Wildlife of Armenia
Encyclopedia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
includes its flora
Flora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
and fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
and their natural habitats.
Wildlife in Armenia includes wild boar, porcupine
Crested Porcupine
The crested porcupine is a species of rodent in the Hystricidae family.It is extant in mainland Italy, Sicily, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.-Physical Attributes:...
s, various lizard
Lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
s, snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s and numerous species of birds. Endangered species living in Armenia are the Caucasian Bear, Caucasian bearded goat
Wild Goat
The wild goat is a widespread species of goat, with a distribution ranging from Europe and Asia Minor to central Asia and the Middle East. It is the ancestor of the domestic goat.-Social structure:...
, the Armenian mouflon
Mouflon
The mouflon is a subspecies group of the wild sheep Ovis aries. Populations of Ovis aries can be partitioned into the mouflons and urials or arkars...
(sheep) and the leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
.
Fauna
Fauna in Armenia is diverse given the country's relatively small geographic size, owing to the varied habitats created by the area's mountainess terrain. ArmeniaArmenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
is an important area for migratory animal
Animal
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
s, about 350 different bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
species were recorded in the country. Many of the world's domesticated animals originated in the area Armenia is located in, and the mouflon
Mouflon
The mouflon is a subspecies group of the wild sheep Ovis aries. Populations of Ovis aries can be partitioned into the mouflons and urials or arkars...
, the ancestor of domesticated sheep, is present there. Research suggests that about a quarter of the animal species in Armenia are internationally endangered. The mouflon are suffering a great population decline due to poaching and habitat loss, and the Sevan trout
Sevan trout
The Sevan trout is an endemic fish species of Lake Sevan in Armenia. It is a salmonid fish related to the brown trout....
, which made up thirty percent of the fish in Lake Sevan
Lake Sevan
Lake Sevan is the largest lake in Armenia and the Caucasus region. It is one of the largest high-altitude lakes in the world.Lake Sevan is situated in the central part of the Republic of Armenia, inside the Gegharkunik Province, at the altitude of 1,900m above sea level...
, have virtually disappeared.
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
remains the last stronghold for survival of this cat in the whole Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
, in part due to its connectivity with Iran where the main portion of the Persian leopard population exists. The total population size in Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
numbers no more than 10-20 individuals, including adults, sub adults and cubs. Special calculations were not carry out. By fragmentary data, population in Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
is accounted not more than 25 individuals.
Common wildlife:
- Armenian GullArmenian GullThe Armenian Gull is a large gull found in the Caucasus and Middle East. It was formerly classified as a subspecies of the Herring Gull but is now generally considered to be a separate species although BirdLife International lumps it with the Yellow-legged Gull The Armenian Gull (Larus armenicus)...
- Armenian Rock LizardArmenian Rock LizardThe Armenian Rock Lizard is a species of Darevskia, a genus of lizard belonging to the family of Lacertidae, the wall lizards.-Distribution:...
- Brown BearBrown BearThe brown bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It can weigh from and its largest subspecies, the Kodiak Bear, rivals the polar bear as the largest member of the bear family and as the largest land-based predator.There are several recognized...
- Caspian TigerCaspian TigerThe Caspian tiger, also known as the Turan tiger and Hyrcanian tiger, is an extinct tiger subspecies that has been recorded in the wild until the early 1970s, and used to inhabit the sparse forest habitats and riverine corridors west and south of the Caspian Sea, from Turkey, Iran and west through...
- Caucasian Bear
- Common SpoonbillCommon SpoonbillThe Eurasian Spoonbill or Common Spoonbill is a wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae, breeding in southern Eurasia from Spain to Japan, and also in North Africa. In Europe, only The Netherlands, Spain, Austria, Hungary and Greece have sizeable populations...
- Eastern Imperial EagleEastern Imperial EagleThe Eastern Imperial Eagle is a large species of bird of prey that breeds from southeastern Europe to central Asia. Most populations are migratory and winter in northeastern Africa, and southern and eastern Asia. The Spanish Imperial Eagle, found in Spain and Portugal, was formerly lumped with...
- Eumeces schneideriEumeces schneideriSchneider's Skink , Eumeces schneideri, is a species of skink found in central and west Asia and north Africa. It is named after the German zoologist, Johann Gottlob Schneider.-Description:Head moderate; snout short, obtuse...
- European OtterEuropean OtterThe European Otter , also known as the Eurasian otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter and Old World otter, is a European and Asian member of the Lutrinae or otter subfamily, and is typical of freshwater otters....
- Greek TortoiseGreek TortoiseThe spur-thighed tortoise or Greek tortoise is one of four European members of the Testudinidae family of tortoises...
- Karabakh Horse
- LeopardLeopardThe leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
- Long-eared HedgehogLong-eared HedgehogThe Long-eared hedgehog is a species of hedgehog native to Central Asian countries and the Middle East. The long-eared hedgehog lives in burrows that it either makes or finds and is distinguished by its long ears. It is considered one of the smallest middle eastern hedgehogs . This Hedgehog is...
- Marbled PolecatMarbled polecatThe marbled polecat is a small mammal belonging to the monotypic genus Vormela within the Mustelinae subfamily. Vormela is from the German word Würmlein, which means "little Worm". The term peregusna comes from pereguznya, which is Ukrainian for polecat...
- Natterer's batNatterer's batNatterer's bat is a European bat with pale wings. It has brown fur, also seen on the leg wing membrane, tending to white on its underside...
- Pallas's Cat
- Persian LeopardPersian LeopardThe Persian leopard , also called Caucasian leopard, is the largest leopard subspecies, and is native to eastern Turkey, the Caucasus mountains, northern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, and parts of western Afghanistan...
