National parks
- 12 Nov 2009 10:28
The first national park in Turkey was established in 1958. Since then their numbers have increased to 39. Some of these parks, which were initially established for archaeological and historical purposes are at the same time rich habitats where biological diversity is being protected. The Olympos - Bey Mountains National Park in the province of Antalya in the Mediterranean region, for example, contains a wealth of flora and fauna, which are either endemic or relic distributions, in addition to important archaeological ruins. The Koprulu Canyon National Park in the same province is the home of Cupressus sempervirens forests. Natural forests of this tree no longer occur elsewhere in the world.