National parks and nature reserves of Israel
National parks of Israel are declared historic sites or nature reserves, which are mostly operated and maintained by the National Nature and Parks Authority. As of 2015, Israel maintains 81 national parks and more than 400 nature reserves that protect 2,500 species of indigenous wild plants, 32 species of fish, 530 species of birds and 100 species of mammals.[1][2]
The parks and reserves were frequently declared around the ruins of the depopulated and subsequently demolished towns and villages of the 1948 Palestinian exodus; 182 historical Palestinian built up areas are located within Israel's parks and reserves.[3][4] Some parks are located at archaeological sites such as Tel Megiddo, Beit She'an, Ashkelon and Kursi. Others, such as the Alexander stream, Mount Carmel National Park or Hurshat Tal focus on nature and the preservation of local flora and fauna. Several parks and nature reserves have camping options, such as tent grounds and bungalows, open to small groups and individual campers.[5] Some of them are located in the Israeli-occupied territories of the Golan Heights and the West Bank.
In 2011, the most popular national parks were Yarkon National Park, Caesarea, Ein Gedi and Tel Dan.[6]
History
From the 1920s onwards, the British Mandatory government passed laws aimed at saving the local flora and fauna. In 1924 a Hunting Act was published and in 1926 a Forest Ordinance were published. Many sites, such as the forests of Mount Carmel and Mount Meron, were declared forest reserves; certain trees were declared protected.
In 1953 the Knesset passed the Wildlife Protection Law (חוק הגנת חיות-הבר) and the Minister of Agriculture was appointed for its implementation. In 1955, the department for the improvement of the country's landscape (המחלקה לשיפור נוף הארץ) was established in the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, which was assigned the establishment of tourist infrastructure. The department established a number of well-known national parks, such as Gan HaShlosha, Caesarea, Shivta and Avdat. Following the ecologically disastrous drying of Lake Hula and the resulting public pressure, the Hula Reserve was established in 1964, which was the first declared nature reserve in Israel. In 1963 the Knesset approved the "National parks and nature reserves act" (חוק הגנים הלאומיים ושמורות הטבע), whose legislation process had already began in 1956. As a result, two authorities were established: the National Parks Authority and the Nature Reserves Authority. In 1998 the two authorities were merged into one body - Israel Nature and Parks Authority.
The last observation of an Arabian leopard took place in the northern Arabah area in 2010/11.[7] It is possibly extinct in the country.[8]
Parks and reserves
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In Israel the distinction between national parks and nature reserves is often hard to make. National parks are in most cases centered around archaeological sites, but sometimes include protected nature habitats. The nature reserves often contain not just protected fauna and flora, but also major archaeological sites. The Hermon Stream Nature Reserve for instance covers a stretch of forested land, but also the vast remains of the ancient city of Banias/Caesarea Philippi. Sometimes an administrative separation is made, as for instance at the Judean desert oasis of Ein Gedi, home to both the Ein Gedi Antiquities National Park and Ein Gedi Nature Reserve.
National parks of Israel
This is a partial list, containing only the best known national parks.
Nature reserves of Israel
This is a partial list, containing only the best known nature reserves.
| Name | Region |
|---|---|
| Alonei Yitzhak Nature Reserve | Northern District |
| Alonei Abba Nature Reserve | Northern District: Jezreel Valley |
| Amud Stream (Nahal Amud) Nature Reserve | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Ashdod Nitzanim Sand Dune Park | Central District: Southern Coastal Plain |
| Soreq/Avshalom/Stalactites Cave | Central District: Shephelah |
| Ayun/Iyyon Stream (Nahal Ayun/Iyyon) | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Bethsaida (Beit Zaida/Betiha) Nature Reserve (archaeological site and nature reserve) | Northern District: Sea of Galilee |
| Betzet Stream (Nahal Betzet) | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Balfouria | Northern District: Jezreel Valley |
| Bitan Aharon | Northern District: Sharon plain |
| Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve in the Mount Carmel National Park | Northern District: Mt. Carmel |
| Coral Beach Nature Reserve | Eilat |
| Dor HaBonim Beach Nature Reserve (with Dor Habonim marine nature reserve, Dor and Ma'agan Michael islands, Tel Dor National Park) | Northern District: Mt. Carmel coast |
| Ein Afek Nature Reserve with Tel Afek (archaeological site and nature reserve) | Northern District: Western Galilee |
