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World's Newest Natural Wonders
By Sean O'Neill

China Danxia
Xinhua/Xinhua Press/Corbis
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Each year, the United Nations unveils a list of the world's most stunning natural attractions,
called World Heritage sites, and chances are, you've never heard of them
Papahanaumokuakea, anyone? The designation shines the spotlight on a handful of hidden
gems, while also protecting them from man.

Over the past 28 years, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) has identified more than 180 of these natural wonders across 77 countries. These
"World Heritage Sites" are deemed "unique, irreplaceable, and authentic." The esteemed club
includes the likes of the Grand Canyon, Mount Everest, and Victoria Falls among other iconic
sites. (Manmade landmarks, such as Rome's Colosseum, are counted separately.)

This summer, the UN agency added some particularly picturesque landscapes to its list.

China
China Danxia

The region known as China Danxia spans six subtropical areas approximately 310 miles
southwest of Xi'an, home of the terra-cotta warriors. Red sandstone pillars, ravines, and other
fantastical shapes recall Mars more than they do southwestern China.


Phoenix Islands Protected Area, Kiribati
Nick Norman/National Geographic/Getty Images
Kiribati
Phoenix Islands Protected Area

Hundreds of species of fish, mammals, and birds have made their home in and around the
Phoenix Islands, about 6,000 miles northwest of Fiji in the South Pacific. The island region is the
world's largest marine protected area.


Runion National Park, Runion Island, France
Michele Falzone/Getty Images
France
Runion National Park, Runion Island

Creole-flavored Runion Island lies in the southwest Indian Ocean approximately 400 miles off
the eastern coast of Madagascar and is towered over by two volcanic peaks.


Papahanaumokuakea, Hawaii
Jerker Tamelander/courtesy IUCN
Hawaii
Papahanaumokuakea

Preposterously clear lagoons and extensive coral reefs protect rare marine life around this set of
tiny islands and atolls in northwestern Hawaii (reachable only by chartered plane). Ghost alert!
As native tradition has it, spirits return to this area after death.


Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania
Adam Jones/The Image Bank/Getty Images
Tanzania
Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Zebras, wildebeests, and big cats wander the grass that covers the enormous crater of the
extinct Ngorongoro volcano. The entire Ngorongoro Conservation Area covers over 3,200 square
miles and lies to the east of the decidedly more famous Serengeti National Park.A World
Heritage site since 1979, Ngorongoro's received an extended designation this year to also
recognize its cultural significance: It's where evidence of humanity's distant ancestors was
discovered.


Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla, Mexico
INAH/AFP/Getty Images
Oaxaca province, Mexico
Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla

Archaeologists discovered the historic cave dwellings with rock art in the central Mexican
province of Oaxaca, about 340 miles south of Mexico City. In addition to rock art, the caves are
famous for the 10,000-year-old Cucurbubitaceae seeds and corncob fragments found herethe
earliest evidence of domestic plants on the continent.


Putoransky State Nature Reserve, Russia
Alexey Butoni/courtesy nhpfund.org
Russia
Putoransky State Nature Reserve

This nature reserve is situated more than 62 miles north of the Arctic Circle in northern Central
Siberia, and is a vital migration route for reindeer crossing its tundra and rivers. the Putoransky
State Nature Reserve is technically a desert because it rains and snows so little here, though
snowfall does tend to linger owing to the icy temperatures.


Central Highlands, Sri Lanka
Kevin Clogstoun/Lonely Planet Images/Getty Images
Sri Lanka
Central Highlands

The Sri Lankan leopard, slender loris, and other endangered animals roam the Sri Lankan
highlands. Their forest habitat lies over 8,000 feet above sea level on this teardrop-shaped island
off the southern tip of India in the Indian Ocean.

See More Pictures of the World's Newest Natural Wonders