National Parks of Pakistan: Wildlife Guide
The national parks of Pakistan are 37 government-protected areas set aside for the conservation of outstanding scenery and wildlife in a natural state, open to the public for research, education and recreation. The oldest is Lal Suhanra (1972); the largest is Central Karakoram (1,390,100 hectares); the smallest is Ayubia (3,312 hectares).
- As of 2023, Pakistan has 37 national parks recognized by the World Database on Protected Areas.
- Oldest: Lal Suhanra National Park, Bahawalpur (1972) — established to protect Cholistan Desert wildlife.
- Largest: Central Karakoram National Park, Gilgit-Baltistan (1,390,100 ha / ~13,901 km²).
- Smallest: Ayubia National Park, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (3,312 ha).
- Flagship species protected: snow leopard, markhor, Marco Polo sheep, Himalayan brown bear, Indus blind dolphin habitats nearby.
- In national parks, firearms, polluting water, clearing land for cultivation and destroying wildlife are banned.
What Is a National Park?
A national park is a protected area set aside by the government for the protection and conservation of its outstanding scenery and wildlife in a natural state. Unlike strict nature reserves, national parks are accessible to the public for research, education and recreation — roads and rest houses may be built — but the use of firearms, polluting water, clearing land for cultivation and destroying wildlife is strictly banned. The national parks of Pakistan are administered by the provincial wildlife departments under modern protected-areas legislation that grew out of the National Conservation Strategy of 1992. Together they span the country's major biomes of the world — from Khunjerab's alpine tundra to Hingol's coastal desert.
National parks are the backbone of in-situ biodiversity conservation: they preserve entire ecosystems rather than single species. Pakistan's flagship mammals — markhor, snow leopard and brown bear — are all placental mammals; see how monotremes, marsupials and placentals differ. For the authoritative listing, see the List of national parks of Pakistan, which records 37 recognized parks with areas and notable wildlife.
Major National Parks of Pakistan
| National park | Province / Territory | Area (ha) | Established | Notable wildlife | Famous for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Karakoram | Gilgit-Baltistan | 1,390,100 | 1993 | Snow leopard, markhor, Siberian ibex | Glacier systems of Baltoro and Biafo; one of the highest protected areas on Earth |
| Deosai | Gilgit-Baltistan | 358,400 | 1993 | Himalayan brown bear, long-tailed marmot | "Land of Giants" plateau; summer wildflower meadows |
| Kirthar | Sindh | 308,733 | 1974 | Chinkara, wild goat, urial | Largest park in Sindh; chinkara herds and captive-bred reintroductions |
| Khunjerab | Gilgit-Baltistan | 226,913 | 1975 | Marco Polo sheep, snow leopard, ibex | "Roof of the parks" on the Karakoram Highway near the Chinese border |
| Hingol | Balochistan | 165,004 | 1988 | Chinkara, urial, Persian leopard | Mountains, desert and coast in one park; Princess of Hope rock formation |
| Broghil Valley | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | 134,744 | 2010 | Snow leopard, Siberian ibex, lynx | High mountain passes and valleys of upper Chitral |
| Lal Suhanra | Punjab | 87,426 | 1972 | Blackbuck, nilgai, Indian hog deer | Oldest park (1972); Cholistan Desert wildlife and blackbuck reintroduction |
| Margalla Hills | Islamabad | 17,386 | 1980 | Indian leopard, rhesus macaque, barking deer | The capital's park; urban-adjacent biodiversity hotspot |
| Hazarganji-Chiltan | Balochistan | 15,555 | 1980 | Chiltan markhor, wild goat | Chiltan markhor; rare Persian leopard pair recorded in 2021 |
| Machiara | Azad Kashmir | 13,532 | 1996 | Himalayan black bear, Kashmir musk deer | Western Himalayan forests near Muzaffarabad |
| Chitral Gol | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | 7,750 | 1984 | Markhor, snow leopard | Pakistan's markhor sanctuary in the Hindu Kush |
| Chinji | Punjab | 6,095 | 1987 | Urial, Indian wolf, Bengal fox | Salt Range foothills; urial and Indian wolf habitat |
