Data Zone
Country/territory: Tunisia
IBA criteria met: A1, A4i (2001)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 100 ha
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2009 | favourable | medium | medium |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2001 baseline)
Douz Laala is a small thickly vegetated depression, immediately to the south of Snam (site TN041), surrounded by oases and agricultural fields and bounded to the west by fixed sand-dunes. The water is fresh to brackish, and derives from drainage from the surrounding oasis and from winter rainfall, varying in depth, from c.1 m in winter to less than 30 cm in summer. The dominant plants are Phragmites communis, Tamarix africana and Juncus species.
Key biodiversity
See Box for key species. See under Ghidma (site TN042) for the ornithological importance of the small oasis wetlands near Douz. This site, with its thick vegetation, holds many of the species typical of the Douz oases. Waterbirds recorded include Tachybaptus ruficollis, Egretta garzetta, Tadorna tadorna, Aythya nyroca, Fulica atra, Porphyrio porphyrio, Himantopus himantopus and Charadrius alexandrinus. Between 5–10 pairs of Aythya nyroca were recorded breeding here in 1996. Many passerines, such as Locustella luscinioides and Acrocephalus scirpaceus, occur on spring migration and may stay to breed. In addition, six species of the Sahara–Sindian biome have been recorded at this site (see Table 2).
Non-bird biodiversity: Both Gazella dorcas (VU) and G. leptoceros (EN) have been recorded.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Douz Laâla (Tunisia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/douz-laâla-iba-tunisia on 22/11/2024.