Valley National Park Research Articles

A new subspecies of Saxifraga artvinensis V.A.Matthews (Saxifragaceae) from northeastern Anatolia

Saxifraga artvinensis V.A.Matthews, which is endemic to Turkey, was discovered on Tiryal Mountain (A8 Artvin, northeastern Turkey). Approximately 175 km from its type locality, a new population of the species was discovered, in the Picea orientalis forest in the Altındere Valley National Park, in A7 Trabzon (northeastern Turkey). A comparison with the known population of S. artvinensis confirmed that this new population represented a new taxon and is described as S. artvinensis subsp. meryemii Terzioğlu & Coşkunç. An identification key and comparison with closely related taxa, based on both morphological and molecular properties, are also provided. The studied samples, belonging to subsp. artvinensis and subsp. meryemii, had identical sequences in the entire internal transcribed spacer region. On the other hand, subsp. meryemii was easily distinguishable from subsp. artvinensis by its hairy flowering stem, 3-8 flowers, subsessile pedicels, and sepals hairy at base.

Determining the tourism potential of Altındere Valley National Park with respect to its cultural resource values

Of the announced protected areas around the world, national parks in particular enable recreational and touristic activities due to their diverse resource values. However, as a result of intense use by visitors, many of these areas are heavily threatened by destruction. The current study aims to determine the tourism potential of ‘Altındere Valley National Park’ in terms of cultural resource values following conservation and utilization principles. The study reveals which resource values need to be conserved and which can be allowed to be used. In the scope of the study, using a mathematical method – ‘criterion reports method’ – a survey was conducted among several groups that were made up of specialists of different disciplines. The cultural resource value of the field was investigated to determine the utility and conservation values, and the general exploitable touristic potential of the area was calculated. Through the applied method, general exploitable touristic potential of Altındere Valley National Park was found to be about 32%. According to the obtained result, despite the high utilization value of the national park, it was detected that half of the area is eligible for utilization due to the effect of conservation values.

Determining the tourism potential of the Altındere Valley National Park (Trabzon/Turkey) with respect to its conservation value

This study was conducted to determine the tourism potential of Altındere Valley National Park with respect to its conservation and utilization. With its natural values, Altındere Valley National Park is one of the internationally prominent areas of potential for the recreational and touristic facilities it offers. A mathematical method – criterion referenced method – was applied within this study, which was done to portray the touristic potential (resulting from the touristic and recreational utilization of the national park area and recreational zone) of the national park, which was visited by an average of 200,000 local and foreign guests. According to this method, the conservation and utilization values that appear on two opposite axes were examined in accordance with the natural resource values of the area, and conservation and utilization values for each criterion were determined. Depending on the data, the general exploitable touristic potential of the area was specified. A survey study was conducted on groups from various disciplines and local & foreign tourists visiting the area in specifying the touristic potential of the National Park. Eleven criteria were defined concerning the area and a criterion reference was prepared for each criterion. Then, conservation and utilization values for each criterion and exploitable touristic potential were mathematically indicated. The fact that the attained values were reduced to a percentage basis provides the opportunity to compare the researched area to similar fields that use the same method. Within the scope of the method, several suggestions were made using the information obtained in the evaluation of the data for every other source value.

Traditional agriculture in transition: a case of Har-ki Doon Valley (Govind Pashu Vihar Sanctuary and National Park) in Central Himalaya

Traditional crop diversity and landraces in agricultural land use in Himalaya have great significant for long-term sustainability of agroecosystems, together with conservation and management of the surrounding landscape. Traditional crop varieties and races, which evolved over time through trial and error, not only provide basic nutritional requirements, but also food security. Loss of crop biodiversity has taken place over recent years, principally and inadvertently related to changing lifestyle, growing demand for cash crops in regional markets and burgeoning apple farming, whose acreage has increased with a concomitant decline in area under traditional crops. For sustainable landscape development, on-farm conservation of traditional crop diversity is urgently needed. An empirical study was done to understand the causes and consequences of declines in crop biodiversity and production, effect of apple farming on traditional crops and changing lifestyles of traditional people.

Habitat‐related microgeographic body size variation in two Mediterranean populations of red fox (Vulpes vulpes)

AbstractThe habitat‐related microgeographical body size variations in red foxes Vulpes vulpes living in two separated areas of Mediterranean Spain, the Central Ebro Valley (CEV) and Doáana National Park (DNP) are analysed. In both areas, samples taken from good and bad fox‐habitats were compared regarding body weight and head and body length. In the Ebro Valley, foxes collected in the good habitat were heavier (14%, P < 0.001 for males; 9%, P < 0.01 for females) and larger (4%, P < 0.01 for males; 1%, P < 0.05 for females) than those collected in the bad habitat. In Doáana, males from the good habitat were 19% heavier (P < 0.01) and 3% longer (P < 0.05) than those from the poorer one. The average weight and size of DNP vixens did not show significant differences, although both are higher in the good habitat. It is shown that body size of adult foxes can vary, linked to habitat change even across short geographic distances. Some tentative explanations for these results are discussed.

The Incomparable Valley and Sequoia National Park

The Incomparable Valley and Sequoia National Park