo National Park, located at an elevation of in the Dolpa District. Phoksundo Lake is in ...

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Rara Lake Rara Lake also known as Mahendra Lake is the largest fresh water lake in the Nepalese Himalayas. It is the main feature of Rara National Park, located in Jumla District, Jumla and Mugu Districts of Karnali Province. Rara National Park stretches ov ...

– * Lake Cluster of Pokhara Valley –

References

External links

Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Nepal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Protected Areas Of Nepal Nepal geography-related lists

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

Protected areas Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

Cultural heritage of Nepal