Data Zone
Country/territory: Tunisia
IBA criteria met: A3, A4i (2001)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 15,000 hectares (150.00 km2)
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2009 | very poor | high | medium |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2001 baseline)
The Kerkennah islands form an archipelago, 20 km east of the town of Sfax, in the tidal Gulf of Gabès. The archipelago is composed of two main islands, Chergui and Gharbi, and 12 smaller ones. Relief is low; the highest point is only 13 m above sea-level. Common plant species include Phoenix dactylifera, Nitraria nitraria, Salicornia radicans, Imperata cylindrica and Zygophyllum album.
Key biodiversity
See Box and Table 2 for key species. See under Kneiss (site TN032) for a general presentation of the ornithological importance of the Gulf of Gabès. The Kerkennah archipelago is an important wintering area for Phalacrocorax carbo and gulls and terns, including Larus genei, L. fuscus, L. cachinnans, Sterna caspia and S. sandvicensis. Species that breed on the islands include Falco tinnunculus, Cursorius cursor, Merops apiaster and Lanius excubitor. In addition, the islands are an important stop-over site each spring and autumn for hundreds of thousands of migrant passerines.
Non-bird biodiversity: The gerbil Gerbillus simoni zakariai is endemic to Kerkennah.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Îles Kerkennah (Tunisia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/îles-kerkennah-iba-tunisia on 23/12/2024.