Ustiurt Preserve is a national nature park that is found in the southwestern region of the Ustiurt plateau within the Mangystau Province. The reserve is home to several rare animals such as the cheetah, gazelle, jackal, fox, ferret, and hedgehog. Other animals freely roaming and playing in the area are caracal (which hunts on hares, rodents and tiny birds), sand cat, Pallas cat, wolf, fox, corsac, weasel, steppe polecat, badger, Saiga antelope, and Ustiurt mouflon sheep. Some of the animals here have made it to Kazakhstan’s “Red Book” of endangered species, such as the Ustiurt mouflon, long-needled hedgehog, karakul lynx, Persian gazelle, short-toed eagle, Egyptian vulture, Saker falcon and golden eagle. There are 261 species of plants, 27 species of animals, 111 species of birds, 44 species of mammals, 17 species of rodents and plenty of reptiles. In 1982, people thought the cheetah and the lynx-like caracal have completely disappeared in Kazakhstan, but Ustiurt Preserve proved them wrong.
In addition to the rich flora and fauna, the national reserve also features a number of ancient monuments, which include Horezmhahs …
