Mongolia's Biodiversity
by Richard P. Reading
Mongolia is a vast nation of 628,000 square miles (about the size of Alaska) with a sparse human population of about 2.4 million and some of the world's last large and relatively unaltered ecosystems. Several species that are rare, endangered, or declining in other portions of their range have their last stronghold within Mongolia's borders. However, the relative health of Mongolia's natural environment is nothing to be complacent about.
As Mongolia opens its doors to the Western world and moves from a centrally planned to a free-market economy, the threats to its biodiversity have perhaps never been greater. Indeed, already several species are endangered or experiencing marked declines and several natural systems are being subjected to growing external stresses, especially from expanding livestock herds, poaching, and mining activity. At the same time, Mongolia has a low population density, lacks the infrastructure necessary for rapid development, and the culture is strongly conservation oriented. These characteristics, coupled with recent democratic and social reforms, provide conservationists with a rare opportunity to establish progressive, broad-scale, proactive conservation programs.
Sandwiched between Siberia to the north and China to the south, the center of Mongolia is about the same latitude as the Canada-U.S. border. Mongolia's relatively high elevation, low precipitation, and extreme continental climate have influenced the formation of a unique assemblage of natural communities. Moving from west to east, towering mountains separated by wide valleys of steppe give way to smaller hills and then rolling to almost-level terrain. Vast, unfenced grasslands extend to the horizon in eastern Mongolia. Moving from north to south, Mongolia becomes drier and more sparsely vegetated. Taiga forests give way to steppe, desert-steppe, and ultimately true desert. The southern portion of Mongolia is dominated by the Gobi.
The vast larch-, spruce-, and pine-dominated taiga forests of Siberia extend into northern Mongolia. These forests cover about nine percent of Mongolia and harbor red deer, musk deer, wild caribou, brown bear, sable, wolves, and more. Above the forests, snow leopards, argali sheep, and ibex roam higher elevations that top 14,000 feet.
The steppe of Mongolia may represent the greatest expanse of largely unaltered grassland in the world. Spared the effects of large-scale conversion to agriculture and the introduction of exotic plants, it supports wolves, corsac foxes, great bustards, steppe eagles, saker falcons, Mongolian gazelle, and several rare and endangered species of crane. Mongolian gazelle cross this landscape by the millions in one of the world's last great ungulate migrations. The world's only truly wild horse, the Przewalski's horse or tahki, has recently been reintroduced into Mongolia's steppe. More sparsely vegetated habitats in the desert-steppe and true desert harbor wild Bactrian camels, Gobi bears (a unique subspecies of brown bear), Asian wild asses, saiga antelope, goitered gazelle, argali (a wild sheep), jerboas (small leaping rodents), and lammergeier (bearded vultures). These more arid regions also support Mongolia's richest collection of reptiles. Rugged mountain massifs, badlands, steep canyon lands, vast unvegetated plains, shifting sand dunes, scattered oases, and saxaul forests (thickets of tiny-leaved desert bushes that reach 20 feet in height), characterize the Gobi.
Although landlocked, Mongolia boasts several different aquatic habitats. Within its river systems, few of which are blocked by dams, huge taimen (a salmon relative) grow to 220 pounds, and lenok trout, grayling, and pike can be found choking channels in some areas. Deep and crystal clear, Lake Hovsgol in the north contains almost two percent of the world's fresh water. Home to white-tailed eagles and osprey, Lake Hovsgol is the sister lake to Baikal just across the border in Russia, and may hold equally fascinating endemic life. Farther west lies the Great Lakes Basin of Mongolia, a closed, inter-mountain basin containing several large fresh, brackish, and salt water lakes inhabited by numerous waterfowl and shorebirds, including Dalmatian pelicans, white spoonbills, whooper swans, and swan geese. An area of small lakes, rivers, and marshes in northeastern Mongolia is included in a three-nation crane reserve used by six of the world's 15 species of cranes, including white-naped cranes, hooded cranes, and Siberian cranes.
