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The site was identified as important in 2007 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species'):

Species	Current IUCN Red List Category	Season	Year(s)	Population estimate at site	IBA criteria met
Yellow-eyed Pigeon Columba eversmanni	VU	breeding	2004	10-20 individuals	A3
Pallas's Sandgrouse Syrrhaptes paradoxus	LC	breeding	2004	50 individuals	A3
Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii	VU	breeding	2004	1 adults	A3
Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus	NT	non-breeding	2003	30 individuals	A1
Greater Sandplover Charadrius leschenaultii	LC	breeding	2004	unknown	A3
Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus	NT	breeding	2004	3-10 breeding pairs	A1
European Roller Coracias garrulus	LC	breeding	2004	100 individuals	A1
White-winged Woodpecker Dendrocopos leucopterus	LC	resident	2004	unknown	A3
Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni	LC	breeding	2004	5-50 individuals	A1
Saker Falcon Falco cherrug	EN	breeding	2004	3-10 breeding pairs	A1
Great Tit Parus major	LC	resident	2004	unknown	A3
Sykes's Warbler Iduna rama	LC	breeding	2004	unknown	A3
Asian Desert Warbler Curruca nana	LC	breeding	2004	unknown	A3
Saxaul Sparrow Passer ammodendri	LC	resident	2004	unknown	A3
Desert Finch Rhodospiza obsoleta	LC	breeding	2004	unknown	A3
Red-headed Bunting Emberiza bruniceps	LC	breeding	2004	unknown	A3

The current IUCN Red List category may differ from that which was valid at the time of IBA criteria assessment (2007).

State (condition of the trigger species' habitats)
Habitat	Habitat detail	Reference area (ha)	Actual area (ha)	Habitat quantity (% remaining)	Habitat quality (carrying capacity)	Result
Desert	Desert & semi-desert - clay	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Desert	Desert & semi-desert - sandy	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Forest	Wooded desert & semi-desert	0	0	moderate (70-90%)	good (> 90%)	near favourable
Grassland	Steppes & dry calcareous	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	Inland cliffs	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	Scree, boulders & bare rocky areas	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Shrubland	Low bushes	0	0	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Wetlands (inland)	Rivers & streams	0	0	moderate (70-90%)	moderate (70-90%)	unfavourable
Wetlands (inland)	Standing fresh water	0	0	moderate (70-90%)	moderate (70-90%)	unfavourable
Wetlands (inland)	Water-fringe vegetation	0	0	moderate (70-90%)	moderate (70-90%)	unfavourable

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat level 1	Threat level 2	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Agricultural expansion and intensification	livestock farming and ranching (includes forest grazing) - small-holder grazing, ranching or farming	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Biological resource use	fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Biological resource use	fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Biological resource use	hunting & collecting terrestrial animals - intentional use (species being assessed is the target)	happening now	small area/few individuals (<10%)	no or imperceptible deterioration	low
Climate change and severe weather	drought	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	recreational activities	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	no or imperceptible deterioration	low
Natural system modifications	fire & fire suppression - increase in fire frequency/intensity	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Residential and commercial development	tourism and recreation areas	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Transportation and service corridors	roads and railroads	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected-area designation	Management planning	Other conservation action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A management plan exists but it is out of date or not comprehensive	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented but these are not comprehensive and are limited by resources and capacity	medium

For more information about IBA conservation status, please click here

Protected area (PA)	PA designation	PA area (ha)	Relationship of PA with IBA	Overlap of PA with IBA (ha)
Verkhnekoksyiskiy	Zakaznik	240,000	protected area overlaps with site	0
Altun Emel	National Nature Park	459,657	protected area contained by site	197,600

Habitat (IUCN level 1)	Habitat detail	Extent (% of site)
Forest	Wooded desert & semi-desert	-
Shrubland	Low bushes	-
Grassland	Steppes & dry calcareous	-
Desert	Desert & semi-desert - clay, Desert & semi-desert - sandy	-
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	Inland cliffs, Scree, boulders & bare rocky areas	-
Wetlands (inland)	Rivers & streams, Standing fresh water, Water-fringe vegetation	-

For more information about the IUCN Habitat classification, please click here.

Land-use	Extent (% of site)
rangeland/pastureland	-
nature conservation and research	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2023) Important Bird Area factsheet: Altyn-Emel National Park. Downloaded from http://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/altyn-emel-national-park-iba-kazakhstan on 28/11/2023.