Baquba wetlands (8031)
Iraq, Middle East
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1d
Year of last assessment: 1994
National site name: Baquba wetlands
Central coordinates: Latitude: 33.9167, Longitude: 44.8333
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 40 to 45
Area of KBA (km2): 290.56805
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: A group of marshes in the Diyala valley between Baquba and Shahraban, c.75 km north-east of Baghdad. These include Haur Abu Abbas (33°50'N 44°45'E, a shallow freshwater lake, c.500-1,000 ha), Haur Shaikh Sayed (33°51'N 44°46'E, by 1972 a lake of only 10 ha, almost drained), Haur Al Ahmar (34°00'N 44°55'E, freshwater, c.600 ha), Haur Al Habara, Haur Abdul Warid, Haur Al Ugur (34°00'N 44°55'E) and a rain-flooded area near Shahraban (Al Miqdadiyah). At Haur Al Ahmar the flat shore is covered with dense reedbeds, and mudflats are exposed at low water; the area surrounding the southern shore area is fertile cultivation, with cotton, corn, date-palm groves and orchards, and the lake serves for irrigation of these.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs.
Additional biodiversity: The site is important for wintering waterbirds, e.g. 39,900 wildfowl were present in January 1968. Other wintering species include Circus aeruginosus (17), Remiz pendulinus (4, Haur Al Ahmar) and Corvus frugilegus (5,000, Haur Al Ahmar); Anthus spinoletta is common. There is little information from other times of year, but Coracias garrulus has bred. The entire area was listed as a wetland of international importance by Carp (1980). Non-bird biodiversity: No information available to BirdLife International.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture | hunting
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Forest | 50 | |
| Grassland | 50 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: No conservation measures are known to have been taken. Hunting occurs, and commercial duck-netting is frequent. Haur Shaikh Sayed had been subject to drainage in 1972. There is no information on the (likely) current status of this site. No conservation measures are known to have been proposed.
Additional information
References: Ctyroký (1987), Georg and Vielliard (1970), Koning and Dijksen (1973), Marchant and Macnab (1962).