El Ghallâouîya (6627)
Mauritania, Africa

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Year of last assessment: 2001

National site name: El Ghallâouîya

Central coordinates: Latitude: 21.5833, Longitude: -10.5833

System: terrestrial

Elevation (m): 330 to 330

Area of KBA (km²): 351.70653

KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: El Ghallâouîya is situated 75 km north-east of Guelb el Richât in the Adrar region. A winding escarpment links it to the Guelb and, further south, to the Adrar plateau. It is a permanent water-source exploited by nomadic herders. Deep ravines intersect the cliffs and there are many ledges and crevices in the rock-face. The plains are dominated by ergs and isolated dunes, punctuated by wells and sebkhas. The vegetation of the area includes Hyoscyamus muticus, Tamarix sp., Acacia raddiana, Capparis decidua, Leptadenia pyrotechnica, Maerua crassifolia, Salvadora persica, Balanites aegyptiaca, Panicum turgidum and Stipagrostis pungens.

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. Three species of the Sahel biome has also been recorded; see Table 2. Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.

Delineation rationale: 2014-03-11 (BL Secretariat): a site area of 35171 ha was calculated by GIS from the site polygon, then rounded to the nearest 10% (35000 ha).

Habitats

Land use: agriculture

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: No information, but lying a mere 75 km from Mauritania’s most important tourist area, human pressure on the area may increase in the future.

Additional information