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Saigachy State Reserve

A vast protected area on the north-western Ustyurt plateau, set up in 1991 to protect the saiga antelope and its breeding grounds.

Nature1991

About the place

This reserve covers about a million hectares of the north-western Ustyurt plateau in Kungrad district of Karakalpakstan, reaching east to the Kazakh border. It was created in 1991 to protect the saiga, a steppe antelope that breeds on the Ustyurt, moves into the Kazakh deserts for summer and returns in autumn.

The houbara bustard and other species from Uzbekistan's Red Book also live here. It is remote desert with no regular visitor services, so a trip needs a specialist operator and permits.

Why go

  • Saiga antelope country on the Ustyurt
  • Home to the houbara bustard
  • About a million hectares of protected desert

Sources (3)

  1. 1.Wikidata
  2. 2.uz.wikipedia.org
  3. 3.openstreetmap.org

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