- Sevan khramulyaSevan khramulyaSevan khramulya is a cyprinid fish, which previously dominated in the fish landings of Lake Sevan, along with Sevan trout. Khramulya feeds on aquatic macrophytes and from the age 2+ also on detritus...
- Sevan troutSevan troutThe Sevan trout is an endemic fish species of Lake Sevan in Armenia. It is a salmonid fish related to the brown trout....
- Squacco HeronSquacco HeronThe Squacco Heron, Ardeola ralloides, is a small heron, long, of which the body is , with wingspan. It is of Old World origins, breeding in southern Europe and the Greater Middle East.-Behaviour:...
- Steppe EagleSteppe EagleThe Steppe Eagle is a bird of prey. It is about in length and has a wingspan of . Females, weighing 2.3–4.9 kg , are slightly larger than males, at 2–3.5 kg . Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae...
- Syrian Brown BearSyrian Brown BearThe Syrian brown bear is a relatively small subspecies of brown bear native to Eurasia.- Distribution :Within the former Soviet Union, it occurs in Transcaucasia, Talysh, Northern Armenia, Abkhazia, Karabakh and Kopet Dag. Outside the ex-USSR, it occurs in Iran, Iraq and Turkey...
- Vipera raddeiVipera raddeiVipera raddei is a venomous viper species found in Turkey, Iran, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and possibly also Iraq. No subspecies are currently recognized.-Description:Adult males grow to a maximum length of 99 cm...
- Wild GoatWild GoatThe wild goat is a widespread species of goat, with a distribution ranging from Europe and Asia Minor to central Asia and the Middle East. It is the ancestor of the domestic goat.-Social structure:...
Flora
- Acer campestre
- ApricotApricotThe apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
- Armenian cucumberArmenian cucumberThe Armenian cucumber, Cucumis melo var. flexuosus, is a type of long, slender fruit which tastes like a cucumber and looks somewhat like a cucumber inside. It is actually a variety of muskmelon , a species closely related to the cucumber...
- Downy BirchDowny BirchBetula pubescens is a species of birch, native and abundant throughout northern Europe, Iceland, northern Asia and also Greenland....
- Black PoplarBlack PoplarPopulus nigra, the black poplar, is a species of cottonwood poplar, the type species of section Aigeiros of the genus Populus, native to Europe, southwest and central Asia, and northwest Africa....
- Elaeagnus angustifoliaElaeagnus angustifoliaElaeagnus angustifolia, commonly called silver berry, oleaster, Russian olive, or wild olive, is a species of Elaeagnus, native to western and central Asia, from southern Russia and Kazakhstan to Turkey and Iran...
- Eurasian smoketreeEurasian smoketreeThe Eurasian smoketree, smoke tree, or Purple smoke bush is native to a large area from southern Europe, east across central Asia and the Himalaya to northern China....
- European PearEuropean PearThe European Pear, Pyrus communis, is a species of pear native to central and eastern Europe and southwest Asia. The European Pear is one of the most important fruits of temperate regions, being the species from which most orchard pear cultivars grown in Europe, North America and Australia have...
- Common FigCommon figThe Common fig is a deciduous tree growing to heights of up to 6 m in the genus Ficus from the family Moraceae known as Common fig tree. It is a temperate species native to the Middle East.-Description:...
- Hackberry
- Sycamore MapleSycamore MapleAcer pseudoplatanus, the sycamore maple, is a species of maple native to central Europe and southwestern Asia, from France east to Ukraine, and south in mountains to northern Spain, northern Turkey, and the Caucasus. It is not related to other trees called sycamore or plane tree in the Platanus...
- White MulberryWhite MulberryMorus alba, known as white mulberry, is a short-lived, fast-growing, small to medium sized mulberry tree, which grows to 10–20 m tall. The species is native to northern China, and is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere...
- Norway MapleNorway MapleAcer platanoides is a species of maple native to eastern and central Europe and southwest Asia, from France east to Russia, north to southern Scandinavia and southeast to northern Iran....
- Armenian OakArmenian OakQuercus pontica, the Pontine Oak or Armenian Oak, is a species of oak native to the western Caucasus mountains of Georgia and northeastern Turkey and Armenia, where it grows at altitudes of 1,300-2,100 m.-Description:...
- PomegranatePomegranateThe pomegranate , Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between five and eight meters tall.Native to the area of modern day Iran, the pomegranate has been cultivated in the Caucasus since ancient times. From there it spread to Asian areas such as the Caucasus as...
- White PoplarWhite PoplarPopulus alba, commonly called abele, silver poplar, silverleaf poplar, or white poplar, is a species of poplar, most closely related to the aspens . It is native from Spain and Morocco through central Europe to central Asia...
- Pyrus salicifoliaPyrus salicifoliaPyrus salicifolia is a species of pear, native to the Middle East. It is also widely grown as an ornamental tree, almost always as a pendulous cultivar, and is called by various common names, including Willow-leafed Pear, Willowleaf Pear, Weeping Pear, and similar...
- QuinceQuinceThe quince , or Cydonia oblonga, is the sole member of the genus Cydonia and native to warm-temperate southwest Asia in the Caucasus region...
- Sea-buckthornSea-buckthornThe sea-buckthorns are deciduous shrubs in the genus Hippophae, family Elaeagnaceae. The name sea-buckthorn is hyphenated here to avoid confusion with the buckthorns...
- Tatar MapleTatar MapleAcer tataricum is a species of maple native to central and southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia, from Austria east to southwestern Russia and the Caucasus, and south to Turkey...
- Wild Cherry
- White WillowWhite WillowSalix alba is a species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia. The name derives from the white tone to the undersides of the leaves....