Natural Environments - Iran - page 634

NATIONAL PARKS & RESERVES
National parks, and the wildlife they are designed to protect, are luxuries most Iranians
don't have the time, money or education to be concerned with. As a result, most national
parks are terribly underfunded and understaffed, and the most accessible zones tend to be
rubbish-strewn picnic sites. Unauthorised hunting is an ongoing problem, as is illegal cul-
tivation. Attitudes are changing in cities such as Tehran and Shiraz but it could be decades
before Iran's nature reserves have the status of their Western counterparts.
So what does this mean for the visitor? About
5% of Iran is protected. But in the 16 officially
mandated national parks and more than 140 oth-
er protected areas there are few fences, few, if
any, rangers, no maps, no guides and no facilit-
ies. Even finding certain parks can be difficult
as they don't appear on maps and there are few
signs. Other parks, such as Sisingan on the
Caspian, suffer the opposite problem: they are
small, overused and quickly overrun by weekenders.
Hardy souls might strike out on their own, but unless time is no problem and you have
some Farsi, it will be difficult. Your best bet is to employ a travel agency close to the park
you want to visit. Alternatively, use one of the specialist outdoor agencies listed on Click
here .
Relatively accessible national parks and protected areas are listed below. Due to the lim-
ited facilities, there is little or no extra detail in the destination chapters.
» » Arjan Protected Area Lake and wetland area near Shiraz. Home to masked tits, water-
fowl and seasonal migratory birds, plus mammals including Persian fallow deer.
» » Bakhtegan National Park Incorporating Lakes Bakhtegan and Tashk, this park is about
80km east of Shiraz. Flamingos and other migratory birds loiter here during winter.
» » Bijar Protected Area About 15km north of Bijar town in Kordistan. Home to Alborz
red sheep, hyenas and jackals. Best visited in spring and autumn.
» » Golestan National Park Forested mountains between Gorgan and the Caspian Sea.
Home to wild boars, oreal rams, brown bears, wolves, leopards, goitered gazelles and as-
sorted bird life. Best visited in spring. Permits required.
» » Lake Orumiyeh National Park An important wetland, this park is home to rare deer
and a multitude of migratory birds. Relatively accessible from Tabriz, but increasingly
threatened.

Ancient Greek playwright Aechylus was killed
when a tortoise landed on his bald head. This story
was thought to be a myth until a bearded vulture
was seen dropping a tortoise onto rocks to crack it
open. It now seems a bearded vulture confused
poor Aechylus' head for a stone.