Chegga (6624)
Mauritania, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2001
National site name: Chegga
Central coordinates: Latitude: 25.3667, Longitude: -5.6667
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 350 to 350
Area of KBA (km2): 251.41182
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Chegga is an ancient fort and water-source in the north-east of Mauritania, close to the international border with Algeria, on an escarpment known as El Hank. The limestone and chalk cliffs rise 100 m above the surrounding plains. It contains numerous water springs along the rock-face, and in among the rockfalls and slips are gueltas. The vegetation typical of the area includes: Phoenix dactylifera, Adiantum capillus veneris, Hyoscyamus muticus, Tamarix sp., Acacia raddiana, Rhus tripantitus, Capparis decidua, Leptadenia pyrotechnica, Maerua crassifolia, Salvadora persica, Balanites aegyptiaca and Panicum turgidum.
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)
Additional biodiversity: See Box and Table 2 for key species. In addition, one species of the Sahel biome has been recorded from this site; see Table 2. Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Delineation rationale: 2014-03-11 (BL Secretariat): a site area of 25141 ha was calculated by GIS from the site polygon, then rounded to the nearest 10% (25000 ha).
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: No information. The site is in a very remote and sparsely populated area.
Additional information
References: Lamarche (1988).