• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Map
• Reference and further resources

Site description (1994 baseline)
Desert to the west of the Dead Sea, from 400 m below to 500 m above sea-level, extending c.45 km from En Gedi in the north to Mount Sedom in the south. Steep canyons run down to the Dead Sea and cliffs overlook the Rift Valley. There are several oases (e.g. En Gedi), some rocky, steppe and scrubby areas, and a little agriculture (mainly date-palm and Citrus plantations, and melons).

Key biodiversity
See box for key species. The area supports a wide range of species throughout the year. A major raptor and stork migration route passes along the 300-500-m-high cliffs of the Rift Valley, west of the Dead Sea. Large numbers of storks, Pernis apivorus and Accipiter brevipes pass through on migration. Other breeding species at En Gedi include Falco pelegrinoides, Halcyon smyrnensis, Merops orientalis, Ammomanes deserti, Hirundo obsoleta, Cercomela melanura, Oenanthe leucopyga, Nectarinia osea, Corvus ruficollis and C. rhipidurus.

Non-bird biodiversity: Mammals: Pipistrellus ariel (very rare), Vulpes cana (K), Canis lupus (V), Caracal caracal (rare), Panthera pardus (rare), Capra nubiana (I) and Gazella gazella (V). Reptiles: Atractaspis engaddensis (endemic). Flora: Lisaea strigosa.

Acknowledgements
Data-sheet compiled by S. Blitzblau, reviewed by R. Frumkin.

Attributes
Raptors MOU - IBA listed under Table 3 of the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Birds of Prey in Africa and Eurasia

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Judean desert (Israel). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/judean-desert-iba-israel on 23/12/2024.