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Lorentz
National
Park
is
located
in
the
Indonesian
province
of
Papua,
formerly
known
as
Irian
Jaya
(western
New
Guinea).
With
an
area
of
25,056
km²
(9,674
mi²),
it
is
the
largest
national
park
in
South-East
Asia.
In
1999
Lorentz
was
declared
a
World
Heritage
Site
by
UNESCO. |
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An
outstanding
example
of
the
biodiversity
of
New
Guinea,
Lorentz
is
one
of
the
most
ecologically
diverse
national
parks
in
the
world.
It
is
the
only
nature
reserve
in
the
Asia-Pacific
region
to
contain
a
full
altitudial
array
of
ecosystems
spanning
from
marine
areas,
mangrove,
tidal
and
freshwater
swamp
forest,
lowland
and
montane
rainforest,
alpine
areas,
and
equatorial
glaciers.
At
4884
meters,
Puncak
Jaya
(formerly
Carstensz
Pyramid)
is
the
tallest
mountain
between
the
Himalayas
and
the
Andes. |
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Birdlife
International
has
called
Lorentz
Park
“probably
the
single
most
important
reserve
in
New
Guinea”
(Birdlife
International,
1999). |
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Lorentz
Park
contains
many
unmapped
and
unexplored
areas,
and
is
certain
to
contain
many
species
of
plants
and
animals
as
yet
unknown
to
Western
science.
Local
communities'
ethnobotanical
and
ethnozoological
knowledge
of
the
Lorentz
biota
is
also
very
poorly
documented. |
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The
park
is
named
for
Hendrikus
Albertus
Lorentz,
a
Dutch
explorer
who
passed
through
the
area
on
his
1909-1910
expedition. |
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