• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Map
• Reference and further resources

Site description (1994 baseline)
Desert landscape of flint/chert plains (hammada) in the east, flattish to gently rolling country covered in black basalt boulders (harrat) in the west, interspersed with siltflats and many shallow wadis. Plant cover is generally sparse, mainly limited to the shallow wadis and dominated by woody perennial herbs such as Artemisia, Anabasis and Achillea. There are no trees or large bushes. Within the reserve there is a near-permanent, spring-fed freshwater pool (200 ha) at Ghadir Burqu which is a major source of water for the livestock of bedouin living in a wide surrounding area. The main land-use is nomadic pastoralism and cultivation is very limited. An ancient Nabataean/Roman castle, Qasr Burqu, lies at the edge of the harrat.

Key biodiversity
See box for key species. A relatively rich and intact desert bird community. Other proven or probable breeding species include Buteo rufinus, Aquila chrysaetos, Alectoris chukar, Cursorius cursor, Charadrius leschenaultii, Ramphocoris clotbey, Eremophila bilopha and Oenanthe lugens (a dark morph, endemic to the basalt desert of northern Arabia). Ghadir Burqu is an important water source for large numbers of raptors during autumn migration, e.g. Circus pygargus (daily max. 85, September), and a wide variety of waders and passerines are also attracted on migration and in winter. Up to 100 Grus grus overwinter around Ghadir Burqu.

Non-bird biodiversity: Mammals: Canis lupus (V), and possibly Caracal caracal (rare) and Gazella subgutturosa (rare).

Acknowledgements
Data-sheet compiled by Ian J. Andrews.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Burqu' (Jordan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/burqu-iba-jordan on 23/11/2024.