Biodiversity Profile of Afghanistan - Disasters and Conflicts - UNEP
Biodiversity Profile of Afghanistan - Disasters and Conflicts - UNEP
Biodiversity Profile of Afghanistan - Disasters and Conflicts - UNEP
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nature.reserve..Rough.measurements.using.Google.<br />
Earth.indicate.the.area.to.be.approximately.40km.<br />
in.length.<strong>and</strong>.as.much.as.20m.wide..Like.Imam.<br />
Sahib,.Darqad.is.significant.for.its.tugai vegetation..<br />
The.last.sign.<strong>of</strong>.tigers.in.<strong>Afghanistan</strong>.were.seen.at.<br />
Darqad.in.1967.(Habibi.2003)..Ahmad.Khan.(pers..<br />
comm.,.2006).visited.Darqad.in.2005.on.behalf.<strong>of</strong>.<br />
the.Asia.Development.Bank.<strong>and</strong>.found.the.area.<br />
to.be.severely.degraded..<br />
Like.Imam.Sahib,.Darqad.was.declared.as.a.Royal.<br />
Hunting. Reserve. sometime. in. the. 20 th . century.<br />
with. restrictions. on. l<strong>and</strong>. use.. However,. the. area.<br />
has.never.been.gazetted.or.provided.with.formal.<br />
boundaries..<br />
15.12 Northwest <strong>Afghanistan</strong><br />
Northwest.<strong>Afghanistan</strong>.was.proposed.as.a.wildlife.<br />
management.reserve.or.nature.reserve.by.Sayer.<br />
<strong>and</strong>.Van.der.Zon.(1981)..It.is.located.in.the.extreme.<br />
north-western. corner. <strong>of</strong>. the. country. along. the.<br />
Turkmenistan.<strong>and</strong>.Iranian.borders..Its.conservation.<br />
value.is.primarily.as.a.representative.<strong>of</strong>.Pistacia<br />
vera. forests. at. higher. elevations. <strong>and</strong>. Artemisia.<br />
steppes. in. lower. areas.. Wild. ass. were. reported.<br />
as.being.hunted.in.the.area.as.late.as.1975,.but.<br />
they.are.almost.certainly.gone.now.(Omrani.<strong>and</strong>.<br />
Leeman.2005)..Little.current.information.exists.on.<br />
the.area..It.has.never.received.any.level.<strong>of</strong>.formal.<br />
recognition.<strong>and</strong>.the.boundaries.have.not.been.<br />
delineated.. At. one. time,. a. government. horse.<br />
pasture. existed. on. Hazrat. Baba. (33º38’46”N,.<br />
62º14’21”E),. a. north-western. spur. <strong>of</strong>. the. Feroz.<br />
Koh. about. 30. km. north. <strong>of</strong>. Herat.. In. the. late.<br />
1970s,.Hazrat.Baba.had.some.<strong>of</strong>.the.best.range.<br />
conditions. in. <strong>Afghanistan</strong>. (pers.. obs.).. This. area.<br />
should. be. investigated. to. determine. its. current.<br />
status. <strong>and</strong>. suitability. for. inclusion. in. any. future.<br />
Northwest.<strong>Afghanistan</strong>.Wildlife.Reserve..<br />
The.area.has.never.received.any.level.<strong>of</strong>.formal.<br />
recognition.<strong>and</strong>.the.boundaries.have.not.been.<br />
delineated.<br />
15.13 Registan Desert<br />
Registan. Desert. was. proposed. as. a. wildlife.<br />
management. or. nature. reserve. by. Sayer. <strong>and</strong>.<br />
Van.der.Zon.(1981)..It.is.located.in.K<strong>and</strong>ahar.<strong>and</strong>.<br />
Helm<strong>and</strong>.Provinces.in.the.south-eastern.corner.<strong>of</strong>.the.<br />
country..The.Registan.Desert.is.comprised.<strong>of</strong>.a.variety.<br />
<strong>of</strong>.l<strong>and</strong>scapes.from.moving.s<strong>and</strong>.dunes.to.gravel.<br />
flats..Its.conservation.value.is.as.a.representative.<strong>of</strong>.<br />
<strong>Afghanistan</strong>’s.desert.region.<strong>and</strong>.for.protection.<strong>of</strong>.its.<br />
rich.floral,.reptile.<strong>and</strong>.rodent.diversity..<br />
Large. herbivores. (onager,. chinkara,. goitered.<br />
gazelles).<strong>and</strong>.their.predators.(cheetah,.hyaena).were.<br />
once.common,.but.are.now.largely,.if.not.completely,.<br />
gone..Omrani.<strong>and</strong>.Leeman.(2005).report.that.during.<br />
the.Taliban.years,.wealthy.Arabs.built.an.airstrip.to.<br />
provide.access.to.gazelle.<strong>and</strong>.bustard.hunting.<strong>and</strong>.<br />
that.these.species.are.now.rarely.seen..Toderich.<strong>and</strong>.<br />
Tsukatani.(2005).provide.some.recent.plant.species.<br />
lists.<strong>and</strong>.productivity.estimates.for.the.area,.but.little.<br />
other.information.seems.to.be.available.<br />
The.area.has.never.received.any.level.<strong>of</strong>.formal.<br />
recognition.<strong>and</strong>.the.boundaries.have.not.been.<br />
delineated..<br />
4 An Output <strong>of</strong> the National Capacity Needs Self-Assessment
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