Shahdag National Park ( az, Şahdağ Milli Parkı) — is a

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 ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

. It was established on an area of in the

Quba Rayon Quba District (; az, Quba rayonu) is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the north-east of the country and belongs to the Guba-Khachmaz Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Qusar, Qabala, Ismayilli, Shama ...

Qusar Rayon Qusar District (; az, Qusar rayonu; lez, КцIар район, script=Latn) is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the north-east of the country and belongs to the Guba-Khachmaz Economic Region. The district borders the dis ...

, İsmayıllı Rayon, Qəbələ Rayon, Oğuz Rayon and Şamaxı Rayon administrative districts on December 8, 2006. It was enlarged by presidential decree on July 8, 2010 from to . It is located in northern Azerbaijan, close to the border with

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

at the Greater Caucasus Mountains. Mount Bazardüzü, the highest mountain of Azerbaijan is located in Shadag National Park. The Shahdag National Park is the largest national park not only Azerbaijan but in the whole

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

. The World Bank has allocated a $17 million loan and $8 million grant for the national park's creation, while the government of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

has provided $8 million as a grant for the project implementation. The Shahdag National Park will help address ecological issues and build a tourist infrastructure in the Caucasus for visitors.

Flora and fauna

Flora

The major types of trees are Caucasian Oak (''

Quercus macranthera ''Quercus macranthera'', commonly called the Caucasian oak, or the Persian oak, is a species of deciduous tree native to Western Asia (northern Iran, Turkey; and in the Caucasus in Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan) that is occasionally grown as a ...

''), Caucasian Ash (''

Fraxinus angustifolia ''Fraxinus angustifolia'', the narrow-leaved ash, is a species of ''Fraxinus'' native to central and southern Europe, northwest Africa, and southwest Asia.Flora Europaea''Fraxinus angustifolia''/ref>Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain and E ...

subsp. oxycarpa''), European Hornbeam ('' Carpinus betulus''), Oriental Hornbeam (''

Carpinus orientalis ''Carpinus orientalis'', known as the Oriental hornbeam, is a hornbeam native to Hungary, the Balkans, Italy, Crimea, Turkey, Iran, and the Caucasus. and occurs usually on hot dry sites at lower altitudes in comparison to the ''Carpinus betulus' ...

''), Oriental Beech (''

Fagus orientalis ''Fagus orientalis'', commonly known as the Oriental beech, is a deciduous tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It is native to Eurasia, in Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Description ''Fagus orientalis'' is a large tree, capable of reaching he ...

''), Silver Birch (''

Betula pendula ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found a ...

''), White Birch (''

Betula pubescens ''Betula pubescens'' (syn. ''Betula alba''), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia ...

''), Common Yew (''

Taxus baccata ''Taxus baccata'' is a species of evergreen tree in the family Taxaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe (including Britain and Ireland), northwest Africa, northern Iran, and southwest Asia.Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain ...

''), White Willow (''

Salix alba ''Salix alba'', the white willow, is a species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia.Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland''. BSBI Handbook No. 4. .Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain an ...

''), Common Walnut (''

Juglans regia ''Juglans regia'', the Persian walnut, English walnut, Carpathian walnut, Madeira walnut, or especially in Great Britain, common walnut, is an Old World walnut tree species native to the region stretching from the Balkans eastward to the Himala ...

''), Wild Cherry (''

Prunus avium ''Prunus avium'', commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry, gean, or bird cherryWorld Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, ...

''), Caucasian Pear (''

Pyrus communis ''Pyrus communis'', the common pear, is a species of pear native plant, native to central and eastern Europe, and western Asia. It is one of the most important fruits of temperate regions, being the species from which most orchard pear cultivars ...

subsp. caucasica''), etc. Shrub species occurring in the area include Various-Leaved Hawthorn ('' Crataegus heterophylla''), Dog Rose (''

Rosa canina ''Rosa canina'', commonly known as the dog rose, is a variable climbing, wild rose species native to Europe, northwest Africa, and western Asia. Description The dog rose is a deciduous shrub normally ranging in height from , though sometimes i ...

