KZ017
Basgurly-Zhazgurly Depression


Country/territory: Kazakhstan

IBA criteria met: A1 (2006)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here

Area: 42,420 hectares (424.20 km2)

Association for the Conservation of Biodiversity in Kazakhstan
IBA conservation status
Year of assessment (most recent) State (condition) Pressure (threat) Response (action)
2014 good very high low
For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here


Site description (2006 baseline)
The IBA lies in a deep depression in the limestone-gypsum desert plateau of the Mangyshlak peninsula 50 km to the east of Kendyrli Bay in the Caspian Sea and 65 km south-south-east of Zhanaozen city (Karakiyanskiy district). It consits of clay and sandy-clay northern desert with fragments of southern desert. The vegetation on the plains is mainly Artemisia-Salsola associations. The site comprises two parts – Basgurly (about 13 x 4 km) and Zhazgurly (about 16 x 6 km), it is edged with steep cliffs (“chinks”) of limestone and chalk. The total length of the depression is about 25 km, the width up to 14 km. There are several wells in the area.

Key biodiversity
The site supports a typical set of desert species and a high density of breeding birds of prey.


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Basgurly-Zhazgurly Depression (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/basgurly-zhazgurly-depression-iba-kazakhstan on 25/12/2024.