Kolah Ghazi National Park, a haven in the central plateau of Iran

Protected areas are considered safe habitats for many plant and animal species. Kolah Ghazi National Park, with an area of approximately 50,911 he., located in the southeast of Isfahan, is a valuable and pristine area for preserving species reserves in the desert and semi-desert habitats of the country. The unique biodiversity of the region has been threatened by natural and human destruction in recent years, so the damage to the region should be reduced to some extent with proper management. More than 70 animal species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and aquatic animals live in the area, which are at risk of illegal hunting and the destruction of endangered and low-population species due to their attractiveness to illegal hunters. The number of plant species identified in the area is reported to be 214 species, belonging to 172 genera and 45 plant families. 45 plant groups consisting of 244 plant types are distributed in the region, the largest plant group being related to the genera Artemisia and Anabasis. The results of changes in the values of plant characteristics of the mentioned major plant groups, which are among the transitional habitats between the steppes and true salinities and represent the semi-desert habitats of the country in the central plateau of Iran, show that the changes in the forage production of the habitats do not have the same trend depending on the climatic conditions of different years. This indicates that the long-term grazing capacity of protected areas for wildlife cannot be calculated with one year of measuring vegetation cover. Considering that the measurement was carried out in a year with low or high rainfall, the grazing capacity may be less or more than the determined average capacity, which leads to forage loss or pasture destruction under normal rainfall conditions. Therefore, it is necessary to calculate the average good production of protected areas by taking vegetation statistics over a long-term climatic period (at least 10 years) and based on that and considering the vegetation measurements in the year in question, estimate the long-term grazing capacity of protected areas. Comparing the values of vegetation indicators with the results of a decade of vegetation statistics in different ecological regions representing the steppe and semi-desert habitats of the country also suggests the effective role of enclosure and ecosystem protection in restoring the capacity of ecosystems in the central regions of the country with desert and semi-desert climates.