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The site was identified as important in 1994 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 List1	Season	Year(s)	Size	IBA criteria
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea	LC	passage	1993	400 individuals	B1i
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea	LC	winter	1993	300 individuals	B1i
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	LC	winter	1975-1977	6,000-8,000 individuals	A4i
Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii	VU	resident	1993	present	B2
Black-winged Pratincole Glareola nordmanni	NT	breeding	1975	present	B2
Pallid Scops-owl Otus brucei	LC	breeding	1993	present	B3
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	winter	1970-1993	min 20,000 individuals	A4iii

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (1994) may differ.

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 1994. The most recent assessment (2018) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Reference	Actual	Units	% remaining	Result
White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala	100	80	individuals	80	near favourable
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	60,000	29,000	individuals	49	unfavourable

State (condition of the trigger species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Wetlands (inland)	-	good (> 90%)	near favourable

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Pollution	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	very high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	very high

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other action	Result
Whole area of site (>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

Year	Protected Area	Designation	% overlap with IBA
1972	Sabkhat al Jabboul	Protected Area	-
1998	Sabkhat al-Jabbul Nature Reserve	Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance	67

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Wetlands (inland)	Permanent inland deltas, Permanent rivers, streams & creeks, Permanent saline, brackish & alkaline lakes, Permanent saline/brackish/alkaline marshes & pools, Seasonal/intermitt salt/brackish/alkali lake/flats, Seasonal/intermitt salt/brackish/alkali marsh/pool	20
Artificial/Terrestrial	Arable land, Pasture land, Urban areas	major (>10)
Grassland	Temperate	minor (<10)

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
agriculture	major (>10)
rangeland/pastureland	major (>10)
hunting	major (>10)
military	minor (<10)
urban/industrial/transport	minor (<10)

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Sabkhat al-Jabboul (Syria). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/sabkhat-al-jabboul-iba-syria on 22/11/2024.