Current view: Text account
Site description (1994 baseline):
Site location and context
An isolated mountain (up to 1,105 m) lying c.70 km north-west of Tadmur (Palmyra). The landscape is eroded and the scant vegetation includes scattered trees/bushes of
Pistacia,
Prunus and
Rhamnus, and shrubs of
Artemisia,
Atriplex,
Salsola and
Anabasis. There is some unspecified waterfowl habitat, presumably caused by winter flooding of depressions.
See box for key species. Other breeding species include
Buteo rufinus and
Pterocles alchata, and wintering waterfowl include c.500
Anser albifrons and c.400 ducks.
Non-bird biodiversity: Mammals: Canis lupus (V) and Gazella subgutturosa (rare). Flora: many endemics are confined to the isolated mountains in the Syrian Desert.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Known threats comprise hunting, fuelwood gathering, grazing and excessive erosion by wind and water. An Enclosed Rangeland Reserve of 40,000 ha has been proposed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, and c.20,000 ha may already be a State Forest Protection Zone.
Data-sheets compiled by: Dr Ibrahim Hanna and Dr Amer Majid Agha (translated by S. Zaiane); Dr Marco Masseti.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Jabal al-Bilas (Syria). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/jabal-al-bilas-iba-syria on 23/11/2024.
