Data Zone
Country/territory: Mali
IBA criteria met: A1, A4i, A4iii (2001)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 18,900 hectares (189.00 km2)
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2001 | not assessed | medium | not assessed |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2001 baseline)
Lac Horo is a semi-permanent wetland located 60 km south-west of the town of Goundam at the northern end of the Inner Delta of the Niger, some 20 km south-west of Lac Télé (site ML004), but not directly connected with it. Under natural conditions the lake retained flood water from the Niger throughout the dry season in years of good rainfall, but otherwise dried out completely by April. Now the lake is separated from the river by a dam and sluice gate through which the flow of water from the river is controlled. The sluice is opened in mid-November to allow flood water to fill the lake and closed again when the desired level is reached. The lake edges support beds of Typha sp. and Polygonum senegalensis and open water is colonized by Nymphaea sp. and Vossia cuspidata.
Key biodiversity
See Box for key species. In addition, two species of the Sahel biome (A03) have been recorded from this site (see Table 2). Total counts of waterfowl made in nine years during the period 1972–1987 varied between 25,419 (1983) and 127,823 (1985).
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lac Horo (Mali). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lac-horo-iba-mali on 23/12/2024.