Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
The site lies about 30 km south-east of the town of Sétif (south-west of Constantine) in the depression between the Petite Kabylie mountains to the north and the Monts du Hodna to the south. It consists of a shallow pan with a clay and silt bottom and some open water. Most of the sebkhets dry out between June and October, although the more easterly ones can retain water for up to two years. There is a fringe of
Salicornia sp. along the western shore, some
Juncus sp. and a substantial marshy area, including saltmarsh, to the north-east where a freshwater stream flows into the basin in winter. The basin is surrounded by arable farmland and there is some hunting.
See Box for key species. There is a report of 90
Numenius tenuirostris in 1989 that would make this site the most important known wintering ground for the species in recent years, but the record remains unconfirmed. Other birds using the site in winter include small numbers of a variety of duck, such as
Anas penelope (2,000 in 1990),
A. crecca (1,920 in 1992),
A. platyrhynchos,
A. acuta, and
A. clypeata (1,500 in 1999) and waders including
Recurvirostra avocetta,
Vanellus vanellus,
Philomachus pugnax,
Numenius arquata and up to 900 mixed
Charadrius and
Calidris spp. (mostly
Calidris alpina). A total of nearly 8,000 waterbirds was recorded on the site in 1992.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The small river flowing into the site from the nearby town of El Eulma carries domestic and industrial effluents, which may cause some pollution.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Sebkhet Baker (Algeria). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/sebkhet-baker-iba-algeria on 23/11/2024.
