SAA SIGNATURE MEMBER SUSAN FOX’S 2015 WILDART MONGOLIA EXPEDITION A SUCCESS!

Susan Fox with Dr. S. Amgalanbaatar (left) and Dr. Barry Rosenbaum (right) and Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve researchers and staff members Moogii, Baagii, Chuka and Anand

 SAA SIGNATURE MEMBER SUSAN FOX’S 2015 WILDART MONGOLIA EXPEDITION A SUCCESS!

Susan created the WildArt Mongolia Expeditions four years ago as a way to use art to support conservation in Mongolia. She recently returned from her tenth trip to the Land of Blue Skies.

Susan is a Fellow of the Explorers Club (FN’14) and had the privilege of carrying a Flag during this year’s Expedition. Flag 179 has a long and honorable expedition history going back to 1959. It has been carried to, among other places: Mt. Everest, the South Pacific, the North Pole, Ecuador,  the Amazon, Thailand, the Caucasus Mountains , Rwanda, St. Pierre and Yemen. And now Mongolia. You can find out more about the Flags here: https://explorers.org/expeditions/flag_expeditions/carrying_the_flag

Susan Fox at Khomyn Tal with takhi in the background, Zavkhan Aimag

Her 2013 Expedition, the first, traveled to the remote western Gobi to explore Takhiin Tal, the first location where takhi/Przewalski’s horse was reintroduced to Mongolia, and also to an area a days drive to the the north, Darvi and Sharga Soums (counties), which has a population of critically endangered saiga antelope The 2014 Expedition went northeast into the Han Hentii Mountains to visit the site of an important new crane research effort being carried out by researchers from Mongolia, Russia and China and then south onto the legendary grassland steppes to see Mongolian gazelles. You can find out more about those Expeditions on Susan’s website at www.foxstudio.biz.

Saiga antelope at Dorgon Nuur, Khar Us Nuur National Park, Hovd Aimag

 In the coming weeks she’ll be blogging all aspects of the 2015 WildArt Mongolia Expedition, which went to Bayan-Olgii, Hovd and Zavkhan aimags (states or provinces) in the far west to explore:

-Khar Us Nuur National Park, which includes Jargalant Hairkhan Uul, a freestanding mountain extension of the Altai Mountains, which is the home of an estimated population of 37 snow leopards, and three lakes: Khar Us Nuur, Khar Nuur and Dorgon Nuur.

-Khomyn Tal, one of the three locations in Mongolia, along with Takhiin Tal and Hustai National Park, where takhi/Przewalski’s horse has been reintroduced.

-and the Altai Mountains, where she began the Expedition with three days of observing and recording argali mountain sheep capture efforts in the Hokh Serkhiin Nuruu Strictly Protected Area. Her hosts were Dr. Barry Rosenbaum, a research associate with the Denver Zoo, and Dr. S. Amgalanbaatar of the Argali Wildlife Research Center, Mongolia’s leading argali researcher and also the Director of Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve. (see photo at top).

Campsite near sacred spring in a valley on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul, Khar Us Nuur National Park, Hovd Aimag

 While at Khar Us Nuur National Park, she was also was able to “game drive” for saiga antelope and saw dozens of them in less than two days, possibly 10%+ of the population of the area, which encompasses the central plain of the park and extending southeast towards the Gobi.

Khomyn Tal takhi sketches; graphite, Pentalic Nature Sketch sketchbook

Besides takhi and argali, during her total of seven weeks in Mongolia Susan also saw and photographed Siberian ibex, Mongolian gazelles, Siberian marmots, pika, lammergeier (IUCN Near Threatened), Dalmation pelicans (IUCN Vulnerable),  demoiselle cranes, whooper swans, Daurian partridge and black kites.

She did over two dozen watercolors and many sketches and drawings during the Expedition.

Aspen trees, Maikhan Nature Reserve, Hovd Aimag; 8x8” watercolor on Saunders Waterford cold press paper

Ovoo in valley near campsite on Jargalant Hairkhan Uul, Khar Us Nuur National Park, Hovd Aimag; 8x8” watercolor on Saunders Waterford cold press paper

Susan is currently in the planning stages for the 2016 WildArt Mongolia Expedition. If you are interested in being considered for participation, please email her at sfox@foxstudio.biz.

Moonrise over Jargalant Hairkhan Uul, from the shore of Khar Nuur, Khar Us Nuur National Park, Hovd Aimag)