Barzan Area (E8)

Surveyed in winter of 2007 and 2009-Admin Area: Erbil

Coordinates: N 36° 56’ 37” E 44° 11

Area: 4707 ha

Altitude: 530-2300 m

Directional information: Barzan area Mergasur and extends to the Turkish border to the north.

(E8)

-2011 and summer 2007-2011. KBA Criteria:V and Ia IBA Criteria: A1 and A3IPA Criteria: Under assessment

E 44° 11’ 44”

Status: Partially protected by the Barzan tribe but no official protected status. Ecoregion: Zagros MountainSteppe (PA0446).

is located 80 km northeast of Erbil City, near the townand extends to the Turkish border to the north.

A3

Under assessment artially protected by the Barzan

tribe but no official protected area

Zagros Mountains Forest

is located 80 km northeast of Erbil City, near the towns of Barzan and

Barzan Area

Shanidar Cave (Photo by Hana A. Raza, 2010)

Site Description: This area of mountainsbeen protected by the Barzan tribe.

Barzan Area facing northwest (Photo by Korsh Ararat, 2011)

Shanidar Cave (Photo by Hana A. Raza, 2010)

This area of mountains and valleys is covered in oak woodland. It is, and has The most important rivers within and near the site are

and has traditionally are the Rezan River

and the Greater (Big) Zab River. The Rezan is fairly large (approx. 20-30 m wide) and fast flowing. It flows from Turkey through Musaka village, eventually joining the Greater Zab. The Barzan area also includes Shirin Mountain, which is important for montane species. This area has often been proposed as a national park (it is one of the few places in Kurdistan, northern Iraq, where it is relatively easy to see Wild Goats thanks to a long-standing hunting prohibition from the Barzan tribe) and is a popular place for picnickers. A bridge crosses the Rezan river near the access to the main survey area (close to the village of Zrara) and there are remains of a much older bridge downstream. Though the regularly visited survey site is relatively small, the site extends north to the Turkish border and south across the Greater Zab River. Also included within the area is the ancient Shanidar Cave, first excavated by Drs Ralph and Rose Solecki in 1971, w which contains Neanderthal burial sites. Currently, the cave has been developed for tourism. It is located in a rocky gorge, with high cliffs and oak forets. A stream beneath carries seasonal winter flows to the Greater Zab River. The following two sub-sites were visited during the survey effort:

Sub-Site Code Sub-Site Name Nearest Town Coordinates

North East E8 Barzan Area Rezan - Mergasor 36 56 37 44 11 44 E8B Shanidar Cave Rezan - Mergasor 36 49 59 44 13 6

Key Biodiversity Area Criteria Notes V. Vulnerability Criteria: Presence of Critically Endangered and Endangered species – presence of a single individual or Vulnerable species – 30 individuals or 10 pairs. Capra aegagrus Ten individuals were observed in 2007, 24 in winter 2009, 80 in

summer 2010, and 12 in winter. During a training course in summer 2011, 30 individuals were counted, in addition to approximately 40 recorded by a camera trap set in the Zrara area.

Panthera pardus saxicolor Reported by reliable locals near Rezan river.

Important Bird Area Criteria Observations made 2007-2011. Unless stated otherwise numbers are estimates based on extrapolations using area/transect counts and area of known habitat (see Methodology, p. xx)

A1. Globally threatened species Breeding Wintering/ Passage

Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus (Summer visitor)

1 pair (2009)

A3. Biome-restricted species Irano-Turanian biome Breeding Wintering/ Passage See-see Partridge Ammoperdix griseogularis (Resident)

25 pairs (2010)

Menetries’s Warbler Sylvia mystacea (Summer visitor)

3 pairs (counts, 2008 and 2010)

Eastern Rock Nuthatch Sitta tephronota (Resident)

100 pairs

White-throated Robin Irania gutturalis

3 pairs (count, 2010)

(Summer visitor) Finsch’s Wheatear Oenanthe finschii (Resident)

5 pairs (2007-2008)

Eastern Cinereous Bunting Emberiza semenow (Summer visitor)

11 pairs (counts, 2010-2011)

Mediterranean biome Breeding Wintering/ Passage Masked Shrike Lanius nubicus (Summer visitor)

20 pairs (2008-2010)

Sombre Tit Poecile lugubris (Resident)

20 pairs (2008-2010)

Western Rock Nuthatch Sitta neumayer (Resident)

50 pairs (2011)

Eastern Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe melanoleuca (Summer visitor)

40 pairs (2007-2010)

Kurdistan Wheatear Oenanthe xanthoprymna (Summer visitor)

