Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
According to a report in the August 2012 edition of
Science Magazine
14 of Myanmar's
36 protected areas lack staff altogether, while the rest have too few rangers for effective
patrolling and management.
National Parks
By an optimistic account, about 7% of Myanmar's land area is made up of national parks
and forests, wildlife sanctuaries and parks, and other protected areas. However, such pro-
tection on paper is rarely translated into reality without the backing of adequate funds
and effective policing.
The documentary
Of Oozies and Elephants
(
http://vimeo.com/77426318
) and an epis-
ode of the BBC's
Wild Burma: Nature's Lost Kingdom
feature the vet Khyne U Mar,
known as 'the elephant lady of Burma' for her studies of captive working elephants in
Myanmar. Her research is supported by the Rufford Foundation (
http://www.rufford.org/
MAJOR PARKS & RESERVES
BEST
TIME
TO
VISIT
SIZE
(SQ
MILES)
PERMIT
NEEDED?
PARK
FEATURES
highest mountain in Myanmar;
forests; rare species such as takin,
musk and black barking deer, and
blue sheep
Hkakabo
Razi Nation-
al Park
1472
Oct-Apr yes
Indawgyi
Wetland
Wildlife
Sanctuary
one of Southeast Asia's largest lake;
120 species of birds
299
Jan-Apr no
Inle Wetland
Bird Sanctu-
ary
floating agriculture; birdlife, otters,
turtles
year-
round
642
no
Moeyungyi
Wetlands
40
125 species of birds
Nov-Apr no
