![\"sinharaja\"](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sinharaja_chamal_n.jpg\" "\\"sinharaja_chamal_n\\"")
Where:<\/strong> Southwest Sri Lanka<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Established between 1875 and the early 20th Century. It became a Biosphere Reserve in 1978 and a World Heritage Site in 1988.<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> This Reserve has 50% of Sri Lanka\u2019s remaining lowland rainforest vegetation with a ton of endemic species (which means belonging to or native to the area). These include 143 trees and woody climbers, 21 bird species as well as several mammals and butterflies.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> \u201cSinharaja\u201d literally means lion king and the area is often the setting of local legends.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.biodiversityhotspots.org\/xp\/hotspots\/ghats\/Pages\/conservation.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a>http:\/\/whc.unesco.org\/en\/list\/405 <\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> Sierra Nevada in California, USA<\/p>\n When: <\/strong>Created in 1890, which makes it one of the world\u2019s first official national parks.<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Mountains, valleys and at least 9 waterfalls including the tallest in North America (Yosemite Falls). You will also find over 300 animal species and over 1500 plants, including the Giant Sequoias<\/a>.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> Yosemite National Park was originally created to protect the highlands from the damaging affects of grazing sheep. It has since served as an example for the formation of many other national parks.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.nps.gov\/yose\/naturescience\/natural-resource-statistics.htm<\/a> \n Where:<\/strong> At \u201cRoof of Hokkaido,\u201d an area at the centre of the island of Hokkaido, Japan<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Established in 1934<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Subarctic lakes and waterfalls along high mountains, not to mention a smoking volcano or two. There are rare butterflies and insects within mixed forests, as well as bears<\/a> and deer. One of the most interesting animals is the Pika, a small mouse-like mammal.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> It is the largest national park in Japan and \u201cDaisetsuzan\u201d means Great Snowy Mountains.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.bes.or.jp\/english\/parks\/daisetsu.html <\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> A group of islands in the Pacific Ocean beside Ecuador<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Created in 1936, it became a Biosphere Reserve in 1984 and a Marine Reserve in 1986.<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Numerous islands<\/a>, rock walls and sandy beaches surrounded by close to 560 plant species! There are 175 endemic plants and almost 5000 fauna species. All the reptiles in this park are endemic except for two tortoises.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> The Islands were formed by a series of volcanic eruptions. Perhaps most famously, the island\u2019s biodiversity played a vital role in the development of the theory of evolution. Thanks Darwin!<\/p>\n http:\/\/whc.unesco.org\/en\/list\/1; http:\/\/www.unep-wcmc-apps.org\/sites\/wh\/pdf\/Galapagos.pdf <\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> Southwestern New Zealand on the South Island<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Founded in 1952, it became a World Heritage Area in 1986 as part of Te W\u0101hipounamu<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Many small islands with mountains, frozen rivers and lakes with forests and grasslands. Within its borders there are over 700 endemic plant species and many animals and birds. This Park is also home to the Kakapo<\/a> and the Takahe (a bird that was thought to be extinct before being rediscovered in 1948).<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> Fiordland is the largest national park in New Zealand<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.doc.govt.nz\/conservation\/land-and-freshwater\/offshore-islands\/fiordland-islands\/background\/<\/a><\/p>\n http:\/\/www.doc.govt.nz\/parks-and-recreation\/national-parks\/fiordland\/<\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> Northeast end of Madagascar<\/a><\/p>\n When:<\/strong> In 1952 it became a strict nature reserve, in 1998 it was turned into a park and became open to the public.<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Within the Park\u2019s mountains there are over 300 species of Pteridophytes, non-flowering plants like ferns, including six that are endemic to the area. There are also over 300 different animal species.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> Silky Sifaka, a lemur that lives in the park, is one of the rarest animals in the world.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.parcs-madagascar.com\/fiche-aire-protegee_en.php?Ap=22 <\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> The Northeast side of Greenland<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Created in 1974, it became a Biosphere Reserve in 1977<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> The land is covered in ice and there are fjords (formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley) throughout the area. Due to the cold climate, animal and plant life is limited. In the south, some traditional hunting communities still exist.