Khentii Landscape

Khentii Landscape
The characteristic flora of the region is that of the Baikal-Daurian and Mongolian-Daurain mountain steppe. As high as the upper river courses (2000-2200 m), poorly accessible cedar and cedar-larch forests with lots of moss and cranberries are representative of the taiga massif. Overall, Khentii is home to 50 mammal species.  Important predators are brown bear (Ursus actors), wolf (Canis lupus), lynx (lynx lynx), wolverine (Gulo gulo), and sable (Matres zibelliana). Large herbivores are represented by the maral, a sub-species of red deer (Cervus elaphus maral), moose (Alces alces pfizenmayeri), Siberian roedeer (Capreolus pygargus), and musk deer (Moschus moschiferus). The area's avifauna is diverse both in terms of species number and its composition. Arboreal species dominate with 83 species. Bold (1984) indicates 253 bird species for the Khentii (61 resident species, 119 nesting migrants, 16 wintering birds, 36 passage migrants, 12 vagrants, and 9 unconfirmed nesting species). Source: Gorkhi-Terelj National Park and Khan Khentee Strictly Protected Area. (Bernd Steinhauer-Burkart & Alois Liegl)