ET071
Mille-Sardo Wildlife Reserve North


Country/territory: Ethiopia

IBA criteria met: A1, A4 (2023)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here

Area: 104,513 ha

Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History Society
IBA conservation status
Year of assessment (most recent) State (condition) Pressure (threat) Response (action)
2022 favourable high low
For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here


Site summary
The Mille-Serdo Wildlife Reserve is a protected area in Afar Region of Ethiopia. It is in Mille Woreda of the Afar regional state about 525 km from Addia Ababa. Mille Woreda is bordered on the south by the Administrative Zone 3, on the southwest by Administrative Zone 5, on the west by the Amhara Region, on the northwest by Chifra, on the northeast by Dubti, and on the east by the Oromia Region. The geographical coordinates of Mille-Serdo wildlife reserve are 11°43'13"N 41°4'49"E. It is located in the Afar Depression, a desert region lying between the red sea and Ethiopian Highlands. This area was selected based on the UNESCO mission wildlife survey conducted in 1963 which identified the potential sites for African wild ass conservation. The reserve protects a portion of the Awash River and the surrounding desert. It was established in 1969 primarily for the conservation the critically endangered Somali wild ass (Equus africanus somaliensis) and hence, Mille-Serdo Ass Reserve. It was designated as wildlife reserve at National level in 1973 which covers an area of 6503 km2. Mile-Serdo Wildlife Reserve is part of a critical wintering ground for the Egyptian vulture in Ethiopia. Up to 2000 Egyptian Vultures congregate in the area around Mile-Logya-Semera, where they roost on transmission lines and feed on rubbish dumps and feral livestock carcasses.

Acknowledgements
European Union Life Project, EWNHS, BirdLife Africa, BSPB, RSPB


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Mille-Sardo Wildlife Reserve North (Ethiopia). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/mille-sardo-wildlife-reserve-north-iba-ethiopia on 23/11/2024.