FLORA AND FAUNA
 
Mongolian diverse and distinctive vegetation includes an important part of plant life in Asia. Species representing Siberian coniferous taiga forest, Central Asian steppe and desert, and the Altai and Sayan Mountains all occur here. Steppe plants from Kazakhstan grow beside Manchurian steppe flowers. More than 3,000 species of vascular plants, 927 lichens, 437 mosses, 875 fungi and numerous algae have been recorded. Many other species, however, remain to be classified. Mongolia's flora includes almost 150 endemic plants and nearly 100 relic species. Over 100 plant species are listed in the Mongolian Red Book as rare or endangered. Like its vegetation, fauna of Mongolia represents a mixture of species from the northern taiga of Siberia, the steppe and the deserts of Central Asia. Fauna includes 136 species of mammals, 436 birds, 8 amphibians, 22 reptiles, 75 fish and numerous invertebrates. Species endemic to Central Asia are found primarily in the Gobi and desert steppe including the Mongolian subspecies of the Saiga antilope Tatarica mongolica, four species of jerboa and a vole that are endemic to Central Asia. The birds include the Altai Snowcock Tetraogallus altaicus and Kozlov's accentor Prunella kozlovi. Reptiles endemic to Central Asia include eight species. Endemic fish include the Altai Osman Oreoloeuciscus potanini and the Mongolian grayling Thymallus brevirostris. Numerous globally threatened and endangered species occur in Mongolia.

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