Sparse Woodland Steppes and Lakes

　　Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan, located in northern Kazakhstan, covers an area of 450,344 hectares and consists of two nature reserves: Naurzum State Nature Reserve and Korgalzhyn State Nature Reserve. Saryarka boasts wetlands of crucial importance to migratory water birds, including globally endangered species such as the highly rare Siberian white crane, Dalmatian pelican, and Pallas’s fish eagle.

　　These wetlands serve as a vital stopover and crossroads for birds migrating between Africa, Europe, and South Asia to their breeding grounds in western and eastern Siberia. The Saryarka region includes a 200,000-hectare area of Central Asian sparse woodland steppe, home to over half of the region’s steppe plant species, numerous endangered birds, and the critically endangered saiga antelope—once abundant but drastically reduced due to poaching. Saryarka also features multiple freshwater and saltwater lakes located along the watershed between rivers flowing north toward the Arctic and those draining south into the Aral–Irtysh river basin.

　　Saryarka – Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan Must-Visit Reason: Kazakhstan’s most significant wetlands