The national natural parks according to the Federal law "About Especially Protected Natural Territories" are the nature protection, research and ecological and educational institutions aiming at preservation and studying of the natural course of natural processes and the phenomena, genetic fund of a plant and animal life, separate types and communities of plants and animal, typical and unique ecological systems. Reserves are one of types of the especially protected natural territories (EPNT).
As of the end of 2013 in the territory of Russia 103 national natural parks which total area of the territory makes 27,38 million hectares worked (without water areas).
In 2014 the national natural park "Shaytan-Tau" is founded.
As a result of integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation the number of reserves has increased on 6, thus for the end of 2014 in Russia of 109 reserves.
The first reserve in the territory of Russia — Barguzin Reserve — has been founded on January 11, 1916 in the territory of Buryatia. Further the list of the protected territories has extended. The oldest reserves, besides Barguzin, are Astrakhan (1919), Ilmen (1920) and Caucasian (1924).
The largest of the Russian reserves are Big Arctic (more than 41 thousand km ²), Komandorsky (more than 36 thousand km ²) and Wrangel Island (more than 22 thousand km ²). The smallest reserves in Russia are Belogorie (more than 21 km ²) and Prioksko-Terrasny and Galichya Gore (both less than 50 km ²). Most of all reserves (by quantity) are in the territory of the Krasnoyarsk, Seaside and Khabarovsk regions.
The majority of reserves are under supervision of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Russian Federation, however some treat maintaining the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) and other ministries: Far East sea (Institute of biology of the sea the FEB RAS), Cedar Pad and Ussuriysk (Biologo-pochvenny FEB RAS institute), Ilmen (OURO RAHN), Galichya Gore (Voronezh State University of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation) and East Ural (ON "Beacon" of the Federal agency on atomic energy).