Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
The site lies in the centre of northern Somalia, extending eastwards along the coast from the village of Maydh and inland towards the town of Ceerigaabo (Erigavo) on top of the scarp of the limestone mountains that rise steeply from the coastal plain. The site is situated close to Mount Surad Cad, at 2,408 m the highest point in Somalia, while Jasiira Maydh (site SO002) lies offshore from the site’s northern boundary. The core area consists of a Forest Reserve on the rocky scarp, supporting evergreen forest which consists principally of
Juniperus procera,
Olea chrysophylla,
Dodonaea viscosa,
Cadia purpurea and
Sideroxylon buxifolium. Much of the forest is degraded, although in places there is a dense understorey of shrubby species, particularly
Salvia. Included also are the proposed extensions to the reserve which cover a further 80,000 ha of semi-desert grassland and shrubland, 80,000 ha of
Buxus hildebrandtii evergreen and semi-evergreen bushland and thicket, 8,000 ha of Afromontane vegetation and 3,000 ha of mangrove. The coastal section consists of sandy plains with a sparse cover of the grasses
Eragrostis hararensis,
Panicum turgidum and
Asthenatherum glaucum. Inland,
Acacia–
Commiphora bushland and thicket gives way to the juniper forest and Afromontane vegetation at higher altitudes. Average annual rainfall at the top of the scarp is c.650 mm.
See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. The site is a stronghold for
Carduelis johannis which has been reported as being not uncommon in cleared areas within and around the forest, although it is not thought to be dependent on the forest itself.
Rhynchostruthus socotranus occurs at this site.
Non-bird biodiversity: The mammal Gazella dorcas pelzelni (VU), confined to Somalia and Djibouti, occurs in the proposed northern coastal extension of the Forest Reserve, while Equus africanus somalicus (CR) and Dorcatragus megalotis (VU) are recorded from the proposed eastward extension.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The larger area has been proposed as a National Park. The core Forest Reserve has received little effective protection and the remaining area of forest habitat is seriously degraded. Causes of the degradation include illegal tree-felling for timber, bush fires and cattle-grazing. In 1986 there were reports of plans to exploit timber from the forest for furniture-making and to replant the area with a quick-growing exotic species. In spite of its condition it is, however, considered to be one of the last reasonably intact patches of forest of its type in the country.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Daalo (Somalia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/daalo-iba-somalia on 23/12/2024.
