The New7Wonders of Nature voting has ended. New7Wonders President Bernard Weber at the official news site of New7Wonders of Nature on Friday, November 11, 2011, the voting has ended and counting of the votes has begun.
According to a post at New7Wonders.com, the voting ended on Friday, Nov. 11 (11-11-11) at 11:11:11 (GMT) and provisional counting is underway. Preliminary results will be announced via their website at 7:07pm (GMT)
“By taking the time to take part, you have shown that you care about something that is very important to all of us: our home, Mother Earth.” Weber wrote on the report, thanking everyone who supported the project.
“I would especially like to extend by deepest gratitude to each and every one of the 28 Finalists. You impressed us with your commitment; you astonished us with your energy.”Weber added.
Puerto Princesa City Mayor Edward Hagedorn expressed confidence that Puerto Princesa Underground River (PPUR) will be among the ‘New 7 Wonders of Nature‘ winners.
Note: The provisional results of the New7Wonders of Nature with the names of the 7 winners will be announced at 7:07pm GMT on www.new7wonders.com.
The top 14 Finalists in the New7Wonders of Nature. They are, in alphabetical order:
Amazon, Bu Tinah Island, Dead Sea, Great Barrier Reef, Halong Bay, Iguazu Falls, Jeita Grotto, Jeju Island, Kilimanjaro, Komodo, Masurian Lake District, Puerto Princesa Underground River, Sundarbans, Table Mountain.
PP Underground River: Philippines
The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park is located about 50 km north of the city of Puerto Princesa, Palawan, Philippines. It features a limestone karst mountain landscape with an 8.2 km. navigable underground river. A distinguishing feature of the river is that it winds through a cave before flowing directly into the South China Sea. It includes major formations of stalactites and stalagmites, and several large chambers. The lower portion of the river is subject to tidal influences. The underground river is reputed to be the world’s longest. At the mouth of the cave, a clear lagoon is framed by ancient trees growing right to the water’s edge. Monkeys, large monitor lizards, and squirrels find their niche on the beach near the cave.
Dead Sea: Israel, Jordan, Palestine
The Dead Sea is a salt lake between Palestine and Israel to the west and Jordan to the east. At 420 metres below sea level, its shores are the lowest point on Earth that are on dry land. With 30 percent salinity, it is 8.6 times saltier than the ocean.
Amazon: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela
The Amazon Rainforest, also known as Amazonia, the Amazon jungle or the Amazon Basin, encompasses seven million square kilometers (1.7 billion acres), though the forest itself occupies some 5.5 million square kilometers (1.4 billion acres), located within nine nations. The Amazon represents over half of the planet’s remaining rainforests and comprises the largest and most species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world. The Amazon River is the largest river in the world by volume, with a total flow greater than the top ten rivers worldwide combined. It accounts for approximately one-fifth of the total world river flow and has the biggest drainage basin on the planet. Not a single bridge crosses the Amazon.
Halong Bay: Viet Nam
Halong Bay is located in Quáng Ninh province, Vietnam. The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. The bay has a 120 kilometre long coastline and is approximately 1,553 square kilometres in size with 1969 islets. Several of the islands are hollow, with enormous caves, other support floating villages of fishermen, who ply the shallow waters for 200 species of fish and 450 different kinds of mollusks. Another specific feature of Halong Bay is the abundance of lakes inside the limestone islands, for example, Dau Be island has six enclosed lakes. All these island lakes occupy drowned dolines within fengcong karst.
Iguazu Falls: Argentina, Brazil
Iguazu Falls, in Iguazu River, are one of the world’s largest waterfalls. They extend over 2,700 m (nearly 2 miles) in a semi-circular shape. Of the 275 falls that collectively make up Iguassu Falls, “Devil’s Throat” is the tallest at 80 m in height. Iguazu Falls are on the border between the Brazilian state of Paraná and the Argentine province of Misiones, and are surrounded by two National Parks (BR/ARG). Both are subtropical rainforests that are host to hundreds of rare and endangered species of flora and fauna.
