Hyrcanian Forests

Overview

The Hyrcanian Forests form a unique forested massif that stretches along the Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan and Iran. The history of these broad-leaved forests dates back 25 to 50 million years, when they covered most of this Northern Temperate region. Their floristic biodiversity is remarkable with over 3,200 vascular plant species documented. To date, 180 species of birds typical of broad-leaved temperate forests and 58 mammal species have been recorded. Elements of the property comprise full ecosystems including top predators such as leopard, wolf and brown bear, and the forest has a high degree of rare and endemic tree species. The oldest trees seen here are 300-400 years old, with some possibly up to 500 years old.

Selection Criteria

(ix)

Components(17 locations)

• •Boola1584bis-006
• •Lisar1584bis-015
• •Kojoor1584bis-010
• •Alimestan1584bis-007
• •Abr (East)1584bis-003
• •Abr (West)1584bis-004
• •Jahan Nama1584bis-005
• •Vaz (East)1584bis-008
• •Vaz (West)1584bis-009
• •Chahar-Bagh1584bis-011
• •Gast Roudkhan1584bis-014
• •Khoshk-e-Daran1584bis-012
• •Golestan (North)1584bis-001
• •Golestan (South)1584bis-002
• •Siahroud-e-Roudbar1584bis-013
• •Dangyaband (Northern HNP)1584bis-016
• •İstisuchay Valley (Southern HNP)1584bis-017

Details

Countries

Azerbaijan, Iran (Islamic Republic of)

ISO Codes

AZ, IR

Area

145,004.74 ha

Transboundary

Yes

Coordinates

37.4215, 55.7243