DZ003
Lac Melah


IBA Justification

The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2001 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:
Species Red List Season (year[s] of estimate) Size IBA criteria
A4iii Species group - waterbirds n/a non-breeding (-) min 20,000 birds A4iii

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (2001) may differ.


IBA Conservation

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2001. The most recent assessment (2001) is shown below.

IBA conservation assessment
Year of assessment State Pressure Response
2001 very poor high high
Whole site assessed? State assessed by Accuracy of information
yes population medium

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species Actual vs Reference (units) % remaining Result
Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca 13 / 1,500 (birds) 1 very poor
A4iii Species group - waterbirds 1,300 / 50,800 (birds) 3 very poor

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat Timing Scope Severity Result
Transportation and service corridors happe­ning now whole of popul­ation/area (>90%) slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations) high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes happe­ning now most of popul­ation/area (50–90%) slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations) high

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation Planning Action Result
Whole area (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation A compre­hensive and appropriate management plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the populations of qualifying bird species Substantive conservation measures are being implemented, but these are not compre­hensive and are limited by resources and capacity high

IBA Protection

Year Protected Area Designation (category) % coverage of IBA
1983 Parc National d'El-Kala Parc National (II) 100
1990 El Kala UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve (UA) 100

Land use

Land use % of IBA
fisheries/aquaculture -
nature conservation and research -
tourism/recreation -
water management -


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lac Melah (Algeria). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lac-melah-iba-algeria on 03/12/2024.