Yarmuk valley (8313)
Syria, Middle East

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Year of last assessment: 2016

National site name: Yarmuk valley

Central coordinates: Latitude: 32.7688, Longitude: 35.8303

Elevation (m): -90 to 370

Area of KBA (km²): 208.57366

KBA classification: Regional

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: The Yarmuk river runs along part of the Syria–Jordan frontier, at the southern end of the Golan Heights, and is joined by other streams in this region, e.g. near Heite by the Nahr al-Allan running from the north and by Wadi al-Thahab from the east. The watercourses lie in steep, narrow wadis cutting through a plateau with well-watered farmland (cereals), and though the sides of the valleys are barren the bottoms are full of lush vegetation including Phragmites reedbeds and oleander Nerium. The lower valleys are below sea-level. There are a few houses by the river below Heite. Lake Muzayrib (32°42'N 36°01'E, 2 ha) lies in a shallow depression on the plateau (Wadi al-Thahab), just west of Al-Muzayrib village and c.12 km north-west of Dar'a: a natural, spring-fed, mesotrophic lake of 2.5 m mean depth, with banks of grazed turf and at least one reedbed Phragmites. The lake is much used for irrigation, fishing, fish-farming and recreation (picnicing, etc.), and is surrounded by agriculture and many houses.

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard. KBA identified in the CEPF Ecosystem Profile of the Mediterranean Hotspot (2017). Taxonomy, nomenclature and global threat category follow the 2016 IUCN Red List.

Additional biodiversity: See box for key species. The avifauna resembles that of the Jordan Valley more than does that of any other region in Syria. Breeding species (presumed) include Halcyon smyrnensis, Anthus similis, Cercomela melanura, Acrocephalus melanopogon, A. stentoreus, A. arundinaceus, Cisticola juncidis and Nectarinia osea. Remiz pendulinus and Passer hispaniolensis have been recorded in winter. Non-bird biodiversity: Fish: Tilapia gallilae (endemic).

Habitats

IUCN Habitat	Coverage %	Habitat detail
Rocky Areas(e.g., inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	5
Grassland	5
Artificial - Terrestrial	85
Wetlands(Inland)	5

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: No conservation measures are known to have been taken. There is some bird shooting locally. There are plans for a large-scale, joint Jordanian-Syrian dam across the Yarmuk river (Wahda or Unity Dam), which would potentially be a critical threat. Fish (Cyprinus carpio and Tilapia) have been introduced into Lake Muzayrib, where intensification of fish production was cited as a problem or potential threat in the late 1960s. Lake Muzayrib was proposed as a Project Aqua conservation site by the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform in the late 1960s.

Threat level 1	Threat level 2	Threat level 3	Timing
Agriculture & aquaculture	Livestock farming & ranching	Small-holder grazing, ranching or farming	Only in the future
Human intrusions & disturbance	Work & other activities		Only in the future

Additional information

References: Kumerloeve (1972), Luther and Rzóska (1971), Macfarlane (1978), Pearce (1993).