Chalki island and surrounding islets (1096)
Greece, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2000
National site name: Nisos Chalki kai nisides
Central coordinates: Latitude: 36.2333, Longitude: 27.6167
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 601
Area of KBA (km2): 352.23319
Protected area coverage (%): 99.93
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Chalki is a small rocky island with degraded vegetation, in a group of small islets. Alimnia is locally covered by Juniperus and Pinus scrub and also has an area of saltmarsh. Human activities include livestock farming, hunting, tourism, and arable agriculture.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard.
Additional biodiversity: This is an important site for species associated with coastal scrub and cliffs.
Delineation rationale: 2012-12-17 (BL Secretariat): site area updated from 3900 ha to 35223 ha after addition of seaward extension to the site in October 2012 for the Marine eAtlas.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (85%) | fisheries/aquaculture | not utilised (10%) | tourism/recreation (5%) | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 1 | |
| Marine Intertidal | 1 | |
| Grassland | 18 | |
| Shrubland | 66 | |
| Marine Neritic | 10 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The main threats are from very high hunting pressure and overgrazing. Hieraaetus fasciatus are shot and their nests are destroyed. Nestlings of Falco eleonorae are taken for food. More than 6,000 sheep and goats graze on Chalki.