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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2001 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:

Species	Red List	Season (year/s of estimate)	Size	IBA criteria
Barbary Partridge Alectoris barbara	LC	resident (1999)	present	A3
White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala	EN	winter (-)	12–600 birds	A1, A4i
Greylag Goose Anser anser	LC	winter (-)	300–25,000 birds	A4i
Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris	NT	breeding (-)	50–200 pairs	A1, A4i
Common Pochard Aythya ferina	VU	winter (-)	10,000–90,000 birds	A4i
Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca	NT	winter (1991)	20–90 birds	A1
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	LC	winter (-)	5,000–10,000 birds	A4i
Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope	LC	winter (-)	10,000–50,000 birds	A4i
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	LC	winter (-)	500–4,500 birds	A4i
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	LC	winter (-)	2,000–45,000 birds	A4i
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	NT	passage (-)	3,000–6,000 birds	A4i
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola	LC	breeding (-)	200–600 pairs	A4i
Eleonora's Falcon Falco eleonorae	LC	breeding (1999)	present	A3
Sardinian Warbler Curruca melanocephala	LC	resident (1999)	present	A3
Spotless Starling Sturnus unicolor	LC	resident (1999)	present	A3
Moussier's Redstart Phoenicurus moussieri	LC	resident (1999)	present	A3
Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica	LC	breeding (1999)	present	A3
Black Wheatear Oenanthe leucura	LC	resident (1999)	present	A3
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	winter (-)	100,000-499,999 birds	A4iii

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2001. The most recent assessment (2009) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Actual vs Reference (units)	% remaining	Result
Greylag Goose Anser anser	1,526 / 250 (birds)	100	good
Common Pochard Aythya ferina	12,875 / 10,000 (birds)	100	good
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	10,944 / 4,500 (birds)	100	good
Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope	21,223 / 3,000 (birds)	100	good
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	3,584 / 1,325 (birds)	100	good
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	64,311 / 20,000 (birds)	100	good
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	13 / 1,300 (birds)	1	very poor
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola	60 / 190 (pairs)	32	very poor
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	125,044 / 20,000 (birds)	100	good

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Natural system modifications	happe­ning now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Climate change and severe weather	likely in long term (>4 years)	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	low
Residential and commercial development	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	no or slight decline (<1% over 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Whole area (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A compre­hensive and appropriate management plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the populations of qualifying bird species	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented, but these are not compre­hensive and are limited by resources and capacity	high

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
1980	Ichkeul	UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve (UA)	92
1980	Ichkeul National Park	World Heritage Site (natural or mixed) (UA)	100

The Local Conservation Group(s) listed below are working to conserve this IBA.

Name	Year formed
AAO/ Tunisian Ornithology Group (GTO)	2000

For more information on BirdLife's work with Local Conservation Groups, please visit Spotlight on local empowerment.

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	major (>10)
Shrubland	major (>10)	Bushland & thicket - Mediterranean
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	minor (<10)

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	-
tourism/recreation	-
water management	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Ichkeul (Tunisia). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/ichkeul-iba-tunisia on 22/12/2024.