Heritage with Related Tags
Gunung Mulu National Park
Located on the island of Borneo in Sarawak, Gunung Mulu National Park is noted for its rich biodiversity and karst topography, making it the world's most intensively studied tropical karst area. The park covers 52,864 hectares and contains 17 vegetation zones, displaying approximately 3,500 species of vascular plants. Palms are extremely diverse, with 109 species in 20 genera. The park is dominated by the sandstone pinnacle Gunung Mulu, which rises 2,377 meters above sea level. At least 295 kilometers of explored caves offer spectacular views and are home to millions of swiftlets and bats. The Sarawak Cave Chamber is 600 meters long, 415 meters wide and 80 meters high, making it the largest known cave chamber in the world.
Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California
The site includes 244 islands, islets and coastal areas in the Gulf of California, northeastern Mexico. The Sea of Cortez and its islands are known as a natural laboratory for studying speciation. In addition, almost all of the major oceanographic processes on Earth occur in the site, making it of great research value. The site is a place of stunning natural beauty, made up of rugged islands, towering cliffs and sandy beaches, which contrast with the gorgeous reflections of the desert and the surrounding turquoise waters. There are 695 species of vascular plants, more than any other marine and island property on the World Heritage List. The number of fish species is equally outstanding: 891, 90 of which are endemic. In addition, the site is home to 39% of the world's total marine mammal species and a third of the world's marine cetacean species.
Central Suriname Nature Reserve
The Central Suriname Nature Reserve encompasses 1.6 million hectares of pristine tropical forest in west-central Suriname. The reserve protects the upper basin of the Koppenaam River and the headwaters of the Lucy, Oster, Zuide, Salamachi and Granrio rivers, and covers a range of terrains and ecosystems that have significant conservation value due to their pristine state. The reserve's mountain and lowland forest flora is extremely diverse, with more than 5,000 vascular plant species collected to date. The reserve's fauna is typical of the region and includes jaguars, giant armadillos, giant otters, tapirs, sloths, eight species of primates and 400 bird species, such as the harpy eagle, the Guiana cockatoo and the vermilion macaw.
Iguazu National Park
The semicircular waterfall at the center of the site is about 80 meters high and 2,700 meters in diameter, located on the basalt line on the border between Argentina and Brazil. It consists of many waterfalls and splashes, making it one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. The surrounding subtropical rainforest has more than 2,000 species of vascular plants and is home to wildlife typical of the region: tapirs, giant anteaters, howler monkeys, ocelots, jaguars and caimans.
Surtsey
Surtsey is a volcanic island located approximately 32 km off the south coast of Iceland. It was formed by a volcanic eruption between 1963 and 1967. The island is all the more remarkable for the fact that it has been carefully preserved since its creation, providing a pristine natural laboratory. Surtsey has long provided unique information on the colonization of new lands by plants and animals, as it has not been disturbed by humans. Since the island was first studied in 1964, scientists have observed seeds arriving with ocean currents, the emergence of molds, bacteria and fungi, and in 1965 the first vascular plants, which by the end of the first decade numbered 10. By 2004, the number of vascular plants reached 60, in addition to 75 species of bryophytes, 71 species of lichens and 24 species of fungi. 89 bird species have been recorded on Surtsey, 57 of which breed elsewhere in Iceland. The 141-hectare island is also home to 335 species of invertebrates.