Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
The site is a reservoir created in 1967 by the completion of the Mohamed V dam on the Oued Moulouya in the north-east of the country. Up to 60 m deep, the reservoir is one of the largest freshwater wetlands in Morocco. The site boundaries include the lake and the surrounding hills, which rise to 385 m above sea-level from a water-level at 195 m. Average annual precipitation is 400 mm. The terrestrial vegetation includes steppes of
Artemisia inculta and wooded stands of
Tamarix,
Salix and
Eucalyptus.
See Box for key species. The reservoir is often host to nearly 100
Marmaronetta angustirostris and the species appears to both breed and overwinter. Another waterfowl species,
Tadorna ferruginea, also breeds (197 adults and young seen on 21 July 1996). A total of almost 50 species are known to breed, many of them waterfowl, 40 overwinter and around 20 have been recorded on passage, including
Falco naumanni and
Aythya nyroca. Up to 438
Phoenicopterus ruber, 480
Grus grus and 893
Aythya ferina have been seen. In addition, five species of the Mediterranean North Africa biome occur (see Table 2).
Non-bird biodiversity: The endemic fish Alosa alosa (DD) may occur.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The principal human activities are agriculture, extensive livestock-grazing and fishing. The dam is suffering from siltation, exacerbated by overgrazing and poor agricultural practices in its catchment area, with an estimated one million cubic metres of sediment accruing annually. Pollution by agricultural chemicals, human disturbance of nesting waterfowl, illegal hunting and overgrazing are all threats. The site is currently unprotected, but merits priority protection and listing as a Ramsar Site. It has been classed as a priority 1 SIBE (No. H2).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Barrage Mohamed V (Morocco). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/barrage-mohamed-v-iba-morocco on 23/12/2024.
