Khustai National Park: Where Wild Horses Roam Free
Posted by:Deegii
31 May, 2026
Just 100km west of Ulaanbaatar, Khustai National Park is one of Mongolia's most compelling wild places — and home to one of conservation's greatest comeback stories.
Takhi wild horses in Khustai National Park
This is the land of the Takhi (Przewalski's horse), the world's only truly wild horse species. Once extinct in the wild, Takhi were reintroduced here in the early 1990s after a decades-long international effort involving Mongolian scientists and the Dutch Wild Horse Foundation. Today, herds roam freely across rolling forest-steppe, exactly as they did thousands of years ago.
The landscape itself is striking — rugged hills rising from 1,100m to nearly 1,850m, crystal-clear alpine springs that flow even in winter, and pockets of Gobi-like sand dunes in the south. It sits at a rare ecological crossroads where forest steppe meets the great Mongolian steppe, creating extraordinary biodiversity.
Takhi wild horse
Wildlife highlights
46 mammal species including wolf, lynx, Argali sheep, and deer.
172 bird species — Golden eagles, Black storks, Great bustards, and Whooper swans.
450 plant species across 65 families.
Designated a Natural Reserve in 1993 and upgraded to National Park status in 1998, Khustai is now a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Network member. It's managed independently by the Khustai National Park Trust NGO under agreement with Mongolia's Ministry of Nature and Environment.
Deegii