| Ein Gedi Nature Reserve (nature reserve with several archaeological sites; see also Ein Gedi Antiquities National Park) | Southern District: Judean Desert and the Dead Sea |
| Ein Prat Nature Reserve[12][lower-alpha 1] | Jerusalem district, West Bank |
| Einot Tzukim (Ein Feshkha) Nature Reserve (nature reserve and archaeological site)[lower-alpha 1] | Southern District: Judean Desert and the Dead Sea (West Bank) |
| Gamla Nature Reserve (archaeological site and nature reserve)[lower-alpha 1] | Northern District: Golan Heights |
| Hermon Stream (Banias) Nature Reserve (with Caesarea Philippi archaeological site) | Northern District: Golan Heights |
| Hurshat Tal | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Hula Valley Nature Reserve | Northern District: Hula Valley |
| Kerem Ben Zimra | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Kziv Stream (Nahal Kziv) Nature Reserve with Crusader-era Montfort Castle | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Lifta (Mei Nephtoah) Nature Reserve | Jerusalem District |
| Mount Arbel Nature Reserve with several archaeological sites | Northern District: Lower Galilee |
| Mt. Carmel Nature Reserve - see Mount Carmel National Park | Northern District: Mt. Carmel |
| Mount Gilboa Nature Reserve | Northern District |
| Mount Meron Nature Reserve | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Mount Tabor Nature Reserve | Northern District: Lower Galilee |
| Nahal Me'arot Nature Reserve - UNESCO Site of Human Evolution (paleoanthropological sites)[13] | Northern District: Mt. Carmel |
| Neot Kedumim Nature Reserve with biblical garden and wildlife breeding center | Central District: near Modi'in and the Ben Shemen forest |
| Pa'ar Cave Nature Reserve | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Poleg Stream (Nahal Poleg) Nature Reserve | Central District: Sharon Plain |
| Rosh HaNikra Nature Reserve - marine caves and 20th-century tunnels | Northern District: Western Galilee |
| Snir Stream (Nahal Senir) Nature Reserve | Northern District: Golan Heights |
| Shimron Nature Reserve | Northern District: Jezreel Valley |
| Tabor/Tavor Stream (Nahal Tavor) | Northern District: Lower Galilee |
| Taninim Stream (Nahal Taninim) Nature Reserve | Northern District: Mt. Carmel coast |
| Tel Dan Nature Reserve including major archaeological site | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Tel Anafa Nature Reserve around archaeological site | Northern District: Upper Galilee |
| Yehudiya Forest Nature Reserve[lower-alpha 1] | Northern District: Golan Heights down to Sea of Galilee |
| Yotvata Hai-Bar Nature Reserve (desert wildlife) | Eilat region:the Arava Valley north of Eilat |
| Zakum (Maoz Haim) Nature Reserve | Northern District: Beit She'an Valley |
- Located in the Israeli-occupied territories
References
- Where the Golan’s rivers flow into the Sea of Galilee The Times of Israel. Aviva and Shmuel Bar-am. 29/08/15: "As time passed, and with the help of some extraordinary personalities with drive and ambition, the Knesset legislated two official Authorities to deal with our natural heritage: The National Parks Authority and the Nature Reserves Authority. Both began operating in 1964. The two authorities merged in April of 1998. Today, as the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA), they work together to preserve, protect and develop this country’s 81 national parks and 400 nature reserves."
- 1001 Facts Everyone Should Know About Israel, Mitchell Geoffrey Bard and Moshe Schwartz
- Noga Kadman (7 September 2015). Erased from Space and Consciousness: Israel and the Depopulated Palestinian Villages of 1948. Indiana University Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN 978-0-253-01682-9.
- Irus Braverman, Planting the Promised Landscape: Zionism, Nature, and Resistance in Israel/Palestine, 49 Nat. Resources J. 317 (2009)
- Ecotourism in Israel
- 130,000 travelers visit Israel's national parks
- Granit, B. (2016). Once there were Leopards. Israel Birding Portal.
- Stein, A.B.; Athreya, V.; Gerngross, P.; Balme, G.; Henschel, P.; Karanth, U.; Miquelle, D.; Rostro, S.; Kamler, J.F.; Laguardia, A. (2016). "Panthera pardus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T15954A50659089.en.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- http://old.parks.org.il/BuildaGate5/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~20~~743046726~Card12~==parks==10792851
- "Official web page". Archived from the original on 2017-10-08. Retrieved 2017-01-08.
- Official web page (currently under repair, as of January 2017)
- Ein Prat Nature Reserve
- Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: The Nahal Me'arot
External links
| Northern District |
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|---|---|
| Central District |
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| Southern District | |
| Eilat Region |
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† Located in the Israeli-occupied territories | |
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