Key Biodiversity Areas

Plains near Ghorveh (8112)
Iran, Islamic Republic of, Middle East

Site overview


KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 1994
National site name: Plains near Ghorveh
Central coordinates: Latitude: 35.0833, Longitude: 47.9000
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 1820 to 1820
Area of KBA (km2): 54.27041
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes

Site details


Site description: Gently rolling plains at 1,820 m, c.15 km south-east of the town of Ghorveh and south of the Ghorveh-Hamadan road. The area is entirely agricultural (cereals or fallow), except in the north-east where there is a small seasonal marsh. The site is sparsely populated, with only a few small villages. Land ownership is public.
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 for key species. Otis tarda was a summer visitor to the area in the 1970s, with birds present April-November. As many as 25 birds have been recorded, and c.10 females were thought to nest. Other breeding species include Falco tinnunculus, Coracias garrulus, Athene noctua and Corvus corax. Winter visitors and/or passage migrants include Circus aeruginosus, Falco peregrinus, F. pelegrinoides, Rallus aquaticus and Corvus frugilegus. Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.

Habitats


Land use: agriculture
IUCN HabitatCoverage %Habitat detail
Artificial - Terrestrial95
Wetlands(Inland)5

Threats


Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: No threats are known and no conservation measures are known to have been proposed.

Additional information


References: Adhami (1972a), Eftekhar (1972a), Fotoohi and Mansoori (1974), Kahrom (1975), Scott (1971a).