Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
The site is a coastal cliff 12 km north of the estuary of the Oued Bouregreg, north-east of Salé. The cliffs, composed of Quaternary consolidated sandstone, vary between 20 and 60 m in height and have been sculpted into a series of bays 40–400 m wide and 25–100 m deep. The site stretches approximately 6.5 km from south-west to north-east, but is very narrow and only covers a total area of 300 ha. The vegetation inland consists of scattered bushes of
Lycium intricatum and
Solanum sodomeum.
See Box and Table 2 for key species. The site is important as the only mainland nesting colony of
Falco eleonorae—a species of the Mediterranean North Africa biome—in Morocco, and one of only three nesting colonies in the Atlantic. The birds nest on cliff-ledges and the majority of pairs occupy the higher cliffs in the southern 4 km of the site. In 1972, a total of 134 adults and juveniles was recorded: subsequent surveys have recorded fewer pairs, but these need to be treated with caution, as they have not systematically covered the whole site.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Although currently unprotected the site has been proposed as a priority 2 SIBE
(No. L19). It is directly threatened by many human activities, including growing urbanization of the cliffs’ hinterland, disturbance of nesting birds by fishermen and walkers, increasing hunting with shotguns and catapults, and the capture of young falcons and destruction of nests. Indirect threats include intensive dumping of household and building waste and the extension of agricultural activities, including cultivation and livestock- and poultry-rearing.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Falaise Sidi-Moussa (Morocco). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/falaise-sidi-moussa-iba-morocco on 23/12/2024.
