Forest reserves are what are left of our once beautiful, all natural world of forests, animals and mountains. Huge cities with their skyscrapers have taken over once pristine forest and steppe lands. Today, the few forest reserves we have in the world are precious land spaces that provide a heaven for the flora and fauna not found anywhere else. Here are the top 10 forest reserves for the nature loving traveler in you.
1. Serra do Divisor National Park, Brazil-Peru
The Serra Do Divisor National Park comprises a large slice of the world’s largest rainforest, the Amazon. The Amazon rainforest is as large as the United States or Western Europe, as it covers 5% of our planet’s land. It supports the most diverse and very threatened ecosystem; you’ll find 15% of the world’s mammals here, along with 15% of Earth’s terrestrial flora.
2. Muir Woods National Park, North America
Muir Woods National Park in the San Francisco bay area is one of Northern America’s last coastal redwood forests, one of the stalwarts of the US’s diverse and beautiful ancient forest ecosystems.
The Muir Woods National Park is a great rainforest park reserve that stores massive amounts of the carbon our planet needs so badly. This reserve, along with the entire forest stretch, contains many large mammals such as the grey wolf, puma and grizzly bear.
3. Defensores Del Chaco National Park, Southern Chile And Argentina
This forest is part of the temperate forest ecosystem of South America, covering vast areas of Southern Chile and Argentina. This forest is the world’s largest piece of temperate forest in the world that is so far not disturbed by the hands of man. Home to black jaguars, this forest is neighbored by the not-so-undisturbed Yungas and Great Chaco ecosystems.
4. Lake Khovsgol National Park, Asian Russia
The Lake Khovsgol National Park is part of the large Snow Forests of Asian Russia. This region hosts greater variety of flora and fauna than any other temperate forest. Several species of flora and fauna are unique to this forest, and are found in any other forest areas. Apart from unique plants and animals, the Snow Forests also contain several indigenous populations.
5. Rinjani National Park, Indonesia, New Guinea, Solomon Islands
This park is situated in the second largest island in the world, the island of New Guinea. This region has the largest continuous tracts of primeval forest in the Asia Pacific region. It is one of the most culturally diverse areas of the world. In New Guinea alone, over 1000 languages are spoken.
Here you’ll find mammals such as the Orangutan, the Rafflesia, and the Sumatran Tiger and among flora, a special flower that’s a meter wide.
6. Virunga National Park, Congo
The Virunga National Park is part of the Congo rainforest, which comes next to the Amazon rainforest as second largest rainforest in the world. In terms of size, the forest is thrice the size of France. This forest is considered the fourth largest reservoir of carbon.
Several large primates depend on this rainforest for their survival, such as the chimpanzee, bonobo and gorilla. Of the 270 mammal species you can find here, 39 are unique and cannot be found elsewhere.
7. Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Ecuador
Part of the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador, the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve is 250,000 acres big. This forest contains a river running through it, flooded forests and 13 beautiful lagoons.
This is a richly biodiverse forest, with 15 monkey species and 60 different species of orchids. Board a canoe with native guides and you might see some anacondas and dolphins as well.
8. Monteverde Cloud Forest, Costa Rica
This cloud forest is located at 7,500 feet above sea level. Its cooler temperatures allow large towering figs to grow here, which give rise to a large primate population including howler monkeys. There are many different species of mammals and jaguars and birds, notably the Quetzal, an emerald green bird. Travelers can walk on the suspended bridges, take tours, hike the trails and check out a forest coffee plantation.
9. Khao Sok National Park, Thailand
This park is part of the oldest rainforest on earth, which has been there for 160 million years. Here you’ll find barking deer, kingfisher birds, clouded leopard and different kinds of plant life including banana, coconut and fig trees. There’s much the traveler can do here including trekking, canoeing, riding on elephants and taking jeep safaris.
10. Great Bear Rainforest, Canada
In this great rainforest, you’ll find truly tall, 200 foot high spruce and cedar trees. Situated along the pacific coast, this rainforest is 25,000 square miles large and holds hundreds of animal species. Notable of them are wolves, cougars, Kermode, grizzly bears and bald eagles. Travelers can enjoy salmon fishing in the ocean, hiking and exploring old Indian habitats left over from 1,000 years ago.
Teena the author of the”Top 10 Forest Reserves For Travelers” is amid traveler and loves the concept of eco traveling. She feels that Eco-tourism is a great way for educating people about environment. She is currently working with experience gift ideas company Adrenalin in Australia.