Sharing these habitats are several different ethnic groups of Mongolians. A large percentage of the rural people remains largely nomadic, living a lifestyle unchanged in centuries. Only about three percent of Mongolia is currently settled or plowed farmland, and fences, utilities, improved roads, and permanent structures are rare outside of provincial capitals. Living in canvas and felt tents called gers or yurts, traditional Mongolians move their livestock to new pastures several times each year and the major mode of transport remains the horse. Mongolian culture boasts a tradition of respect for nature that has been codified in its new constitution, which was adopted in 1991.
Although Mongolia has one of the world's lowest human population densities, its 1.8 percent annual population growth rate (recently as high as 2.3 percent) translates into a rapidly expanding human population, and this growth is actively encouraged by the government. Unfortunately, however, the aridity of Mongolia and the consequent low productivity of its land prevent the country from producing sufficient food for its expanding population. This, and privatization of livestock herds, has induced herders to increase livestock numbers, which further stresses pasture lands that already show the first signs of degradation. The result is loss of habitat and displacement of wildlife.
As a means of generating revenue and providing employment, Mongolia is pushing industrial development and exploitation of its mineral resources. The need for capital, coupled with expanding consumption and heavy lobbying by foreign companies, has created growing pressure for exploitation. Foreign oil and mining companies are currently initiating several mines and exploring large portions of the nation.
Poaching threatens several species. Professional poachers from China and Russia increasingly cross Mongolia's borders to capitalize on the ever-increasing value of animals and animal products, such as saker falcons for falconers, musk deer glands, bear gall bladders, snow leopard pelts, and deer antlers. Many of these poachers are well organized and well armed, making them difficult for Mongolia's understaffed, under-paid, and poorly armed border guards and rangers to stop. In addition, most Mongolians, especially nomads, poach for meat. This poaching appears to be primarily opportunistic, but has significant cumulative effects. As a result, few large mammals inhabit vast portions of Mongolia, despite the low human population density and often large expanses of habitat.
Unfortunately, the capacity of Mongolia to effectively conserve and manage its natural resources is constrained by a lack of resources and training. Financial limitations restrict the government's ability to attract, train, and maintain quality personnel, purchase equipment, and conduct necessary activities. Mongolia also suffers from a lack of exposure to recent theories and methodologies in ecology, conservation biology, and natural resources management. Nevertheless, a cadre of bright, dedicated biologists, conservationists, and managers is eager to acquire new skills and knowledge by working closely with international experts and through overseas and domestic training programs.
In response to new and more complicated threats, Mongolia established a governmental environment management agency, the Ministry of Nature and the Environment. Under the direct guidance of this agency and with the assistance of several international organizations, Mongolia is expanding its system of protected areas, drafting and enacting environmental legislation, beginning to monitor the environment, conducting some research, and training personnel.
Further, Mongolia's new constitution continues a tradition of concern and respect for nature, stating "The citizens of Mongolia shall be guaranteed the right . . . to a healthy and safe environment, and to be protected against environmental pollution and ecological imbalance" and "it shall be the sacred duty for every citizen . . . [to] protect nature and the environment." A recently adopted goal targets 30 percent of Mongolia's territory as protected areas, and already the protected areas system has rapidly expanded to include 35 protected areas covering 6,320 square miles (10.1 percent of the nation's territory). Several international organizations assist in efforts to conserve Mongolia's biological resources. These cooperative projects have made significant advances. However, these efforts remain insufficient and the conservation challenges are growing. Only time will tell if Mongolia will be able to maintain the biological heritage her people so strongly value.
Richard P. Reading lived in Mongolia for two and a half years before accepting his current position as Director of Conservation Biology at the Denver Zoological Foundation in late 1996. He continues assisting with a variety of endangered species and protected areas projects in Mongolia.
(ZooGoer 26(5) 1997. Copyright 1997 Friends of the National Zoo. All rights reserved.)
