Rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with annual rainfall in the case of tropical rainforests between 250 and 450 centimetres, definitions varying by region for temperate rainforests. The monsoon trough, alternatively known as the intertropical convergence zone, plays a significant role in creating the climatic conditions necessary for the Earth's tropical rainforests. Around 40% to 75% of all biotic species are indigenous to the rainforests. There may be many millions of species of plants and microorganisms still undiscovered in tropical rainforests. Tropical rainforests have been called the "jewels of the Earth" and the "world's largest pharmacy", because over one quarter of natural medicines have been discovered there. Rainforests are responsible for 28% of the world's oxygen turnover, sometimes misnamed oxygen production, processing it through photosynthesis from carbon dioxide and consuming it through respiration; the undergrowth in some areas of a rainforest can be restricted by poor penetration of sunlight to ground level.
If the leaf canopy is destroyed or thinned, the ground beneath is soon colonized by a dense, tangled growth of vines and small trees, called a jungle. The term jungle is sometimes applied to tropical rainforests generally. Rainforests as well as endemic rainforest species are disappearing due to deforestation, the resulting habitat loss and pollution of the atmosphere. Tropical rainforests are characterized by a warm and wet climate with no substantial dry season: found within 10 degrees north and south of the equator. Mean monthly temperatures exceed 18 °C during all months of the year. Average annual rainfall is no less than 168 cm and can exceed 1,000 cm although it lies between 175 cm and 200 cm. Many of the world's tropical forests are associated with the location of the monsoon trough known as the intertropical convergence zone; the broader category of tropical moist forests are located in the equatorial zone between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. Tropical rainforests exist in Southeast Asia to the Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Sri Lanka.
Tropical forests have been called the "Earth's lungs", although it is now known that rainforests contribute little net oxygen addition to the atmosphere through photosynthesis. Tropical forests cover a large part of the globe, but temperate rainforests only occur in few regions around the world. Temperate rainforests are rainforests in temperate regions, they occur in North America, in Europe, in East Asia, in South America and in Australia and New Zealand. A tropical rainforest has a number of layers, each with different plants and animals adapted for life in that particular area. Examples include the emergent, canopy and forest floor layers; the emergent layer contains a small number of large trees called emergents, which grow above the general canopy, reaching heights of 45–55 m, although on occasion a few species will grow to 70–80 m tall. They need to be able to withstand the hot temperatures and strong winds that occur above the canopy in some areas. Eagles, butterflies and certain monkeys inhabit this layer.
The canopy layer contains the majority of the largest trees 30 metres to 45 metres tall. The densest areas of biodiversity are found in the forest canopy, a more or less continuous cover of foliage formed by adjacent treetops; the canopy, by some estimates, is home to 50 percent of all plant species. Epiphytic plants attach to trunks and branches, obtain water and minerals from rain and debris that collects on the supporting plants; the fauna is similar to that found in the emergent layer, but more diverse. A quarter of all insect species are believed to exist in the rainforest canopy. Scientists have long suspected the richness of the canopy as a habitat, but have only developed practical methods of exploring it; as long ago as 1917, naturalist William Beebe declared that "another continent of life remains to be discovered, not upon the Earth, but one to two hundred feet above it, extending over thousands of square miles." True exploration of this habitat only began in the 1980s, when scientists developed methods to reach the canopy, such as firing ropes into the trees using crossbows.
Exploration of the canopy is still in its infancy, but other methods include the use of balloons and airships to float above the highest branches and the building of cranes and walkways planted on the forest floor. The science of accessing tropical forest canopy using airships or similar aerial platforms is called dendronautics; the understory or understorey layer lies between the forest floor. It is home to a number of birds and lizards, as well as predators such as jaguars, boa constrictors and leopards; the leaves are much larger at this level and insect life is abundant. Many seedlings that will grow to the canopy level are present in the understory. Only about 5% of the sunlight s
Sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of small particules and subsequent cementation of mineral or organic particles on the floor of oceans or other bodies of water at the Earth's surface. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes; the particles that form a sedimentary rock are called sediment, may be composed of geological detritus or biological detritus. Before being deposited, the geological detritus was formed by weathering and erosion from the source area, transported to the place of deposition by water, ice, mass movement or glaciers, which are called agents of denudation. Biological detritus was formed by bodies and parts of dead aquatic organisms, as well as their fecal mass, suspended in water and piling up on the floor of water bodies. Sedimentation may occur as dissolved minerals precipitate from water solution; the sedimentary rock cover of the continents of the Earth's crust is extensive, but the total contribution of sedimentary rocks is estimated to be only 8% of the total volume of the crust.
