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Cause for concern across the Eurasian Continent
Palaearctic
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Montane Grasslands and Shrublands
Hindu Kush alpine meadow
The human population is sparse in this ecoregion, which means the region has remained largely intact. But the Karakoram Highway project threatens the survival of most species in the area. Throughout their range, snow leopards and foxes are killed for their fur and because they occasionally prey on domestic animals. There is also high competition for fodder with domestic animals, which creates food scarcities for wild ungulates such as Marco Polo sheep and Himalayan ibex.
Although protected areas cover large swaths of montane habitat in this ecoregion, the most important ecological areas are not protected, and nature conservation has been given a low priority. Population and grazing pressures exert enormous pressure on the region, and people still use the land within protected areas for grazing livestock, collecting firewood, cutting trees, and hunting illegally. Grazing and illegal hunting must be controlled for native animals to survive.
Mongolia has one of the worlds lowest population densities but one of Asias highest population growth rates. A growing population could cause some people to begin exploiting higher elevation grasslands for grazing, foraging, and tourism. Hunting and poaching are also causes for concern.
Massive deforestation has occurred here, not only in natural forests, but also in buffer zones and even in the streets of some towns. Funding for nature conservation activities, including research, has severely decreased. Scientists currently think that 67 botanical species of these mountains are threatened with extinction, and 15 seem to have already disappeared.
Over-hunting has caused the decline of many species of large mammals and birds in this region. The forest has been cut extensively and, if allowed, will take a long time to regenerate. Overgrazing of sheep and goats is a major threat to habitats as well. Habitat destruction and hunting have already caused the demise of the Turanian (Central Asian) tiger and the Persian lion.
Illegal timber and firewood extraction are currently the most significant threats to the integrity of the ecoregion. Fires, overgrazing, and thousands of years of timber harvesting have played a significant role in the destruction of the forests and the delicate mountain ecology. The reduction in tree cover has in turn led to severe soil erosion.
North Tibetan Plateau-Kunlun Mountains alpine desert
The pressures of human activity are quite small in the more remote parts of this ecoregion. In the milder and more productive areas, hunting and competition from domestic livestock create some pressures on wild mammals. Conservationists consider the pockets of spruce forests vulnerable because they are so slow-growing. And they believe nature reserves need better management because immigration and herding are increasing around them.
All of the lands that can support agriculture have already been cleared, but overgrazing and fuel-wood collection pose threats to undisturbed areas. Only one-tenth of this ecoregion lies in protected areas, and the rest has not been inventoried sufficiently to determine its biodiversity importance.
Heavy grazing and agriculture have taken a severe toll on this region, creating areas of desert and increasing the occurrence of dust storms. Sheep grazing is very heavy in areas too dry for agriculture. And high prices for cashmere wool have encouraged increased grazing of goats, which are particularly damaging to the grassland habitat.
Overgrazing and fuelwood collection are causing desertification in some parts of this dry ecoregion. People also pose a threat in some of the region's protected areas. Taxkorgan Nature Reserve, for example, is not only home to many important wildlife species, but it is also home to 7,500 people and 70,000 domestic animals! The human residents hunt wild grazing animals for meat and kill predators to protect their livestock.
