Biodiversity in the Khumbu Region

The Khumbu region includes the highest point on the Earth's surface, Mount Sagarmatha (Everest; 8,848m), and Sagarmatha National Park (SNP), covering almost 124,400 hectares in the Solu-Khumbu district of Nepal at elevations up to 6,000m. An exceptional area with dramatic mountains, glaciers, deep valleys, and seven peaks other than Mount Everest, the park is home to several rare species such as the snow leopard and the red panda.

A well-known destination for mountain tourism, with over 2,500 Sherpa people living within the park, the region combines nature and culture. It hosts over 20 villages with more than 6,000 Sherpas, who have inhabited the region for the last four centuries, continuing their traditional cultural and religious practices, including restrictions on hunting and slaughtering and a broader reverence for all living beings. These practices, combined with indigenous natural resource management, have been major contributing factors to the successful conservation of the SNP.