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Jointly covering an area of nearly 2,40,000 hectares in South America, the Iguazu National Park in Argentina and its sister park, the Iguacu National Park in Brazil, are regions centred around the spectacular Iguazu Falls. The falls is among the widest in the world, wider than the popular Niagara Falls of North America. The Parks contain remnants of highly endangered rainforests, and were set up in the 1930s to preserve not just the scenic beauty of the falls but also the vegetation and wildlife in and around the region. Huge clouds of spray continuously immerse the several river islands and the riverine forests around. This creates a very humid environment giving rise to fertile and thick vegetation that supports a variety of wildlife. In 1984, the Iguazu National Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, while Iguacu received the recognition two years later.

Wildlife

The region boasts vegetation that is both rich and varied. The subtropical rainforest surrounding the falls is believed to nurture more than 1,000 species of plants from orchids, pine, and bamboo to palm and even moss. This makes it a perfect haven for wildlife, which is said to be as varied as the vegetation itself. In addition to more than 400 species of birds, the area is said to support over 75 mammal species and countless varieties of invertebrates. Among the mammals that can be spotted here are iguanas, tapirs, giant anteaters, howler monkeys, ocelots (cat species), and jaguars. It's also a spot to see caimans (crocodiles). The birds found in and around the area include swifts, swallows, parrots, herons, toucans, flycatchers, trogons, owls, falcons, kites, nighthawks, thrushes, shrikes, kingfishers, quails, and the near-threatened harpy eagles.

Threats

Changing landscapes due to a variety of reasons such as deforestation and development, tourism, agricultural encroachment, and poaching are among the threats in the region. But dominated as it is by water, the threats on this resource is of particular concern.

Water management: There are dams outside the parks that feed the waterfalls. However, the water flow to the waterfalls is controlled depending on the electricity requirement. For instance, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the water flow during weekends could be lower than ususal due to lower demand for electricity. This fluctuation could affect flora and fauna of the region.

Farmland run-off: On one side of the Iguacu National Park is the beginning of land parcels used for intense agriculture. The practices here involve the use of pollutants such as pesticide. The streams that run through these areas and flowing into the falls carry with them polluted sediments. In the long run, this could affect the plants and animals of the region.

And some good news!

As recently as 2008, only eight jaguars roamed the Brazil's Iguacu National Park.

That's quite a dramatic fall from about 400 in the 1990s near Brazil's border. The cats were pushed to the brink of extinction due to hunting and intense deforestation, resulting in the loss of the animal's habitat. And gradually after 2010, their numbers began increasing, thanks to steps such as setting up of camera traps initiated to tackle poaching. By 2018, the place was home to 28 cats, and the numbers are said to have increased by 2020. But there's a proposal to build a road that will cut the park in two. If this project is implemented, the road will pose a severe threat to the region's biodiversity, and will be a setback to the conservation efforts of the cat.

Picture Credit : Google

Situated in China's southeast region of Sichuan, the panda sanctuaries comprise Wolong Nature Reserve, Mount Siguniang, and liajin Mountains. Spanning more than 9,000 sq km., the area holds within itself seven nature reserves. The sanctuaries make up the largest remaining contiguous habitat of the giant panda. In fact, the region is also a very important place for the captive breeding of this mammal, listed as "vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Since the panda's habitat is fragmented, the area is protected and has green corridors that not only help in the safe movement of these mammals within established boundaries but also play a role in avoiding in-breeding. The area is botanically very signicant too for the rich diversity it exhibits- a whopping 5,000 species at least - from magnolias and bamboos to rhododendrons and orchids! This very diversity is what makes it valuable in welcoming several species of mammals, reptiles, and birds to the region. In 2006, the property was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Due to the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake, at least two pandas at the Wolong Panda Centre within the reserve lost their lives. The Reserve, situated as it was near the epicentre of the quake, was severely damaged. However, despite fears, several pregnant pandas (including one that was injured during the quake) at the Centre went on to deliver healthy cubs.

Wildlife

Though the focal species of the sanctuaries is the giant panda, the place also houses endangered animals such as the red panda, the snow leopard, and the clouded leopard. It nurtures more than a 100 mammal species and 300 bird species, many of which are said to breed locally. The animals also include deer, golden monkey, and gnu. Among the bird species that can be spotted here are partridges, snipes, monals, thrushes, finches, rubythroats, pheasants, cuckoos, accentors, robins, tragopans, vultures, sparrowhawks, griffons, buzzards, tits, leaf warblers, fulvettas, yuhinas, nuthatches, and pipits.

Threats

The region holds about a third of the world's total panda population. and so is very crucial for the species. But it is faced with several kinds of threats. In addition to the grave threat of climate change, direct human actions are a cause of concern.

Habitat loss and fragmentation: A large portion of panda's natural habitats has been lost to agriculture and infrastructure development. When their living area shrinks, the animals face the risk of infection and in-breeding too.

Loss of bamboo: Roads and railway lines cutting through forests not just alienate sections of the panda population, but also result in bamboo die-offs. Bamboo is an integral part of panda diet, and sustained and large-scale loss of bamboo could lead to severe food deficit for the pandas.

Logging: Logging in the sanctuaries was banned as early as 1998. However, a two-year investigation by a non-government environmental organisation a few years ago revealed that logging continued in the region illegally, using loopholes in the country's regulations. The investigation also revealed that more than 3,000 acres of natural forests within the sanctuaries were wiped off.

Harvesting: Herbs are an important part of traditional Chinese medicine, and so people harvesting such herbs in the sanctuaries degrade the forests during the process. In addition, people harvest bamboo, and also gather firewood, leaving the region more vulnerable to degradation.