| Ayubia | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | 3,312 | 1984 | Indian leopard, Himalayan goral | Smallest park; pipeline walking track and temperate forests |
Parks at a Glance: Province-Wise
- Gilgit-Baltistan
- Central Karakoram — 1,390,100 ha (largest park in Pakistan)
- Deosai — 358,400 ha (Himalayan brown bear stronghold)
- Khunjerab — 226,913 ha (Marco Polo sheep habitat)
- Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
- Broghil Valley — 134,744 ha
- Chitral Gol — 7,750 ha (markhor sanctuary)
- Ayubia — 3,312 ha (smallest park in Pakistan)
- Sindh
- Kirthar — 308,733 ha (chinkara, urial)
- Balochistan
- Hingol — 165,004 ha (coast meets desert)
- Hazarganji-Chiltan — 15,555 ha (Chiltan markhor)
- Punjab
- Lal Suhanra — 87,426 ha (oldest park, 1972)
- Chinji — 6,095 ha
- Islamabad
- Margalla Hills — 17,386 ha (the capital's park)
- Azad Kashmir
- Machiara — 13,532 ha (Himalayan black bear)
Spotlight: Pakistan's Most Famous Parks
Central Karakoram — the largest
Covering the Baltoro, Biafo, Hispar and Panmah glacier systems, Central Karakoram is Pakistan's largest national park and one of the highest protected areas on Earth. It shelters the snow leopard, markhor and Siberian ibex in a landscape dominated by K2 and the great Karakoram glaciers.
- Highlights: the Baltoro glacier system and K2's shadow; one of the highest protected areas on Earth.
- Wildlife: snow leopard, markhor, Siberian ibex — the high Karakoram's flagship trio.
- Why it matters: protects the source waters of the Indus in a single 1,390,100-hectare sweep.
Deosai — the Land of Giants
The Deosai Plains form one of the highest plateaus in the world, carpeted with wildflowers in summer. It is the prime habitat of the Himalayan brown bear in Pakistan and a stronghold for the long-tailed marmot and golden eagle, whose soaring flight rides the plateau's thermal updrafts.
- Highlights: one of the world's highest plateaus, buried in snow in winter and wildflowers in summer.
- Wildlife: Himalayan brown bear, long-tailed marmot, golden eagle.
- Why it matters: the bear's prime habitat in Pakistan — a true alpine-tundra stronghold.
Khunjerab — roof of the parks
Established in 1975 along the Karakoram Highway near the Chinese border, Khunjerab protects the Marco Polo sheep, Himalayan ibex and snow leopard in extreme high-altitude steppe.
- Highlights: the "roof of the parks" on the Karakoram Highway at the Khunjerab Pass.
- Wildlife: Marco Polo sheep (the park's founding species), bharal, kiang, snow leopard.
- Why it matters: created principally for the Marco Polo sheep — a textbook case of single-species-driven park creation.
Kirthar — Sindh's wilderness
Set in the Kirthar mountains of Dadu district, it protects chinkara gazelle, Sindh wild goat and urial, and hosts captive-bred populations reintroduced to the wild.
- Highlights: the largest national park in Sindh, in the rugged Kirthar Range.
- Wildlife: chinkara gazelle, Sindh wild goat, urial.
- Why it matters: its captive-breeding and reintroduction programme is a national model for restoring wild herds.
Hingol — coast meets desert
Spanning mountains, desert and the Arabian Sea coast in Balochistan, Hingol is known for the Hingol River, dramatic rock formations and wildlife including chinkara and the Persian leopard — confirmed by a thermal-imaging sighting near Sapat in April 2026.
- Highlights: mountains, desert and sea in one park; the Princess of Hope rock formation; the Hingol River estuary.
- Wildlife: chinkara, urial, wild goat — and the elusive Persian leopard, photographed at Nani Mandir and recorded on thermal cameras.
- Why it matters: Pakistan's only coastal national park, joining three landscapes in a single protected area.
Margalla Hills — the capital's park
On Islamabad's doorstep, this Himalayan-foothill park is a biodiversity hotspot with hundreds of plant and bird species, plus leopards, barking deer and monkeys — a model of urban-adjacent conservation and wildlife of Pakistan at its most accessible.
- Highlights: Himalayan foothills minutes from Islamabad; one of Pakistan's most-visited parks.