Jeita Grotto : Lebanon
Jeita Grotto is a compound of crystallized caves in Lebanon located 20 km north of Beirut in the Valley of Nahr al-Kalb (Dog River). This grotto is made up of two limestone caves, upper galleries and a lower cave through which a 6230 m long river runs. Geologically, the caves provide a tunnel or escape route for the underground river. In this cave and galleries, the action of water in the limestone has created cathedral-like vaults full of various sizes, colors and shapes of stalactites and stalagmites, majestic curtains and fantastic rock formations. The total length of the cave is more than 9000 m and there is one among the biggest stalactites in the world hanging 8,20 m. The grotto accommodates a huge hall with a distance of 108 m from the ceiling till the water level.
Bu Tinah Island: United Arab Emirates
Off the western shores of Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, lies a unique natural treasure, wild and undisturbed by human activity: Bu Tinah Island. Bu Tinah’s thriving ecosystem forms a unique living laboratory with key significance for climate change research. An undisturbed paradise, Bu Tinah has much to teach mankind about environmental protection and survival. This distinctive natural habitat has shallow waters, seagrass beds and tall mangroves, set amid extensive coral reefs. It hosts beautiful and endangered marine life. Seabirds, including flamingos and osprey, various species of dolphins and the critically endangered hawksbill turtle live in Bu Tinah. The island’s waters host the world’s second-largest population of dugong, a large marine mammal that is threatened worldwide. Bu Tinah Island, rich in biodiversity, lies within the Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve -- the region’s largest marine reserve. Its protection and survival must be ensured.
Great Barrier Reef: Australia, Papua New Guinea
The Great Barrier Reef is the planet’s largest coral reef system, with some 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for 2,600 km over an area of approximately 344,400 square km. It is the biggest single structure made by living creatures and can be seen from outer space.
Jeju Island: Korea (south)
Jejudo is a volcanic island, 130 km from the southern coast of Korea. The largest island and smallest province in Korea, the island has a surface area of 1,846 sqkm. A central feature of Jeju is Hallasan, the tallest mountain in South Korea and a dormant volcano, which rises 1,950 m above sea level. 360 satellite volcanoes are around the main volcano.
Kilimanjaro: Tanzania
Snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro is one of the most famous and highest freestanding mountains in the world, rising from the north-eastern part of Tanzania. Kilimanjaro stands at 5,895 metres (19,336 feet) high above sea level. Kilimanjaro comprises 3 volcanoes of which the most famous (and the most recent), snow-capped dormant Kibo stands at 5,895 m (19,455 ft). The mountain is situated in the Kilimanjaro National Park in Tanzania. The trek crosses five distinct vegetation zones, namely lower slopes, rainforest, heath and moorland, alpine and desert and the glaciers/summit. Within each zone there is an association between altitude, rainfall, temperature, plants and animals. The name Kilimanjaro, is thought to be a combination of the Swahili word Kilima, meaning “mountain,” and the Kichagga vernacular language word ’Njaro’, translated as “whiteness,” giving the name White Mountain itself.
Komodo: Indonesia
Indonesia’s Komodo National Park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Rinca and Padar, as well as numerous smaller ones, for a total area of 1,817 square kilometers (603 square kilometers of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon. Later, it was also dedicated to protecting other species, including marine animals. The islands of the national park are of volcanic origin.
Masurian Lake District: Poland
The Masurian Lake District or Masurian Lakeland is a lake district in northeastern Poland containing more than 2,000 lakes. It extends roughly 290 km eastwards from the lower Vistula River to the Poland-Lithuania border and occupies an area of roughly 52,000 square kilometers. The lake district was shaped by the Pleistocene ice age. Many of its hills are parts of moraines and many of its lakes are moraine-dammed lakes.
Sunderbans: Bangladesh and India
The Sundarbans delta, at the mouth of the Ganges river, is the largest mangrove forest in the world, spreading across parts of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. The Sundarbans features a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests. The area is known for its wide range of fauna, with the Royal Bengal tiger being the most famous, but also including many birds, spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes.
Table Mountain: South Africa
Table Mountain is a South African icon and the only natural site on the planet to have a constellation of stars named after it -- Mensa, meaning “the table.” The flat-topped mountain has withstood six million years of erosion and hosts the richest, yet smallest floral kingdom on earth with over 1,470 floral species. Table Mountain boasts numerous rare and endangered species. It is the most recognized site in Cape Town, the gateway to Africa, owing to its unique flat-topped peaks which reach 1,086 m above sea level.
