Editing Nature reserve (section)

== History ==
[[File: Charles Waterton.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Charles Waterton]] established the first nature reserve in 1821.]]
Cultural practices that roughly equate to the establishment and maintenance of reserved areas for animals date back to antiquity, with King [[Devanampiya Tissa]] of [[Sri Lanka]] establishing [[Mihintale]] wildlife sanctuary, one of the world's earliest [[wildlife sanctuary|wildlife sanctuaries]], in the 3rd-century-BC Anuradhapura Ancient Kingdom.<ref name="Surveyor Department">{{cite book | title=The National Atlas of Sri Lanka|publisher=[[Department of Survey (Sri Lanka)|Department of Survey]]| date=2007| edition=2nd| page=86| isbn=978-955-9059-04-2}}</ref> Early reservations often had a religious underpinning, such as the 'evil forest' areas of West Africa which were forbidden to humans, who were threatened with spiritual attack if they went there. Sacred areas taboo from human entry to fishing and hunting are known by many ancient cultures worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.slwcs.org/ | title=Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Society (SLWCS) | access-date=27 October 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111028072315/http://www.slwcs.org/ | archive-date=28 October 2011 | url-status=live }}</ref>

The world's first modern nature reserve was established in 1821 by the [[naturalist]] and [[explorer]] [[Charles Waterton]] around his estate in [[Walton Hall, West Yorkshire]]. He spent £9000 on the construction of a three-mile long, 9&nbsp;ft tall wall to enclose his park against [[Poaching|poacher]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.watertonparkhotel.co.uk/OurHotel/History.aspx| title=Walton Hall history| access-date=17 December 2012| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100820082727/http://www.watertonparkhotel.co.uk/OurHotel/History.aspx| archive-date=20 August 2010| df=dmy-all}}</ref> He tried to encourage bird life by planting trees and hollowing out trunks for [[owl]]s to nest in.

[[File:Drachenfels (Siebengebirge) from Rhöndorf.jpg|thumb|[[Drachenfels (Siebengebirge)]]|left]]
Waterton invented artificial [[nest box]]es to house [[Common starling|starlings]], [[western jackdaw]]s and [[sand martin]]s; and unsuccessfully attempted to introduce [[little owl]]s from Italy.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wakefield.gov.uk/CultureAndLeisure/HistoricWakefield/People/CharlesWaterton/default.htm| title=Charles Waterton (1782–1865)| access-date=29 June 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131217041237/http://www.wakefield.gov.uk/CultureAndLeisure/HistoricWakefield/People/CharlesWaterton/default.htm |archive-date=17 December 2013}}</ref> Waterton allowed local people access to his reserve and was described by [[David Attenborough]] as "one of the first people anywhere to recognise not only that the natural world was of great importance but that it needed protection as humanity made more and more demands on it".<ref>{{cite web |author=Wakefield Express |url=http://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/news/local/more-wakefield-news/sir-david-attenborough-will-open-city-centre-s-new-museum-1-5439242 |title=Sir David Attenborough will open city centre's new museum |date=23 February 2013 |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130226001558/http://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/news/local/more-wakefield-news/sir-david-attenborough-will-open-city-centre-s-new-museum-1-5439242 |archive-date=26 February 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Drachenfels (Siebengebirge)|Drachenfels]] was protected as the first state-designated nature reserve in modern-day Germany; the site was bought by the [[Prussia]]n State in 1836 to protect it from further quarrying.

The first major nature reserve was [[Yellowstone National Park]] in [[Wyoming, United States]], followed by the [[Royal National Park]] near [[Sydney]], Australia, and the [[Barguzin Nature Reserve]] of [[Imperial Russia]], the first of ''[[zapovednik]]s'' set up by a federal government entirely for the scientific study of nature.<ref name="weiner">{{cite book |title=Models of Nature: Ecology, Conservation, and Cultural Revolution in Soviet Russia |last=Weiner |first=Douglas R. |year=1988 |publisher=University of Pittsburgh Press |isbn=978-0-8229-5733-1 |page=29 }}</ref>