The Uvs Nuur Basin (1,068,853 ha), is the north­ern­most of the enclosed basins of Cen­tral Asia. It takes its name from Uvs Nuur Lake, a large, shal­low and very saline lake, impor­tant for migrat­ing birds, water­fowl and seabirds. The site is made up of twelve pro­tect­ed areas rep­re­sent­ing the major bio­mes of east­ern Eura­sia. The steppe ecosys­tem sup­ports a rich diver­si­ty of birds and the desert is home to a num­ber of rare ger­bil, jer­boas and the mar­bled pole­cat. The moun­tains are an impor­tant refuge for the glob­al­ly endan­gered snow leop­ard, moun­tain sheep (argali) and the Asi­at­ic ibex.