Picture Credit : Google

Believed to be named after a mangrove species called sundari, the Sundarbans is the world's largest mangrove forest. It marks the area where land meets sea and freshwater meets seawater. Covering a vast area that spans more than 10,000 sq. km., the Sundarbans straddles the two countries of India (West Bengal) and its neighbour Bangladesh. While around 60 % of the total area falls in Bangladesh, the rest is in India. One of the last preserves of the endangered Bengal tiger, the region is said to be the only mangrove habitat of this big cat. The area is also part of the world's largest delta, showing an incredible level of biodiversity both in flora and fauna. It is said to support more than 300 species each of plants, animals, and birds. This includes many threatened and endangered animals too. Marked by a chain of tidal waterways, mudflats, and tiny islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests, it is an impressive representation of continuing ecological processes. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the latter half of the 20th Century.

Wildlife

Though the Bengal tiger is the most noted species here, several other animals, amphibians, and reptiles can be spotted in the area. They include estuarine crocodiles, fishing cats, common otters, water monitor lizards, Gangetic dolphins, snubfin dolphins, river terrapins, turtles such as olive ridley turtles, green sea turtles, hawksbill turtles, a few species of sharks and rays, wild boars, spotted deer, porcupines, rhesus macaques, king cobras, common cobras, banded kraits, Russell's vipers, pythons, checkered keelbacks, and green whip snakes. Herons, egrets, kingfishers, woodpeckers, storks, owls, terns, flycatchers, sunbirds, flowerpeckers, cormorants, storks, orioles, bitterns, babblers, pigeons, sandpipers, spoonbills, darters, eagles, seagulls, teals, partridges, wild geese, and ducks are some of the local and migratory birds that can be found in the region.

Threats

• Located as it is in the coastal region of the Bay of Bengal, the Sundarbans has always been threatened by cyclones and tidal waves. This has only increased with global warming and climate change. These factors have led to increasing temperatures and sea-level rise. A recent study found that when more and more (salinated) seawater enters land, coupled with hotter temperatures, they affect the vegetation of the region. If they gradually begin to disappear, the spotted deer in the region would too. Since the spotted deer is the Bengal tigers top prey, the big cat will be affected too.
• Not just that. The study added that without adequate prey, the chances of tigers venturing into human territory could go up, resulting in increased incidence of human-animal conflict.
• As it is, the tiger population has been a cause of concern, with only a few thousands left in the wild today. Along with the results of the study, other aspects such as encroachment and development too are reasons for concern.

But there's good news!

According to the census conducted during the first half of 2020, the number of tigers in Sundarbans increased by eight to reach 96. Since 2016, the big cats number has been increasing, and this is said to be the highest since then. This news is particularly heartening because of the numerous threats the species faces.

Picture Credit : Google

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, the tropical rainforest regions in Indonesia's Sumatra Island comprise three national parks, namely Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park, and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park. Spread across more than 25,000 sq.km. a portion of the area falls within Sumatra's Leuser ecosystem that's often described as "the last place on Earth where tigers, rhinos, orangutans and elephants still live together".

The Parks, which are located on the spine of Bukit Barisan Mountains of Sumatra, show amazing uniqueness in biodiveristy, and are home to 10,000 species of plants. The regions also show a stunning variety in ecosystem from lowland rainforest to montane forest and subalpine low forest to scrub and shrub vegetation. The Gunung Leuser National Park is the place to see both the world's largest flower (Rafflesia arnoldi) and the tallest flower (Amorphophallus titanum).

Wildlife

The area is said to nurture more than 500 species of birds. Ducks, geese, partridges, scrubfowls, pheasants, grebes, pigeons, doves, quails, cuckoos, coucals, malkohas, koels, frogmouths, nightjars, swifts, swiftlets, needletails, rails, waterhens, crakes, thickknees, stilts, plovers, lapwings, snipes, jacanas, sandpipers, pratincoles, gulls, terns, petrels, shearwaters, storks, frigatebirds, tropicbirds, boobies, darters, cormorants, pelicans, herons, bitterns, egrets, ibises, kites, buzzards, eagles, owls, harriers, trogons, hornbills, kingfishers, bee-eaters, rollers, woodpeckers, barbets, kestrels, falcons, parakeets, broadbills, pittas, ioras, minivets, shrikes, orioles, drongos, fantails, flycatchers, magpies, swallows, bulbuls, warblers, tailorbirds, white eyes, babblers, thrushes, mynas, starlings, leafbirds, flowerpeckers, sunbirds, spiderhunters, wagtails, weavers, munias, and finches are among the birds that can be spotted in the region. The place also supports more than 200 mammal species, including several that are endemic and endangered. The mammals include the endemic Sumatran orangutan, the Sumatran tiger, dlouded leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, and the Malayan sun bear.

Threats

• Given the expansive wealth of natural resources in the region, Sumatra has attracted heavy international financing zeroing in on extractive industries, "from precious hardwoods and minerals to palm oil, rubber, and coal". As a result, the precious wildlife in the area is losing their habitats and faces a very bleak future.
• Road development in the rainforests is of great concern because they not just destroy the natural landscape and displace wildlife, but also provide access to people for illegal logging, encroachment, and poaching.
• Agriculture is another cause of worry. As rainforests are wiped off to give way for agriculture, it becomes difficult to reclaim the lost forest area. In fact, a study less than a decade ago had said that the rainforests of Sumatra are likely to disappear in 20 years. So, right now, we have perhaps about 10 years to save the rainforests. This would also mean the eventual, permanent disappearance of some of the rarest wildlife species on the planet.
• In 2011, the UNSECO placed the region under its List of World Heritage in Danger. Mining, encroachment, development activities, and, to a certain extent, invasive species are among the several threats to the rainforests in Sumatra listed by it.

Picture Credit : Google