Sedimentary rocks are only a thin veneer over a crust consisting of igneous and metamorphic rocks. Sedimentary rocks are deposited in layers as strata; the study of sedimentary rocks and rock strata provides information about the subsurface, useful for civil engineering, for example in the construction of roads, tunnels, canals or other structures. Sedimentary rocks are important sources of natural resources like coal, fossil fuels, drinking water or ores; the study of the sequence of sedimentary rock strata is the main source for an understanding of the Earth's history, including palaeogeography and the history of life. The scientific discipline that studies the properties and origin of sedimentary rocks is called sedimentology. Sedimentology is part of both geology and physical geography and overlaps with other disciplines in the Earth sciences, such as pedology, geomorphology and structural geology. Sedimentary rocks have been found on Mars. Sedimentary rocks can be subdivided into four groups based on the processes responsible for their formation: clastic sedimentary rocks, biochemical sedimentary rocks, chemical sedimentary rocks, a fourth category for "other" sedimentary rocks formed by impacts and other minor processes.
Clastic sedimentary rocks are composed of other rock fragments that were cemented by silicate minerals. Clastic rocks are composed of quartz, rock fragments, clay minerals, mica. Clastic sedimentary rocks, are subdivided according to the dominant particle size. Most geologists use the Udden-Wentworth grain size scale and divide unconsolidated sediment into three fractions: gravel and mud; the classification of clastic sedimentary rocks parallels this scheme. This tripartite subdivision is mirrored by the broad categories of rudites and lutites in older literature; the subdivision of these three broad categories is based on differences in clast shape, grain size or texture. Conglomerates are dominantly composed of rounded gravel, while breccias are composed of dominantly angular gravel. Sandstone classification schemes vary but most geologists have adopted the Dott scheme, which uses the relative abundance of quartz and lithic framework grains and the abundance of a muddy matrix between the larger grains.
Composition of framework grains The relative abundance of sand-sized framework grains determines the first word in a sandstone name. Naming depends on the dominance of the three most abundant components quartz, feldspar, or the lithic fragments that originated from other rocks. All other minerals are considered accessories and not used in the naming of the rock, regardless of abundance. Quartz sandstones have >90% quartz grains Feldspathic sandstones have <90% quartz grains and more feldspar grains than lithic grains Lithic sandstones have <90% quartz grains and more lithic grains than feldspar grainsAbundance of muddy matrix material between sand grains When sand-sized particles are deposited, the space between the grains either remains open or is filled with mud. "Clean" sandstones with open pore space are called arenites. Muddy sandstones with abundant muddy matrix are called wackes. Six sandstone names are possible using the descriptors for grain composition and the amount of matrix. For example, a quartz arenite would be composed of quartz grains and have little or no clayey matrix between the grains, a lithic wacke would have abundant lithic grains and abundant muddy matrix, etc.
Although the Dott classification scheme is used by sedimentologists, common names like greywacke and quartz sandstone are still used by non-specialists and in popular literature. Mudrocks are sedimentary rocks composed of at least 50% silt- and clay-sized particles; these fine-grained particles are transported by turbulent flow in water or air, deposited as the flow calms and the particles settle out of suspension. Most authors presently
Red-necked wallaby
The red-necked wallaby or Bennett's wallaby is a medium-sized macropod marsupial, common in the more temperate and fertile parts of eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Red-necked wallabies have been introduced to several other countries, including New Zealand, Scotland and France. Red-necked wallabies are distinguished by their black nose and paws, white stripe on the upper lip, grizzled medium grey coat with a reddish wash across the shoulders, they can weigh 13.8 to 18.6 kilograms and attain a head-body length of 90 centimetres, although males are bigger than females. Red-necked wallabies are similar in appearance to the Black-striped wallaby, the only difference being that Red-necked wallabies are larger, lack a black stripe down the back, have softer fur. Red-necked wallabies may live up to 9 years. Red-necked wallabies are found in coastal scrub and sclerophyll forest throughout coastal and highland eastern Australia, from Bundaberg, Queensland to the South Australian border, it is unclear.
