KaragandaKaraganda or Qaraghandy (Қарағанды/Qarağandy, qɑɾɑˈʁɑndə; Караганда, kərəɡɐnˈda) is the capital of Karaganda Region in the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is the fifth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty (Alma-Ata), Astana, Shymkent and Aktobe. Population: 497,777 (2020 Estimate); Karaganda is approximately south-east of Kazakhstan's capital Astana. In the 1940s, up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic Germans.
Wet meadowA wet meadow is a type of wetland with soils that are saturated for part or all of the growing season which prevents the growth of trees and brush. Debate exists whether a wet meadow is a type of marsh or a completely separate type of wetland. Wet prairies and wet savannas are hydrologically similar. Wet meadows may occur because of restricted drainage or the receipt of large amounts of water from rain or melted snow. They may also occur in riparian zones and around the shores of large lakes.
Ukok PlateauUkok Plateau (Укок) is a plateau covered by grasslands located in southwestern Siberia, in the Altai Mountains region of Russia near the borders with China, Kazakhstan and Mongolia. The plateau is recognized as part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site entitled Golden Mountains of Altai as an important environmental treasure. It provides a habitat for many of the world's endangered species including one of its least studied predatory animals: the snow leopard.
Panthera pardus tullianaPanthera pardus tulliana is a leopard subspecies native to the Iranian Plateau and surrounding areas encompassing Turkey, the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and possibly Pakistan. Since 2016, it has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, as the wild population is estimated at less than 1,000 mature individuals. Common names used for P. p. tulliana include Anatolian leopard, Persian leopard, Caucasian leopard, Balochistan leopard and Asia Minor leopard.
