NATURAL MONUMENTS

NATURAL MONUMENTS, a category of specially protected natural areas that include unique, irreplaceable, ecologically, scientifically, culturally and aesthetically valuable natural complexes and their components, as well as sites of natural and artificial origin. N.m. can beof district, regional, federal, and international value. Depending on the protected site, they are divided into biological (botanical, dendrological, zoological), geological (geomorphic, mineral, paleonthological), hydrological, complex (or landscape). The first N.m. were created in the territory of Bashkortostan in 1965. In the Republic there are 182 N.m. of regional value, including 55 botanical, 34 dendrological, 5 zoological, 21 geological, 22 hydrological, and 45 complex N.m. of 73,441 thous. ha total area (2016), including waterfalls, caves, lakes, mountains, mineral springs, geological exposures, locations of rare species of flora and fauna, etc.