In Tasmania and coastal Queensland, their numbers have expanded over the past 30 years because of a reduction in hunting pressure and the partial clearing of forest to result in a mosaic of pastures where wallabies can feed at night, alongside bushland where they can shelter by day. For reasons not altogether clear, they are less common in Victoria. Red-necked wallabies are solitary but will gather together when there is an abundance of resources such as food, water or shelter; when they do gather in groups, they have a social hierarchy similar to other wallaby species. A recent study has demonstrated that wallabies, as other social or gregarious mammals, are able to manage conflict via reconciliation, involving the post-conflict reunion, after a fight, of former opponents, which engage in affinitive contacts. Red-necked wallabies are nocturnal, they spend most of the daytime resting. A female's estrus lasts 33 days. During courting, the female first licks the male's neck; the male will rub his cheek against the female's.
The male and female will fight standing upright like two males. After that they mate. A couple will stay together for one day before separating. A female bears one offspring at a time. However, females may stay in the home range of their mothers for life while males leave at the age of two. Red-necked wallabies engage in alloparental care, in which one individual may adopt the child of another; this is a common behavior seen in many other animal species like wolves and fathead minnows. Red-necked wallabies diets consists of grasses, tree leaves, weeds. There are three subspecies. M. r. banksianus – Red-necked wallaby M. r. rufogriseus – Bennett's wallaby M. r. fruticus The Tasmanian form, Macropus rufogriseus rufogriseus known as Bennett's wallaby is smaller, has longer, shaggier fur, breeds in the late summer between February and April. They have adapted to living in proximity to humans and can be found grazing on lawns in the fringes of Hobart and other urban areas; the mainland form, Macropus rufogriseus banksianus, breeds all year round.
Captive animals maintain their breeding schedules. There are significant. In 1870, several wallabies were transported from Tasmania to New Zealand. Two females and one male from this stock were released about Te Waimate, the property of Waimate's first European settler Michael Studholme; the year 1874 saw them freed in the Hunters Hills, where over the years their population has increased. Wallabies are now resident on 350,000 ha of terrain centered upon the Hunters Hills, including the Two Thumb Ranges, the Kirkliston Range and The Grampians, they are declared an animal pest in the Canterbury Region and land occupiers must contain the wallabies within specified areas. The wallaby is now regarded as a symbol of Waimate. There are colonies in England: in the Peak District, in Derbyshire, in the Ashdown Forest, in East Sussex; these were established circa 1900. There are other smaller groups spotted in West Sussex and Hampshire. There is a small colony of red-necked wallabies on the island of Inchconnachan, Loch Lomond in Argyll and Bute, Scotland.
This was founded in 1975 with two pairs taken from Whipsnade Zoo, had risen to 26 individuals by 1993. There is a large group of 250 wallabies living wild on the Isle of Man which are the descendants of a pair that escaped from a wildlife park on the island in the 1970s, as well as from subsequent escapes; the Baring family, who owned Lambay Island, off the east coast of Ireland introduced wallabies to the island in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1980s, the red-necked wallaby population at Dublin Zoo was growing out of control. Unable to find another zoo to take them, unwilling to euthanize them, zoo director Peter Wilson donated seven individuals to the Barings; the animals have thrived and the current population is estimated to be 30–50. In France, in the southern part of the Forest of Rambouillet, 50 km west from Paris, there is a wild group of around 50-100 Bennett's wallabies; this population has been present since the 1970s
Platypus
The platypus, sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic egg-laying mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young; the animal is the sole living representative of its family and genus, though a number of related species appear in the fossil record. The first scientists to examine a preserved platypus body judged it a fake, made of several animals sewn together; the unusual appearance of this egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal baffled European naturalists when they first encountered it, with some considering it an elaborate hoax. It is one of the few species of venomous mammals: the male platypus has a spur on the hind foot that delivers a venom capable of causing severe pain to humans; the unique features of the platypus make it an important subject in the study of evolutionary biology and a recognizable and iconic symbol of Australia.
The platypus is the animal emblem of the state of New South Wales. Until the early 20th century humans hunted the platypus for its fur, but it is now protected throughout its range. Although captive-breeding programs have had only limited success, the platypus is vulnerable to the effects of pollution, it is not under any immediate threat; when the platypus was first encountered by Europeans in 1798, a pelt and sketch were sent back to Great Britain by Captain John Hunter, the second Governor of New South Wales. British scientists' initial hunch was. George Shaw, who produced the first description of the animal in the Naturalist's Miscellany in 1799, stated it was impossible not to entertain doubts as to its genuine nature, Robert Knox believed it might have been produced by some Asian taxidermist, it was thought. Shaw took a pair of scissors to the dried skin to check for stitches; the common name "platypus" is the latinisation of the Greek word πλατύπους, "flat-footed", from πλατύς, "broad, flat" and πούς, "foot".