''), Blackberry (''

Rubus fruticosus ''Rubus fruticosus'' L. is the ambiguous name of a European blackberry species in the genus ''Rubus'' in the rose family. The name has been interpreted in several ways: *The species represented by the type specimen of ''Rubus fruticosus'' L., ...

''), Common Medlar (''

Mespilus germanica ''Mespilus germanica'', known as the medlar or common medlar, is a large shrub or small tree in the rose family Rosaceae. The fruit of this tree, also called medlar, has been cultivated since Roman times, is usually available in winter and eat ...

''), European Barberry (''

Berberis vulgaris ''Berberis vulgaris'', also known as common barberry, European barberry or simply barberry, is a shrub in the genus ''Berberis'' native to the Old World. It produces edible but sharply acidic berries, which people in many countries eat as a ta ...

''), etc. File:Flowers in Azerbaijan.jpg File:Flora of Shahdag National Park (003).jpg File:Shahdag National Park 81.jpg File:Fern on rock in Shahdag National Park.jpg File:Wild rose in Azerbaijan.jpg

Fauna

The national park is home to the rare East Caucasian tur ('' Capra cylindricornis''), a mountain dwelling

goat antelope The subfamily Caprinae, also sometimes referred to as the tribe Caprini, is part of the ruminant family (biology), family Bovidae, and consists of mostly medium-sized bovids. A member of this subfamily is called a caprine, or, more informally, ...

found only in the eastern half of the

Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains, : pronounced * hy, Կովկասյան լեռներ, : pronounced * az, Qafqaz dağları, pronounced * rus, Кавка́зские го́ры, Kavkázskiye góry, kɐfˈkasːkʲɪje ˈɡorɨ * tr, Kafkas Dağla ...

. Other large mammals found here are the Caucasian chamois ('' Rupicapra rupicapra subsp. caucasica''), Bezoar ibex (''

Capra aegagrus aegagrus The bezoar ibex (''Capra aegagrus aegagrus'') is a wild goat subspecies that is native to the montane forested areas in the Caucasus and the Zagros Mountains. Characteristics The bezoar ibex, which weighs around 60kg (130lb) is known particu ...

''), domestic goat ('' Capra aegagrus hircus''), Caucasian lynx (''

Lynx lynx dinniki The Caucasian lynx (''Lynx lynx dinniki''), also known as the Caucasus lynx or the eastern lynx, is a subspecies of Eurasian lynx native in the Caucasus, Iran, Turkey, and European Russia. Conservation It is proposed for the Caucasian lynx to ...

''), Syrian brown bear ('' Ursus arctos syriacus''), wild boar ('' Sus scrofa''), Indian wolf ('' Canis lupus pallipes''), common jackal (''

Canis aureus aureus The golden jackal (''Canis aureus''), also called common jackal, is a Evolution of the wolf#Wolf-like canids, wolf-like canid that is native to Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia, South Asia, and regions of Southeast Asia. The golden jackal's co ...

''), common jungle cat ('' Felis chaus chaus''), red fox (''

Vulpes vulpes The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe and Asia, plus ...

''), roe deer (''

Capreolus capreolus The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

''), badger (''

Meles meles The European badger (''Meles meles''), also known as the Eurasian badger, is a badger species in the family Mustelidae native to almost all of Europe. It is classified as least concern on the IUCN Red List as it has a wide range and a large sta ...

''), and otter (''

Lutra lutra The Eurasian otter (''Lutra lutra''), also known as the European otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter, and Old World otter, is a semiaquatic mammal native to Eurasia. The most widely distributed member of the otter subfamily (Lutrinae) of ...

''), etc. Reintroduction has been launched of the

European bison The European bison (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bison, along ...

, or ''wizent'' (a widely-used Polish name for 'bison'), which were formerly extirpated from Azerbaijan. Reintroduction in the 1960s and 1970s was initially unsuccessful, as by 1977, all the reintroduced animals had perished. It was thought that the bison had consumed poisonous yew shoots and leaves, and subsequently died.

References

External links

Shakhdag National Park Official Website - Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan

National Parks: Shakhdag National Park - Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan
{{authority control IUCN Category II National parks of Azerbaijan Forests of Azerbaijan Protected areas established in 2006 2006 establishments in Azerbaijan

Flora and fauna

Flora

Fauna

See also

References

External links