• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Map
• Reference and further resources

Site description (2001 baseline)
The site comprises a portion of the Nile river extending some 190 km between Luxor and Kom Ombo. The river forms an elongate wetland that meanders through the densely populated agricultural landscape of the Nile valley. Since the closure of the High Dam in 1964, the Nile down stream from Aswan experiences water-level changes of only small amplitude. This has allowed dense swamp vegetation, mainly Phragmites and Typha, to become established in many places along the riverbanks, which were previously largely devoid of vegetation. Bare sandy or muddy banks come into existence seasonally, depending on the water-level, which is lowest in winter. A number of islands are found along this stretch of the river, many of which hold good reed-swamp vegetation. About 40% of the arable land in this section of the Nile valley is cultivated with sugar-cane. Other crops are date-palms, maize, wheat and alfalfa. Fishing probably provides important income to many families inhabiting the region. In 1990, 589 boats and 1,178 fishermen were active on the Nile in Aswan Governorate.

Key biodiversity
See Box for key species. This is the stretch of the Nile river with the highest concentrations of wintering waterbirds in Egypt. In the winter of 1989/90, 21,100 waterbirds were counted in this region. The river immediately above the Isna Barrage appears to hold the largest numbers of waterbirds within the site. The islands are particularly attractive to resting waterbirds. Aythya nyroca winters in internationally important numbers. Netta rufina winters regularly in small numbers, while Marmaronetta angustirostris is an irregular and rare winter visitor, last recorded from the area in 1983. This section of the Nile valley is likely to be of importance for staging waterbirds and other migrants, such as Ciconia ciconia, during the migration seasons.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Upper Nile (Egypt). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/upper-nile-iba-egypt on 23/12/2024.