Shaw assigned the species the Linnaean name Platypus anatinus when he described it, but the genus term was discovered to be in use as the name of the wood-boring ambrosia beetle genus Platypus. It was independently described as Ornithorhynchus paradoxus by Johann Blumenbach in 1800 and following the rules of priority of nomenclature, it was officially recognised as Ornithorhynchus anatinus; the scientific name Ornithorhynchus anatinus is derived from ορνιθόρυγχος, which means "bird snout" in Greek. There is no universally-agreed plural form of "platypus" in the English language. Scientists use "platypuses" or "platypus". Colloquially, the term "platypi" is used for the plural, although this is technically incorrect and a form of pseudo-Latin. Early British settlers called it by many names, such as "watermole", "duckbill", "duckmole"; the name platypus is prefixed with the adjective "duck-billed" to form duck-billed platypus. In David Collins's account of the new colony 1788–1801, he describes coming across as "an amphibious animal, of the mole species".
His account includes a drawing of the animal. The body and the broad, flat tail of the platypus are covered with dense, brown fur that traps a layer of insulating air to keep the animal warm; the fur is waterproof, the texture is akin to that of a mole. The platypus uses its tail for storage of fat reserves; the webbing on the feet is more significant on the front feet and is folded back when walking on land. The elongated snout and lower jaw are covered in soft skin; the nostrils are located on the dorsal surface of the snout, while the eyes and ears are located in a groove set just back from it. Platypuses have been heard to emit a low growl when disturbed and a range of other vocalisations have been reported in captive specimens. Weight varies from 0.7 to 2.4 kg, with males being larger than females. The platypus has an average body temperature of about 32 °C rather than the 37 °C typical of placental mammals. Research suggests this has been a gradual adaptation to harsh environmental conditions on the part of the small number of surviving monotreme species rather than a historical characteristic of monotremes.
Modern platypus young have three teeth in each of the maxillae and dentaries, which they lose before or just after leaving the breeding burrow. The first upper and third lower cheek teeth of platypus nestlings are small, each having one principal cusp, while the other teeth have two main cusps; the platypus jaw is constructed differently from that of other mammals, the jaw-opening muscle is different. As in all true mammals, the tiny bones that conduct sound in the middle ear are incorporated into the skull, rather th
Eucryphia lucida
Eucryphia lucida, Eucryphiaceae known as leatherwood is a species of trees or large shrubs endemic to forests of western Tasmania. An attractive plant utilised in both the horticulture and apiculture industries, it was promoted by the Tasmanian Branch of the SGAP as an alternative to the Tasmanian blue gum for Tasmania's floral emblem, it was described as E. billiarderi at this now being a synonym. Ranging from 2–10 metres in height, it can sometimes grow to 25 metres in favourable conditions; the small dark green glossy leaves are elliptical in 2 -- 4 cm long. Appearing in spring and summer, the 2.5 – 4 cm diameter white flowers have four petals and resemble small single roses and have a strong fragrance on warmer days. The flower parts are covered with a sticky sap. Flowering is followed by leathery capsules; the species was first described in by Jacques Labillardière. It is widespread and common in moister forests in Tasmania, occurring across the western parts of the state, from the northwest in such places as the Tarkine and through the South West Wilderness.
It prefers wetter climates of 1500 -- 2500 mm annual rainfall. Fossil leaves from Early Pleistocene sediments at Regatta Point in Western Tasmania show similarities to E. lucida and suggest a close relationship. Leatherwood is propagated by seed or cutting and makes an attractive garden plant. A fast-growing plant, it thrives in well-drained soil in a position with some shelter and extra moisture, it does require regular pruning to keep a neat shape. It is utilized by Tasmanian beekeepers in the making of leatherwood honey, a noted monofloral honey, recognised by the international Slow Food movement in its Ark of Taste. For many years, the Tasmanian Beekeepers' Association has had to lobby the Tasmanian government to ensure continued access to this precious resource, to protect it from logging. Much of the leatherwood is difficult to access, growing deep within the forests of Tasmania's wild west coast. Beekeepers from the Tasmanian Honey Company camp in the forest during the leatherwood harvest, which occurs between January and March.
