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

Site description (1994 baseline)
The site comprises the Kuh-i Bazman massif, a very isolated, volcanic peak (3,489 m) between the great Dasht-i Lut desert to the north and the Hamoun-i Jaz Murian basin to the south. The mountain, situated c.180 km south-south-west of Zahedan, rises as an almost perfect volcanic cone from a vast desertic plain. The sandy desert, stony outwash plains and rocky slopes from the base of the mountain at c.600 m up to c.1,500 m support a sparse shrub-steppic vegetation of Haloxylon, Zygophyllum and Artemisia with scattered bushes of Prosopis, Ziziphus, Tamarix, Euphorbia and Nerium, especially in the gullies. From 1,500 to c.2,700 m, the dominant cover is Artemisia steppe with some Zygophyllum and scattered Pistacia and Amygdalus shrubs. Small patches of Pistacia-Amygdalus woodland are present in some of the higher gullies, but above c.2,700 m the rocky scree is almost bare. The area is very remote and sparsely populated, but small springs at the base of the mountain support orchards, date gardens and patches of wheat and livestock are grazed on the lower slopes.

Key biodiversity
See box for key species. The area supports a breeding avifauna typical of the arid mountain ranges of south-east Iran, with a strong Indo-Malayan influence. Alectoris chukar occurs at unusually high densities. Other notable breeding species are Pterocles coronatus, Athene brama, Hirundo obsoleta, Turdoides caudatus, Lanius vittatus, Petronia xanthocollis and Emberiza buchanani. At least 61 species have been recorded in the area.

Non-bird biodiversity: Mammals: Canis lupus (V), Caracal caracal (rare), Panthera pardus (rare), Gazella dorcas fuscifrons (V), Capra hircus aegagrus (rare) and Ovis ammon (rare). The rare Baluchistan race of Selenarctos thibetanus (V) is believed to have occurred at least until the late 1970s.

Acknowledgements
Data-sheet compiled by Dr D. A. Scott, reviewed by Dept of Environment.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Kuh-i Bazman (Iran, Islamic Republic of). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/kuh-i-bazman-iba-iran-islamic-republic-of on 23/12/2024.