Southern Arava valley and Elat mountains, Israel

Site Details
Assessment Details

Site Overview


KBA status: confirmed

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.

Global KBA criteria: A1a, A1c, B1, D1a
Year of assessment: 1994
National site name: Southern Arava valley and Elat mountains
Central coordinates: Lat: 29.67 Long: 35.00
System: Terrestrial, Marine
Altitude (m): 0 to 600
Area of KBA (ha): 117,943
Protected area coverage (%): 51

Text account


Year of compilation: 1994
Site description:

The tourist resort of Elat lies in the Rift Valley at the head of the Gulf of Elat (Gulf of Aqaba) flanked by mountains, with the Moon Valley and the plateau of the Negev to the west and the Arava valley running off to the north-north-west. The site comprises the region of the Arava valley from Elat to the area of Yotvata c.40 km to the north, and includes the western (Israeli) half of the valley floor and the ridge of the 'Elat Mountains'. The climate is arid (less than 50 mm rainfall per year), and rocky areas and gravel plains may be almost without vegetation, but sandy areas, especially wadis, support large bushes and, after rain, grasses and annual herbs. Large wadis and their alluvial fans support open woodland of Acacia tortilis and A. raddiana, notably just south of Yotvata, and here a few presumably native Phoenix dactylifera also grow where water is close to the surface. There is a tiny relict group of Hyphaene thebaica at En Evrona. Other habitats include beaches, agricultural fields, saltpans, sewage ponds and Phragmites; a saltmarsh with large Suaeda bushes has now almost disappeared.

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA:

The Elat Mountains comprise an extensive Nature Reserve and further reserves exist in the valley south of Yotvata. In 1992 a 'Bird Park' plantation of native trees and shrubs was established at the site of a disused garbage tip 3 km north of Elat. The increase in the area's human population and its usage for recreation has made it more hazardous for some migrants. Considerable amounts of biocides used for agriculture may be a factor in the recent disappearance of some breeding species, e.g. Lanius excubitor. There is an outfall for semi-screened sewage on the Elat shore, which unless controlled (together with other runoff, etc.) may eventually affect the ecology of the Gulf through nutrient enrichment of seawater. Many Chlidonias leucopterus are killed by overhead cables, fast craft at sea can disturb loafing seabirds and ducks, and increasing numbers of all-terrain vehicles are penetrating many new areas inland and destroying the desert crust. Despite the efforts of the Nature Reserves Authority, the question of increased protection for established reserves needs to be addressed. Further tree-planting in the environs of Elat would be beneficial. There is a programme for the reintroduction of extinct fauna at Hai-Bar reserve: establishment of Equus hemionus has commenced, and Oryx leucoryx, Struthio camelus and, hopefully, Torgos tracheliotus will follow. The number of Ardea purpurea migrating through this site has dramatically declined over the last 25 years (hundreds passed through per season ten years ago, now only c.10 per season are recorded), indicating the site's value for monitoring bird populations.

Habitats


IUCN Habitat Coverage level Coverage % Habitat detail
14. Artificial - Terrestrial -
15. Artificial - Aquatic -
2. Savanna -
3. Shrubland -
6. Rocky Areas (e.g., inland cliffs, mountain peaks) -
8. Desert -

Recommended citation


Key Biodiversity Areas Partnership (2023) Key Biodiversity Areas factsheet: Southern Arava valley and Elat mountains. Extracted from the World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas. Developed by the Key Biodiversity Areas Partnership: BirdLife International, IUCN, American Bird Conservancy, Amphibian Survival Alliance, Conservation International, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, Global Environment Facility, Re:wild, NatureServe, Rainforest Trust, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, World Wildlife Fund and Wildlife Conservation Society. Downloaded from http://www.keybiodiversityareas.org/ on 22/03/2023.