E. "Ballerina" is a larger flowered form with pink flowers rimmed with red, collected from a plant in western Tasmania in 1986. It is a paler pink than "Pink Cloud". E. "Dumpling" is a compact white-flowered form to 1 metre high developed in the UK by Suttons of Devon. E. "Gillanders' Rose" is a pink flowered form. E. "Gilt Edge" has trifoliate leaves with a creamy yellow margin on the topside. It produces white flowers. E. "Gold Rim" E. "Leatherwood Cream" is another selection, this time with variegated cream-edged leaves. E. "Pink Cloud" is a pink-flowered cultivar collected from plants growing near Smithton in North-West Tasmania in 1984 by Ken Gillanders. E. "Spring Glow" is a variegated Eucryphia with eye-catching cream-edged evergreen leaves and attractive white flowers. Gray, AM. "Leatherwood: Wildflowers of Tasmania - Part 2". Australian Plants. ASGAP. 3: 253–4. Elliot, Rodger W.. "Eu-Go". In Elliot, Rodger W.. 4. Lothian Publishing. Pp. 1–447. ISBN 0-85091-213-X. Growing Native plants: Eucryphia lucida ASGAP page on Eucryphia lucida ACRA page on E.'Pink cloud' ACRA page on E.'Leatherwood Cream' ACRA page on E.'Ballerina' Eucryphia lucida in Musical Instruments: Eucryphia lucida
Cirque
A cirque is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are cwm. A cirque may be a shaped landform arising from fluvial erosion; the concave shape of a glacial cirque is open on the downhill side, while the cupped section is steep. Cliff-like slopes, down which ice and glaciated debris combine and converge, form the three or more higher sides; the floor of the cirque ends up bowl-shaped as it is the complex convergence zone of combining ice flows from multiple directions and their accompanying rock burdens: hence it experiences somewhat greater erosion forces, is most overdeepened below the level of the cirque's low-side outlet and its down slope valley. If the cirque is subject to seasonal melting, the floor of the cirque most forms a tarn behind a dam which marks the downstream limit of the glacial overdeepening: the dam itself can be composed of moraine, glacial till, or a lip of the underlying bedrock; the fluvial cirque or makhtesh, found in karst landscapes, is formed by intermittent river flow cutting through layers of limestone and chalk leaving sheer cliffs.
A common feature for all fluvial-erosion cirques is a terrain which includes erosion resistant upper structures overlying materials which are more eroded. Glacial cirques are found amongst mountain ranges throughout the world. Situated high on a mountainside near the firn line, they are partially surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs; the highest cliff is called a headwall. The fourth side forms the lip, threshold or sill, the side at which the glacier flowed away from the cirque. Many glacial cirques contain tarns dammed by a bedrock threshold; when enough snow accumulates it can flow out the opening of the bowl and form valley glaciers which may be several kilometers long. Cirques form in conditions; these areas are sheltered from heat. The process of nivation follows, whereby a hollow in a slope may be enlarged by ice segregation weathering and glacial erosion. Ice segregation erodes the rock vertical rock face and causes it to disintegrate, which may result in an avalanche bringing down more snow and rock to add to the growing glacier.
This hollow may become large enough that glacial erosion intensifies. The enlarging of this open ended concavity creates a larger leeward deposition zone, furthering the process of glaciation. Debris in the ice may abrade the bed surface; the hollow may become a large bowl shape in the side of the mountain, with the headwall being weathered by ice segregation, as well as being eroded by plucking. The basin will become deeper as it continues to be eroded by ice abrasion. Should ice segregation and abrasion continue, the dimensions of the cirque will increase, but the proportion of the landform would remain the same. A bergschrund forms when the movement of the glacier separates the moving ice from the stationary ice forming a crevasse; the method of erosion of the headwall lying between the surface of the glacier and the cirque’s floor has been attributed to freeze-thaw mechanisms. The temperature within the bergschrund changes little, studies have shown that ice segregation may happen with only small changes in temperature.
Water that flows into the bergschrund can be cooled to freezing temperatures by the surrounding ice allowing freeze-thaw mechanisms to occur. If two adjacent cirques erode toward one another, an arête, or steep sided ridge, forms; when three or more cirques erode toward one another, a pyramidal peak is created. In some cases, this peak will be made accessible by one or more arêtes; the Matterhorn in the European Alps is an example of such a peak. Where cirques form one behind the other, a cirque stairway results as at the Zastler Loch in the Black Forest; as glaciers can only originate above the snowline, studying the location of present-day cirques provides information on past glaciation patterns and on climate change. Although a less common usage, the term cirque is used for amphitheatre-shaped, fluvial-erosion features. For example, an 200 square kilometres anticlinal erosion cirque is at 30°35′N 34°45′E on the southern boundary of the Negev highlands; this erosional cirque or makhtesh was formed by intermittent river flow in the Makhtesh Ramon cutting through layers of limestone and chalk, resulting in cirque walls with a sheer 200 metres drop.
