National parks and nature reserves of Israel
Following the drying of Lake Hula, the Hula Reserve was established in 1964 and became the first declared nature reserve in Israel. It is a major stopover for birds migrating between Africa, Europe and Asia. In 1963 the Israeli parliament approved the "National parks and nature reserves act", and as a result, two authorities were established: the National Parks Authority and the Nature Reserves Authority. In 1998 the two authorities were merged into one body - Israel Nature and Parks Authority.