UNESCO biosphere reserves

Kazakhstani and Russia's applications to include their biosphere reserves to the UNESCO World Network are studied at the headquarters of the United Nations agency

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Russia's Kronotsky Nature Reserve is located on the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula. It has geyser basin, several mountain ranges and 8 acting volcanoes

Caucasian State Biosphere Reserve is located in Russia's Western Caucasus region, extending from the Black Sea to Mount Elbrus. About a third of its high mountain species of plants are recognized as endemic.

Lake Neusiedl is located at Austria-Hungarian border. The largest endorheic lake in Central Europe is a unique biosphere reserve

Belovezhskaya Pushcha national park is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest in Europe

Galapagos Islands, an archipelago of volcanic islands located 906 km west of continental Ecuador, and their surrounding waters form an a national park and a biological marine reserve

Hortobagy National Park is Hungary's largest protected area, and the largest semi-natural grassland in Europe. Photo: Common cranes fly over a pond in Hortobagy National Park

South Korean largest island of Jeju is inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List. A central feature of Jeju is Hallasan, the tallest mountain in South Korea and a dormant volcano

Serengeti National Park is the oldest and most popular national park in Tanzania and is known for its annual migration of millions of wildebeests, zebras and gazelles. Photo: Maasai giraffes walk in Serengeti National Park

Yellowstone National Park located in the US state of Wyoming is the first national park in the world. The park] is known for its wildlife and many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful Geyser

Socotra archipelago of four islands in the Indian Ocean is very isolated. A third of its plant life is found nowhere else on the planet. The island was recognised by the UNESCO as a world natural heritage site in 2008

Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico is a World Heritage Site containing most of the over-wintering sites of the eastern population of the monarch butterfly

Amazon rainforest is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America. This region includes territory belonging to nine nations

A session of the International Coordinating Council of The Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme takes place at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris from 8 to 12 June. It is scheduled to consider proposals for inclusion of new sites in the UNESCO's World Network of biosphere reserves along with the applications from Kazakhstan and Russia. The World Network of Biosphere Reserves includes 631 sites in 119 countries occurring in all regions of the world. UNESCO biosphere reserves - in photo gallery by TASS