The Cirque du Bout du Monde is another such a feature, created in karst terraine in the Burgundy region of the department of Côte-d'Or in France. Yet another type of fluvial erosion formed cirque is found on Réunion island, which includes the tallest volcanic structure in the Indian Ocean; the island consists of an active shield-volcano and an extinct eroded volcano. Three cirques have eroded there in a sequence of agglomerated, fragmented rock and volcanic breccia associated with pillow-lavas overlain by more coherent, solid lavas. A common feature for all fluvial-erosion cirques is a terrain which includes erosion resistant
National park
A national park is a park in use for conservation purposes. It is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently, there is a common idea: the conservation of'wild nature' for posterity and as a symbol of national pride. An international organization, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, its World Commission on Protected Areas, has defined "National Park" as its Category II type of protected areas. While this type of national park had been proposed the United States established the first "public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people", Yellowstone National Park, in 1872. Although Yellowstone was not termed a "national park" in its establishing law, it was always termed such in practice and is held to be the first and oldest national park in the world. However, the Tobago Main Ridge Forest Reserve, the area surrounding Bogd Khan Uul Mountain are seen as the oldest protected areas, predating Yellowstone by nearly a century.
The first area to use "national park" in its creation legislation was the U. S.'s Mackinac, in 1875. Australia's Royal National Park, established in 1879, was the world's third official national park. In 1895 ownership of Mackinac National Park was transferred to the State of Michigan as a state park and national park status was lost; as a result, Australia's Royal National Park is by some considerations the second oldest national park now in existence. Canada established Parks Canada in 1911, becoming the world's first national service dedicated to protecting and presenting natural and historical treasures; the largest national park in the world meeting the IUCN definition is the Northeast Greenland National Park, established in 1974. According to the IUCN, 6,555 national parks worldwide met its criteria in 2006. IUCN is still discussing the parameters of defining a national park. National parks are always open to visitors. Most national parks provide outdoor recreation and camping opportunities as well as classes designed to educate the public on the importance of conservation and the natural wonders of the land in which the national park is located.
In 1969, the IUCN declared a national park to be a large area with the following defining characteristics: One or several ecosystems not materially altered by human exploitation and occupation, where plant and animal species, geomorphological sites and habitats are of special scientific and recreational interest or which contain a natural landscape of great beauty. In 1971, these criteria were further expanded upon leading to more clear and defined benchmarks to evaluate a national park; these include: Minimum size of 1,000 hectares within zones in which protection of nature takes precedence Statutory legal protection Budget and staff sufficient to provide sufficient effective protection Prohibition of exploitation of natural resources qualified by such activities as sport, fishing, the need for management, etc. While the term national park is now defined by the IUCN, many protected areas in many countries are called national park when they correspond to other categories of the IUCN Protected Area Management Definition, for example: Swiss National Park, Switzerland: IUCN Ia - Strict Nature Reserve Everglades National Park, United States: IUCN Ib - Wilderness Area Victoria Falls National Park, Zimbabwe: IUCN III - National Monument Vitosha National Park, Bulgaria: IUCN IV - Habitat Management Area New Forest National Park, United Kingdom: IUCN V - Protected Landscape Etniko Ygrotopiko Parko Delta Evrou, Greece: IUCN VI - Managed Resource Protected AreaWhile national parks are understood to be administered by national governments, in Australia national parks are run by state governments and predate the Federation of Australia.
In Canada, there are both national parks operated by the federal government and provincial or territorial parks operated by the provincial and territorial governments, although nearly all are still national parks by the IUCN definition. In many countries, including Indonesia, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, national parks do not adhere to the IUCN definition, while some areas which adhere to the IUCN definition are not designated as national parks. In 1810, the English poet William Wordsworth described the Lake District as a sort of national property, in which every man has a right and interest who has an eye to perceive and a heart to enjoy; the painter George Catlin, in his travels through the American West, wrote during the 1830s that the Native Americans in the United States might be preserved...in a magnificent park... A nation's Park, containing man and beast, in all the wild and freshness of their nature's beauty! The first effort by the U. S. Federal government to set aside such protected lands was on 20 April 1832, when President Andrew Jackson signed legislation that the 22nd United States Congress had enacted to set aside four sections of land around what is now Hot Springs, Arkansas, to protect the natural, thermal springs and adjoining mountainsides for the futur
