Jordan, officially the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at
the crossroads of Asia, Africa and Europe, within the Levant region, on the
East Bank of the Jordan River. Jordan is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south
and east, Iraq to the northeast, Syria to the north, and Israel, West Bank of
Palestine, and the Dead Sea to the west. In the southwest, it has a 26 km (16
mi) coastline on the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea. The Gulf of Aqaba separates
Jordan from Egypt. Amman is Jordan's capital and largest city, as well as its
economic, political, and
Dana Biosphere Reserve is
Jordan's largest nature reserve, located in south-central Jordan. Dana Biosphere
Reserve was founded in 1989 in the area in and around the Dana village and Wadi
Dana comprising 308 square kilometres (119 sq mi).
Asian Destinations
Readers can get to Dana by public transport is from Tafila. Minibuses run every
hour or so between Tafila and Qadsiyya (JD1, 30 minutes). The turn-off to Dana
village is 1km north of Qadsiyya; from here it's a steep 2.8km downhill walk to
the village (there's no bus).
Dana Biosphere Reserve
drops from an altitude of 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) on the Qadisiyah plateau to
the low-lying desert area of Wadi Araba. The varied geology of Dana contains
limestone, sandstone, and granite. The area of Wadi Dana features wind-cut
sandstone cliffs. Dana is the only nature reserve in Jordan that crosses four
bio-geographical zones; Mediterranean, Irano-Turanian, Saharo-Arabian, and
Sudanian penetration.
Dana's unique landscape
is formed by an outcrop (exposed bedrock) of fluvial sandstone, dating back to
the Paleozoic and Lower Cretaceous. It is also covered by shallow marine
carbonate rocks from the Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary period. The area around
Dana is further characterized by a horst (called the Dana Horst) formed by two
faults running from East to West, which are the Salawan fault and the Dana
fault. The Horst contains Precambrian Granitoids and volcanic rocks in contact
with Cretaceous rocks. The origin of this basaltic formation is believed to be
from two distinct volcanic eruptions: the first dating back to somewhere
between the Miocene and Pleistocene, while the second is a highly recent
eruption of the nearby Jabal Al-Qadisyah.
The diverse environment
of Dana is home to 703 plant species, 215 species of birds, and 38 species of
mammals. Dana is the most diverse area of plant life in the country, consisting
of numerous vegetation types including: Phoenician juniper, evergreen oak, sand
dunes, acacia, and rocky sudanian. Dana is the southernmost area in the world
to host the Mediterranean cypress, Cupressus sempervirens. Of the hundreds of
plants species inhabiting Dana, three can be found nowhere else in the world.
Many plants, especially trees and shrubs, grow in the highlands of the nature
reserve.
The threatened Nubian
ibex, Syrian serin, caracal, and lesser kestrel are natives of Wadi Dana and
plans to save the species were put forth by Global Environment Fund in 1994. Additionally,
the largest breeding colony of the Syrian serin is in Dana Nature Reserve.
Threats to the animals include hunting.
The spectacular landscape
of the Feynan area and the communities that live within it, host an
extraordinary history. While research is
still in progress, it can be said Feynan has one of the longest sequences of
human settlement in the world. Feynan is
home to some of humanity’s first communities and is one of the oldest and most
important centers of sustained copper exploitation in the ancient world, and
one of the best preserved due to the lack of modern mining.
Sources :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dana_Biosphere_Reserve
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/jordan/dana/practical-information/transport/flights-and-getting-there/a/nar/b4ac0806-fcca-4533-aa79-3afd7a6ffd18/361076
http://wildjordan.com/destinations/dana-biosphere-reserve
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