Yarmuk valley (Syria) - BirdLife IBA factsheet

SY022

Yarmuk valley

Current view: Data table and detailed info

IBA Justification

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
Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus	LC	resident	1976-1977	16 individuals	B2
Finsch's Wheatear Oenanthe finschii	LC	winter	1993	present	B3
Dead Sea Sparrow Passer moabiticus	LC	non-breeding	1993	present	B3

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

IBA Conservation

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 1994. The most recent assessment (2014) is shown below.

IBA conservation assessment
Year of assessment	State	Pressure	Response
2014	not assessed	medium	negligible
Whole site assessed?	State assessed by	Accuracy of information
yes	unset	unknown

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Human intrusions and disturbance	likely in short term (within 4 years)	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Agricultural expansion and intensification	likely in short term (within 4 years)	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other action	Result
Little/none of site covered (<10%)	No management plan exists but the management planning process has begun	Very little or no conservation action taking place	negligible

Habitats

Habitat¹	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Artificial/Terrestrial		major (>10)
Grassland		minor (<10)
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)		minor (<10)
Wetlands (inland)		minor (<10)

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use

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

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Yarmuk valley (Syria). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/yarmuk-valley-iba-syria on 23/11/2024.