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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
Common Shelduck Tadorna tadorna	LC	winter (-)	4,700 birds	A4i
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea	LC	winter (-)	250 birds	A4i
Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris	NT	winter (-)	30 birds	A1, A4i
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	LC	winter (-)	10,960 birds	A4i
Gadwall Mareca strepera	LC	winter (-)	1,350 birds	A4i
Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope	LC	winter (-)	26,000 birds	A4i
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	LC	winter (-)	1,080 birds	A4i
Red-knobbed Coot Fulica cristata	LC	winter (-)	67 birds	A4i
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	LC	winter (-)	45,460 birds	A4i
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta	LC	winter (-)	6,945 birds	A4i
Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola	VU	winter (-)	5,260 birds	A4i
Slender-billed Curlew Numenius tenuirostris	CR	winter (2000)	present	A1
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	winter (-)	100,000-499,999 birds	A4iii

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.

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Natural system modifications	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Pollution	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Biological resource use	happe­ning now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Not assessed	Not assessed	Not assessed	not assessed

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
1980	Merja Zerga	Nature Reserve (IV)	100

Land use	% of IBA
agriculture	-
fisheries/aquaculture	-
hunting	-
nature conservation and research	-
tourism/recreation	-
urban/industrial/transport	-
other	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Merja Zerga (Morocco). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/merja-zerga-iba-morocco on 23/12/2024.