- Wildlife: Indian leopard, rhesus macaque, barking deer, hundreds of bird species.
- Why it matters: proves conservation can thrive beside a capital city — nature on the urban doorstep.
National Parks of Pakistan: The Record Holders
Three parks hold the national records — oldest, largest and smallest:
| Record | National park | Figure | Province / Territory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oldest | Lal Suhanra | Established 1972 | Punjab (Bahawalpur) |
| Largest | Central Karakoram | 1,390,100 ha (~13,901 km²) | Gilgit-Baltistan |
| Smallest | Ayubia | 3,312 ha | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa |
National Parks vs Wildlife Sanctuaries vs Game Reserves
| Feature | National park | Wildlife sanctuary | Game reserve |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Scenery + wildlife conservation with public recreation | Protection of wildlife and habitat | Regulated hunting of specified species |
| Public access | Allowed (research, education, recreation) | Restricted | Controlled |
| Hunting | Banned | Banned | Permitted under license |
Frequently Asked Questions
How many national parks are there in Pakistan?
As of 2023, Pakistan has 37 national parks recognized by the World Database on Protected Areas, spread across all provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir and Islamabad.
Which is the oldest national park of Pakistan?
Lal Suhanra National Park in Bahawalpur, Punjab, established in 1972 to protect the wildlife of the Cholistan Desert.
Which is the largest national park of Pakistan?
Central Karakoram National Park in Gilgit-Baltistan, covering about 1,390,100 hectares (~13,901 km²), including the Baltoro and Biafo glacier systems.
Which animals are protected in Khunjerab National Park?
Khunjerab protects the Marco Polo sheep, Himalayan ibex, snow leopard, bharal and kiang in high-altitude Karakoram habitat.
What is the difference between a national park and a game reserve?
In a national park, hunting is completely banned and the focus is conservation plus public recreation. In a game reserve, regulated hunting of specified species is permitted under license.
What wildlife lives in Pakistan's national parks?
The national parks of Pakistan shelter the snow leopard, markhor, Marco Polo sheep, Himalayan brown bear, Siberian ibex, chinkara, urial, blackbuck and the Chiltan markhor — from the Himalayan brown bear of the Deosai Plains to the Marco Polo sheep of the high-altitude Khunjerab steppe.
Practice MCQs
Q1. The oldest national park of Pakistan is:
- Kirthar
- Lal Suhanra
- Margalla Hills
- Khunjerab
Answer: B — Lal Suhanra (Bahawalpur) was established in 1972, making it Pakistan's oldest national park.
Q2. The largest national park of Pakistan is:
- Hingol
- Deosai
- Central Karakoram
- Kirthar
Answer: C — Central Karakoram (1,390,100 ha) is the largest; Deosai and Kirthar are the next largest.
Q3. The smallest national park of Pakistan is:
- Chinji
- Ayubia
- Saiful Muluk
- Chitral Gol
Answer: B — Ayubia (3,312 ha) is the smallest national park in the country.
Q4. Khunjerab National Park was primarily established to protect:
- Bengal tiger
- Marco Polo sheep
- Asiatic lion
- One-horned rhinoceros
Answer: B — Khunjerab (1975) protects the Marco Polo sheep along with snow leopard and Himalayan ibex.
Q5. Deosai National Park is famous for:
- Himalayan brown bear
- Markhor
- Indus blind dolphin
- Chinkara
Answer: A — The Deosai Plains are the prime habitat of the Himalayan brown bear in Pakistan.
Q6. Kirthar National Park is located in:
- Punjab
- Balochistan
- Sindh
- Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Answer: C — Kirthar lies in the Kirthar mountains of Dadu district, Sindh.
Q7. In a national park, which of the following is banned?
- Research
- Education
- Hunting
- Recreation
Answer: C — Hunting (use of firearms), polluting water and destroying wildlife are banned; research, education and recreation are allowed.
Q8. Which set of animals is notable in Margalla Hills National Park, Islamabad?
- Indian leopard, rhesus macaque and barking deer
- Marco Polo sheep, bharal and kiang
- Chinkara, urial and Persian leopard
- Himalayan brown bear and long-tailed marmot
Answer: A — the table lists Indian leopard, rhesus macaque and barking deer for Margalla Hills.
