Pakistan - The Land of Adventure and Nature :: science

Pakistan - The Land of Adventure and NatureFrom the mighty stretches of the Karakorams in the North to the gigantic alluvial delta of the Indus River in the South, Pakistan remains a land of high adventure and nature. Trekking, surgeeering, white water rafting, wild boar hunting, mountain and desert jeep safaris, camel and cackle safaris, trout fishing and bird watching, are a few activities, which entice the adventure and nature lovers to Pakistan.Pakistan is endowed with a racy and varied flora and fauna. High Himalayas, Karakoram and the Hindukush ranges with their alpine meadows and permanent snow line, coniferous forests down the sub-mountain scrub, the vast Indus plain merging into the great desert, the coast line and wetlands, all offer a remarkably rich variety of vegetation and associated wildlife including avifauna, both endemic and migratory. Ten of 18 mammalian orders are represented in Pakistan with species ranging from the worlds smallest surviving mammals, the Medi terranean Pigmy Shrew, to the largest mammal eer known the blue whale.Situated in the heart of the South Asian sub-continent, it is a country with its own fascinating history and cultural heritage. Pakistan was the site for ane of the worlds earliest human settlements, the great prehistoric Indus Valley Civilization, the crucible of ancient empires, religions and cultures. Pakistan traces its history back to 2,500 years B.C. when a highly developed civilization flourished in the Indus Valley. Excavations at Harappa, Moenjodaro, Kot Diji and Mehr Garh have brought to light, the evidence of an advanced civilization existing even in more ancient times.The landscape of Pakistan ranges from lofty mountains in the north, the Karakoram and the Himalayas, through cut plateaus to the rich alluvial plains of the Punjab. Then follows desolate barrenness of Balochistan and the hot dry deserts of Sindh blending into miles and miles of golden beaches of Mekran coast.Pakistan is situated betwee n latitude 24 and 37 degrees North and longitude 62 and 75 degrees East. The country borders Iran on the West, India on the East, Afghanistan in the North-West, China in the North and the Arabian Sea in the South. The great mountain ranges of the Himalayas, the Karakoram and the Hindukush form Pakistans northern highlands of North West Frontier Province and the Northern Area Punjab province is a flat, alluvial plain with five major rivers dominate the upper region eventually joining the Indus River flowing south to the Arabian Sea Sindh is bounded on the east by the Thar Desert and the Rann of Kutch and on the west by the Kirthar range the Balochistan Plateau is an arid tableland, encircled by dry mountains.