• Summary
• Text account
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• Reference and further resources

Site description (2001 baseline)
Situated in a fossil valley dating from the last ice-age or earlier, Dan Doutchi was, prior to July 1974, a small, temporary wetland surrounded by millet and sorghum fields. When, however, the 1973–1974 drought broke with torrential rains, this wide, shallow part of the valley filled to form a permanent wetland. The wetland, located some 80 km north-west of Birni N’Konni, extends from the village of Tawèy to that of Dan Doutchi, 6 km to the west and, at its maximum, occupies approximately 1,780 ha with an average depth of 1.8 m. Average annual rainfall in the Dan Doutchi area for the period 1961–1990 was 420 mm, but yearly variation is considerable. During the waterbird censuses in January–February, the area of the run-off dependent wetland accordingly varied from 450 to 1,500 ha. The water of the wetland is somewhat brackish and alkaline, with average levels of nitrogen and low levels of phosphorus in the fairly sandy sediment. Aquatic vegetation is absent. Woody species along the edges of the wetland include Acacia nilotica and the exotic Eucalyptus camaldulensis.

Key biodiversity
See Box for key species. A total of 55 species of waterbird were recorded at Dan Doutchi during counts in January 1992–1998. Numbers of birds are largest, according to local farmers, in April–May. In addition to those listed below, other significant counts include 376 Tringa erythropus in January 1992 and 1,500 Ciconia ciconia and 509 Alopochen aegyptiacus in January 1993. Also notable were the 10, 1,411 and 450 Chelictinia riocourii observed at a roost in 1993–1995, respectively. One or two Circus macrourus were present each year and a single Falco naumanni was seen in January 1995. The largest number of waterbirds counted was 4,497, in January 1993.

Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Dan Doutchi wetland (Niger). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/dan-doutchi-wetland-iba-niger on 23/12/2024.