Zag Baidrag

Zag Baidrag National Park lies in Bayankhongor Province in west-central Mongolia and covers the valleys of the Baidrag and Zag Rivers, which flow south from the Khangai Mountains^[1]. It was established in 2012 and covers about 1,163 km²^[2]. Its Mongolian name is Zag Baidragiin Goliin Ekhen Sav, "the headwaters of the Baidrag and Zag rivers".

The park lies on semi-arid steppe and desert ground in the valleys of two rivers running south from the Khangai Mountains^[1].

"Zag" is the Mongolian word for saxaul, the desert shrub that gives the nearby district its name. The park protects semi-arid steppe and desert valleys on the south side of the Khangai Mountains^[1].

The Baidrag and Zag Rivers flow south from the Khangai Mountains through the valleys the park protects^[1].

The park has a strongly continental, semi-arid climate, with cold winters and warm summers, on the dry southern side of the Khangai Mountains.

The valleys of the Baidrag and Zag Rivers lie in a herding region of Bayankhongor Province.

The park was established in 2012 and covers about 1,163 km²^[1].

The main feature of the park is the river valleys of the Baidrag and Zag, which flow south from the Khangai Mountains^[1].

The nearest city is Bayankhongor, roughly 100 km away. The park is remote.

The park protects the headwaters of the Baidrag and Zag Rivers^[1], which are the water source for the semi-arid land downstream.