ULAN BATOR, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- Approximately 80 percent of Mongolia's land is now blanketed in snow, the National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring reported on Monday.

"As of Jan. 31, about 80 percent of the country's total territory has been covered with snow of up to 60 cm thick," the weather monitoring agency said in a statement.

Mongolia is known for its harsh winters, which are largely influenced by the Siberian high-pressure system.

Last winter, the Asian country experienced one of its most extreme cold spells in decades, with the highest record snowfall since 1975. Around 90 percent of the territory was covered in snow up to 100 cm thick, triggering a severe dzud, a natural disaster unique to Mongolia, where extreme cold and heavy snow prevent livestock from accessing food, leading to mass animal fatalities.

The severe dzud last winter resulted in the loss of millions of livestock, dealing a heavy blow to the country's herders and rural economy.

Dzud, a Mongolian term, describes a catastrophic winter in which livestock perish due to frozen or snow-covered grazing lands, threatening the livelihoods of nomadic herders. Enditem

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