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong>It is the most northern and largest national park in the world, taking up almost one quarter of the island\u2019s land surface. In case you\u2019re wondering, Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.eastgreenland.com\/database.asp?lang=eng&num=414 http:\/\/www.unesco.org\/mabdb\/br\/brdir\/directory\/biores.asp?code=DEN+01&mode=all<\/a> \n Where:<\/strong> The island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Established in 1974 and distinguished as a Biosphere Reserve in 1993<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> The history of volcanic eruptions in this area has created a barren land with few plants and animals. There are 20 plants that are endemic on the island and most of these are shrubs.<\/p>\n Did you know?… <\/strong>The park was originally created to protect the volcanic landscape from the affects of tourists. Also, the volcanoes on the island are still active and some people cook food using its heat.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.unesco.org\/mabdb\/br\/brdir\/directory\/biores.asp?code=SPA+12&mode=all<\/a><\/p>\n \n Where:<\/strong> Tien Shan Mountains in Kyrgyzstan<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Created in 1979<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Large glaciers, over 50 mountain peaks with several valleys, canyons, and gorges. There are also 800 plant species and over 300 animal species.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong>Tien Shan Mountains are part of the Great Silk Road, which stretches from Europe to Asia. The Great Silk Road was the main route for communication and trade in the area up until the 16th century.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.visit-uzbekistan.com\/kyrgyzstan\/ala_archa.php<\/a> \n Where:<\/strong> Cordillera De Talamanca Mountains that runs through Panama and Costa Rica<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Established in 1982 in Costa Rica and 1988 in Panama, it became a Biosphere Reserve in 1983<\/p>\n Highlights:<\/strong> Tropical rainforests and mountainous with 180 plants and over 60 animal species endemic to the area. Of the 850 birds that live in Panama, 550-600 can be found in La Amistad.<\/p>\n Did you know?…<\/strong> Its Mountains are the highest and largest area of undisturbed cloud forest in Central America. It is also the destination of 75% of all the migratory<\/a> birds of the Western Hemisphere during migration.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.biodiversityhotspots.org\/xp\/hotspots\/mesoamerica\/Pages\/conservation.aspx<\/a> We’re traveling across the planet to find biodiversity protecting parks in places like the Galapagos islands, New Zealand, Madagascar and Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10852,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[663,1353,411,931],"tags":[105,26,357,81,178],"class_list":{"0":"post-8447","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-land-habitat","8":"category-to-edit","9":"category-top-10","10":"category-all","11":"tag-biodiversity","12":"tag-habitat","13":"tag-parks","14":"tag-protection","15":"tag-world"},"pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8447","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8447"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8447\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}#2 Yosemite National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"yosemite\"](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/yosemite_np.jpg\" "\\"yosemite_np\\"")
\nhttp:\/\/www.yosemitepark.com\/cultural-history.aspx <\/a><\/p>\n#3 Daisetsuzan National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"daisutsu](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/daisutsu_zan_national_park_panorama_abhisek.jpg\" "\\"daisutsu_zan_national_park_panorama_abhisek\\"")
#4 Galapagos Islands National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"Bartolome](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/galapagos_Island.jpg\" "\\"bartolome")
#5 Fiordland National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"fiordland](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/fiordland_national_park_new_zealand_marc_-mann.jpg\" "\\"fiordland_national_park_new_zealand_marc_")
#6 Marojejy National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"marojejy\"](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/marojejy_np_jeff_gibbs.jpg\" "\\"marojejy_np_jeff_gibbs\\"")
#7 Northeast Greenland National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"greenland](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/greenland_jerzy_strzelecki.jpg\" "\\"greenland_jerzy_strzelecki\\"")
\nhttp:\/\/www.stat.gl\/LinkClick.aspx?link=Intranet%2fGIF_2009_WEB.pdf&tabid=57&mid=473&language=en-US <\/a><\/p>\n#8 Timanfaya National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"Timanfaya\"](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/timanfaya_gernot_keller.jpg\" "\\"timanfaya_gernot_keller\\"")
#9 Ala Archa National Park<\/h2>\n
![\"ala](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/ala_archa_mountains_mass_ave_975.jpg\" "\\"ala_archa_mountains_mass_ave_975\\"")
\nhttp:\/\/www.kyrgyzstan.orexca.com\/great_silk_road_kyrgyzstan.shtml<\/a><\/p>\n#10 La Amistad International Park<\/h2>\n
![\"trail,](\"\/EN\/CA\/wp-content\/uploads\/trail_in_la_amistad_dirk_van_der_made.jpg\" "\\"trail_in_la_amistad_dirk_van_der_made\\"")
\nhttp:\/\/www.unesco.org\/mabdb\/br\/brdir\/directory\/biores.asp?code=COS+01&mode=all<\/a>
\nhttp:\/\/whc.unesco.org\/archive\/advisory_body_evaluation\/205.pdf <\/a><\/p>\nEarth Rangers<\/a> is a non-profit organization that works to inspire and educate<\/a> children about the environment. At EarthRangers.com kids can play games<\/a>, discover amazing facts<\/a>, meet animal ambassadors<\/a> and fundraise<\/a> to protect biodiversity<\/a>.<\/em><\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"