Kani Barazan Wetland that is locally called Talawi Kani Bahrazan Mahabad, is an international wetland. It spreads over an area bigger than nine hundred hectares and is located thirty kilometers north of Mahabad in West Azerbaijan Province, close to Bafravan, three kilometers north of Qaradagh, and two and a half kilometers from Khvor Khvoreh village. It is the first birdwatching site of Iran, which feeds from Mahabad River as well as Qaradagh Hot Spring. The wetland itself eventually flows into the Lake Urmia.
A part of Kani Barazan Wetland is located on the foothills of Qare Kuh, in front of Tapeh Baba Heidar. With its reed beds and unique geological characteristics, this wetland is the home of the largest group of migratory water birds. There are almost seventy-five breeds of water bird found there. Some of them are White-headed duck, Marbled duck, Pelican, Swan, Flamingo, Crane, Greater spotted eagle, Bittern, goose and etc. Large and sturdy Water buffalos swim in the more shallow parts of the river.
Jackals are one of the animals that inhabit Kani Barazan Wetland. It is said that this area is the largest nesting ground of White-headed duck in the world. It should not be left out that Kani Barazan Wetland is also known as Ghupi Baba Ali, Hasan Khan, Garous, Dashkhaneh, Qare Qeshlaq. About vegetation of this wetland, it can be mentioned that forty-five breeds of plants have been identified. Among them Common reed, Creeping bentgrass, Sedges and Tamarisk are most known. All of these specifications have turned Kani Barazan Wetland a popular tourism, ecotourism, birdwatching and educational destination of West Azerbaijan.
It is good to mention the story of Amir Arsalan Peiruti from Gabazleh village that shows the concern of Iranian people about their environment. He tried to rescue a pelican that was stuck in a plastic bag on top of a utility pole, where these birds mostly build their nests. He could not wait for the firefighters, as it would have taken a long time for them to arrive. He successfully set the bird free. However, the wing of the bird got caught in the cable. He sadly lost his life, along with the pelican, as a result of strong electric shock.