Data Zone
Country/territory: Saudi Arabia
IBA criteria met: B1i, B2 (1994)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 150 ha
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2013 | not assessed | low | negligible |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (1994 baseline)
Sewage settling lagoons within the airbase which support large reedbeds Phragmites, though these are subject to cutting and burning. The lagoons are bordered partly by sand and scrub desert, partly by areas with irrigated trees (mainly Eucalyptus), shrubs and grass. About 10 km from the base and c.5 km from Military City is a reservoir of c.100 ha in an area of desert bordered by military training grounds. The Tabuk area, surrounded on three sides by mountains, was formerly desert but is now intensively cultivated.
Key biodiversity
See box for key species. Breeding birds of the sewage lagoons include Ixobrychus minutus (possible), Rallus aquaticus, Porzana parva, P. pusilla (possible), Charadrius dubius, Acrocephalus stentoreus and Rhodopechys obsoleta (10-15 pairs). The importance of the reservoir is not yet known as it has been visited only twice, in March and April 1990, when birds present included grebes, c.1,000 ducks, c.700 Fulica atra, waders and c.400 Chlidonias leucopterus.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Acknowledgements
Data-sheet compiled by A. Stagg.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: King Faisal Airbase, Tabuk (Saudi Arabia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/king-faisal-airbase-tabuk-iba-saudi-arabia on 22/11/2024.