Q9. Hingol National Park, where mountains and desert meet the Arabian Sea coast, is located in:
- Sindh
- Balochistan
- Gilgit-Baltistan
- Punjab
Answer: B — Hingol is in Balochistan; it protects chinkara, urial and the Persian leopard.
Q10. Chitral Gol National Park is most famous for protecting:
- Markhor
- Bengal tiger
- One-horned rhinoceros
- Indus blind dolphin
Answer: A — Chitral Gol protects the markhor (and snow leopard); the others are not found in Pakistan's northern parks.
Short Questions
Q1. Define a national park and state what is banned inside it. See answer
A national park is a government-protected area set aside for the conservation of outstanding scenery and wildlife in a natural state, while remaining open to the public for research, education and recreation.
Unlike strict nature reserves, parks may contain roads and rest houses — but the law strictly bans the use of firearms, polluting water, clearing land for cultivation and destroying wildlife within their boundaries.
In Pakistan, national parks are administered by provincial wildlife departments under modern protected-areas legislation that grew out of the National Conservation Strategy of 1992.
Q2. Name the oldest, largest and smallest national parks of Pakistan, with figures. See answer
The oldest is Lal Suhanra in Bahawalpur, Punjab, established in 1972 to protect Cholistan Desert wildlife; the largest is Central Karakoram in Gilgit-Baltistan, covering 1,390,100 hectares (~13,901 km²).
The smallest is Ayubia in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at just 3,312 hectares — a compact Himalayan-foothill park famous for leopards and the Himalayan goral.
This "oldest–largest–smallest" trio is asked repeatedly in competitive exams, so memorize all three names with their numbers: 1972, 1,390,100 ha and 3,312 ha.
Q3. Which national park protects the Himalayan brown bear, and which protects the Marco Polo sheep? See answer
Deosai National Park — the "Land of Giants" on one of the world's highest plateaus — is the prime habitat of the Himalayan brown bear in Pakistan, along with the long-tailed marmot and golden eagle.
Khunjerab National Park, established in 1975 along the Karakoram Highway near the Chinese border, was created principally to protect the Marco Polo sheep in extreme high-altitude steppe.
Both parks also shelter the snow leopard: Deosai's bears and Khunjerab's sheep are textbook examples of linking each famous park to one flagship animal.
Q4. Distinguish between a national park, a wildlife sanctuary and a game reserve. See answer
A national park conserves scenery and wildlife together, allows public access for research, education and recreation, and bans hunting completely.
A wildlife sanctuary focuses on protecting wildlife and habitat with restricted public access; hunting is banned here too, but public recreation is not the goal.
A game reserve is different: it permits regulated hunting of specified species under license, with controlled public access — conservation through managed use rather than total protection.
Q5. Why are national parks called the backbone of in-situ biodiversity conservation? See answer
Because they practice in-situ (on-site) conservation: instead of protecting a single species in captivity, a national park preserves entire ecosystems — from alpine glaciers to coastal mangroves — in their natural state.
This ecosystem-scale protection shelters the full spectrum of animal diversity at once, letting predators, prey, pollinators and scavengers interact as they evolved to do.
Captive breeding and zoos (ex-situ conservation) remain valuable backups, but only national parks keep ecological processes — migration, predation, natural selection — running in the wild.
Q6. How many national parks does Pakistan have, and which body recognizes the count? See answer
As of 2023, Pakistan has 37 national parks, recognized by the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) — the authoritative global inventory of protected areas.
They are spread across all four provinces plus Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir and Islamabad, from the Karakoram glaciers to the Arabian Sea coast at Hingol.
The count grows as new areas are notified, so always cite the WDPA-recognized figure with its year (2023) rather than treating the number as permanent.
Related reading
References
- Wikipedia. "List of national parks of Pakistan."
- World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA). Pakistan country profile.
- Real Pakistan. "Pakistan's National Parks: A Glimpse into Nature's Bounty."
- Dawn. "Rare Persian leopard seen in Hingol." Thermal-imaging record of the Persian leopard in Hingol National Park, April 2026.
- Roberts, T.J. The Birds of Pakistan and The Mammals of Pakistan. Oxford University Press.
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