Arboroba escarpment (6228)
Eritrea, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2011
National site name: Arboroba escarpment
Central coordinates: Latitude: 15.3300, Longitude: 39.0480
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 1800 to 2100
Area of KBA (km2): 3.02153
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: This is another area of the plateau escarpment east of Asmara, c.9 km south-east of ER007. It lies at a slightly lower altitude on the same escarpment slope, in the region of Nefasit. It is not possible to determine site boundaries, but records from the area (including those from Nefasit, Faghena and Arboroba escarpment) indicate that it qualifies as an IBA. The coordinates used for location of the site are those supplied by D. Zinner for ‘Arboroba escarpment’. Further survey work will be needed to define the exact location and boundaries of a site. The habitat is Olea africana-dominated evergreen woodland and upland scrub (Olea, Euphorbia, Dodonaea, Opuntia, Rosa and occasional Acacia spp.). Just to the east of the suggested area for an IBA lies Mount Bizen, which rises from the escarpment to 2,463 m.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas) KBA identified in the process of compiling the CEPF Ecosystem Profile of the East Afromontane Hotspot. Species taxonomy and threat category was based on IUCN Red List 2010-4.
Additional biodiversity: See Box and Table 2 for key species. Most of the records for this site are relatively recent (from D. Zinner in the late 1990s, which contrasts with many other sites for which most information dates from the middle of the twentieth century). The site has records for four species of the Somali–Masai biome, including Cisticola bodessa (see Table 2). Non-bird biodiversity: Baboons Papio hamadryas (LR/nt) are common along the road between Massawa and Asmara, with particularly high densities found in the area in 1997/98 (Zinner et al. 1999).
Delineation rationale: 2011-12-06 (BL Secretariat): boundary created and site extent defined as 300 ha, based on GIS polygon (rounded to nearest 10%), as part of CEPF East Afromontane Ecosystem Profiling process.
Habitats
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Shrubland | 4 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 57 | |
| Grassland | 37 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: It is possible that this site will be included as part of a new National Park in the Semenawi Bahri area (see ER003), as proposed in the National Environmental Management Plan for Eritrea: Mount Bizen is also proposed as a National Park (EAE 1995, DOE 1999).
Additional information
References: Butynski (1995), DOE (1999), EAE (1995), Zinner (in press), Zinner et al. (1999).