Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
An area on the southern slope of the main Caucasian ridge (Great Caucasus). All the high-altitude vegetation zones are well defined, from broadleaved forest (mainly of
Fagus, also
Quercus,
Carpinus,
Acer, etc.) to alpine meadows. The relief is mountainous with deep chasms.
This IBA has a diverse upland avifauna (104 species recorded), including at least three of the 10 species in Europe that are restricted (when breeding) to the Eurasian high-montane biome, as well as (e.g.) several raptors (
Gypaetus barbatus,
Accipiter brevipes,
Aquila chrysaetos,
Otus scops,
Bubo bubo, etc.),
Alectoris chukar,
Coturnix coturnix, woodpeckers, and many passerines, among which are
Cinclus cinclus,
Phoenicurus erythrogaster and
Turdus torquatus. Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria:
Aegypius monachus.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Tetrao mlokosiewiczi and
Tetraogallus caucasicus have suffered from habitat loss since reserve boundaries changed, the reserve was split into two and some meadows were lost to grazing. It is recommended that the meadows (3,660 ha) separating the two sections of the reserve should be acquired for protection and that geological prospecting should cease in the Filizchai basin, returning at least 1,000 ha, taken away in 1978, to the reserve.
National High
International None23,800 ha of IBA covered by Zapovednik (Zakataly goryhy, 23,800 ha).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Zakataly (Azerbaijan). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/zakataly-iba-azerbaijan on 23/12/2024.
