Current view: Text account
Site description (1994 baseline):
Site location and context
Plains of former steppeland, e.g. between Jiza and Hisban and between Rabba and Shihan, now almost wholly converted to dry cultivation of cereals. There is also some irrigated agriculture.
See box for key species. The area has been little investigated ornithologically. Winter visitors include
Eudromias morinellus (formerly very common, now possibly much reduced).
Non-bird biodiversity: Flora: Colchicum tunicatum (endemic), Romulea bulbocodium (rare), Globularia arabica (rare).
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Expansion and intensification of agriculture, and over-extraction of groundwater for irrigation, are all critical problems. The very heavy level of grazing and built development are major problems, as is abandonment of traditional management locally. The site is not well characterized at the moment, and is very little known ornithologically. The lack of surveys to identify the extent of remaining semi-natural grassland, and the composition of the bird community, hinder evaluation of conservation priorities in Jordan.
Data-sheet compiled by Ali Sutari (per Adnan Budieri).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Madaba - Hisban (Jordan). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/madaba--hisban-iba-jordan on 23/11/2024.
