United Nations Environment Programme
World Conservation Monitoring Centre
2003 United Nations List of Protected Areas
Protection of the World’s Terrestrial Biomes
9 of the 14 terrestrial biomes are protected by more than 10%,
the target established at the 4th World Parks Congress in 1982
Key:
%
protected
16.32%
Mixed mountain systems
10.64%
Biome
Cold-winter deserts
Evergreen Schlerophyllous forests
16.92%
Subtropical / Temperate rain forests / Woodlands
12.77%
Tropical dry forests / Woodlands
1.54%
Lake systems
7.64%
Temperate broad-leaf forests
15.34%
Tropical grasslands / Savannas
29.73%
Mixed island systems
4.59%
Temperate grasslands
23.31%
Tropical humid forests
11.84%
Tundra communities
10.27%
Warm deserts / Semi-deserts
7.61%
Source: ESRI Data & Maps CD, UNEP-WCMC Datasets
8.61%
The contents of this map do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of UNEP-WCMC or contributory organisations.
The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expressions of any opinion whatsoever on the part
of UNEP-WCMC or contributory organisations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its
authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
Tropical Humid Forests
(29.7%) and Mixed
Island Systems
(23.3%) are protected
more than any other
terrestrial biome.
Temperate needle-leaf forests / Woodlands
Temperate Grasslands
(4.59%) and Lake
Systems (a category
which includes only the
world’s largest lakes)
(1.54%) are the least
protected biomes.
© Stuart Chape
Nam Kading National Conservation Areas, Laos
© Stuart Chape
Grasslands, New Zealand.
Antarctica is not included in the biome classification system. Although there are relatively few designated protected areas
in this vast wilderness (14 million km²), the 1959 Antarctic Treaty and its Environmental Protection Protocol, that was
ratified in 1997, states that the whole continent of Antarctica and its dependent marine ecosystems is designated a
“natural reserve devoted to peace and science”.
Contacts:
Citation:
Chape, S., S. Blyth, L. Fish, P. Fox and M. Spalding (compilers) (2003). 2003 United Nations List of Protected
Areas. UNEP-WCMC and WCPA. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre,
219 Huntingdon Road,
Cambridge, UK, CB3 0DL
Tel: +44 (0)1223 277314 Fax: +44 (0) 1223 277136
Email: [email protected]
http://www.unep-wcmc.org