Waterton National Park
Waterton National Park is one of the most beautiful and environmentally important sites in Canada. The park owes its nam , as might be expected, to the many wonderful and crystal clear lakes, which are in this complex. In particular, the National Park is named after the eponymous Waterton Lake, as well as the conservationist Charles Waterton.
Park Waterton is located within the Canadian province of Alberta. The natural area extends into southwestern direction, bordering Glacier National Park to the south. The two protected areas were united in 1932 under the name International Peace Park of glaciers and lakes Waterton.
This vast territory is called the Crown of the Continent, because here are some of the most obscure places in the Canadian Rocky mountains. Here the natural and animal diversity is huge and very important for ecological balance.
The Crown of the Continent is a great space, three times larger than Connecticut, within which are united primarily natural areas. It stretches about 400 km from north to south, from the upper reaches of rivers Hey Elk in British Columbia and Alberta to Blackfruit River Valley in Montana. The International Park was the first of its kind in the world, covering mountain ranges west of the Continental divide and the plains to the east.
Around one third of that territory is protected, but other parts are unprotected and include a mix of private lands and those that are managed by national or provincial forests. This entails the development of adverse environmental actions such as logging, farming and hunting, mining and others.
Among the wild animals that can be seen in the park Waterton are grizzly bears, wolverine, elk, eagles, Canadian mouflons, trout and many more. They do not live in a large sized area, but it is an incredibly scenic area, which consists of hills and wondrous natural places. National Park Waterton helps protect the unique and extremely diverse physical, biological and cultural resources located in the crown of the continent.
Highlight of this naturally rich territory of Canada is the Waterton Lake Superior. It is the deepest in the Canadian Rockies. In fact, the park Waterton is the fourth national park in Canada and the smallest in this mountain range. The area, which extends only 505 square kilometers, remains one of the most valuable natural resources of the North American country.
45 different habitats can be found in National Park Waterton, including wetlands, grasslands, alpine regions, etc. Here live more than 1, 000 species of vascular plants, 218 species of lichens, more than 60 species of mammals, 250 species birds, 24 species of fish, 10 species of reptiles and amphibians and countless animals and plant specimens. Many are rare or endangered. More than half of Alberta's plant species can be seen in the Waterton Park.
On December 6, 1995 Peace Park glaciers and lakes Waterton was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage International Sites, because it represents a large amount of the valuable natural reserves of our planet.
