Khar Turan National Park

 Southeast of Shahrud, Semnan province, with an area of 1.4 million ha. Khar Turan is the second largest reserve in Iran, and because of its large size and difficult desert situation, most of its species were able to save themselves against poachers during the critical period of the early 1980s. The area has one of the richest diversities in its mammal species in the country, and has the largest population of onager in Iran as well as a good number of both species of gazelles, wild sheep and wild goat, which ensure cheetah survival. The area is estimated to be home of 12-15 cheetahs and occasional sighting of the animal with cubs indicates a growing population.