9 pairs (count, 2011)

Black-headed Bunting Emberiza melanocephala (Summer visitor)

500 pairs (2008-2010)

Additional Important Bird Observations: During the surveys a total of 87 species was observed. In addition to those listed in the table above, European Roller Coracias garrulus (Near Threatened) was recorded breeding but at sub-IBA threshold numbers; the site also held a breeding population of Yellow-billed Chough Pyrrhocorax graculus a Eurasian High-Montane biome-restricted species (Table XX) but this did not trigger inclusion under criterion A3. Eastern Cinereous Bunting Emberiza semenowi is Near Threatened. Other Important Fauna Mammals, Reptiles, and other Fauna: Data were collected from 2007 through 2010, with some additional work focused on Wild Goats (Vulnerable) in 2011. This species is thriving in Barzan, which has been a tribal protected site for many decades. The forestry police of Mergasur thought that the population of Wild Goats is around 1000, with some estimates much higher than this. In August 2010 and in 2011, an outbreak of goat plague or peste des petits ruminants (PPR) led to the death of over 200 animals. In 2012 a local from Barzan succesfully photographed a Eurasian Lynx Lynx lynx and in the same year another local photographed a Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus. The globally Endangered Persian Leopard Panthera pardus saxicolor was also reported by locals who have seen and heard the animal in and around the Rezan River valley. Two Otters (likely Eurasian Otter Lutra lutra; Near Threatened), were sighted with flashlights at night in the summer of 2011. In the Zrara area, the team camera trapped Brown Bear Ursus arctos, Golden Jackal Canis aureus, Indian Creasted Porcupine Hystrix indica and Red Fox Vulpes vulpes. Zagrosian Lizard Timon princeps kurdistanicus was observed. Many locusts were seen near the river in summer 2010, consuming large quantities of plant material. Fish: Information was collected from 2007 through 2009 and eight species were observed. Five were of economic importance, as defined by Coad (2010): Alburnus mossulensis, Cyprinion macrostomum, Garra rufa,

Hypophthalmichthys molitrix and Luciobarbus esocinus (also of conservation conern). Barbus lacerta and Mastacembelus mastacembelus were observed but are of no economic importance though their conservation status in Iraq is unknown according to Coad (2010). Finally, Capoeta trutta was also observe but has no significant economic and concervation importance according to Coad (2010) was: Plants & Habitats: Approximately 157 species were identified at this site. Many proposed endemics and rare species were recorded (see table). Data were collected in summer from 2007 to 2009. e. Two waypoints were surveyed in the two main habitat types of the Barzan area:

1 Mountain Forest Vegetation-Mountain Rivarine Forest (N 36° 56’ 43” E 44° 11’ 46”). This habitat was characterized by Platanus orientalis and Salix aegyptiaca (trees), Rubus sanctus and Vitex pseado-negundo (shrubs), and Mentha longifolia and Nasturtium officinale (herbs). Other characteristic species include Salix acmophylla, Vitex agnus-eastum, and Vitis vinifera, as well as macrophytes such as Phragmites australis, Typha domingensis, Juncus effusus and Potamageton lucence, and other semi-aquatic plants such as Mentha longifolia and Nasturtium officinale. 2. Mountain Forest Vegetation-Oak Forests (lower and medium) (N 36° 56’ 39” E 44° 12’ 18”). This habitat was characterized by Quercus aegilops Q. Infectoria, and Pistacia eurycarpa (trees), Prunus persica, Crataegus azorolus, Paliurus spina-christi, spp. (shrubs), Sinapis arvensis, Trifolium sp. (herbs), and Hordeum glaucum (grass).

The ecological scale of the area ranged between three (moderately disturbed) in the forest area and four (very disturbed) in the riverine area. The slope varied between gentle (0-5°) and steep (27-45°). The site is located in the Zagros range, where the geology is sedimentary limestone and the soil type is sandy clay. The non-vegetated area covered 5%. Conservation Issues: The primary environmental threat is agriculture, although road construction, tourism, development and pollution all constitute additional threats. In 2010 there was an attempt to build an earthen dam or dike at the mouth of the Rezan River where it meets the Greater Zab. According to a local, the purpose was to create a recreation area here, where a major restaurant and tea shop stop are located along the road. Winter rains washed this dam away but by the summer of 2012, a permanent structure, the Rezan River Weir Project, was under construction at the same location. Though natural systems modification overall received a high threat score, such activities should be assessed for their environmental consequences. Overgazing and other agricultural impacts are evident. Tourism has led to accumulation of garbage and easy access to the river has allowed car-washing to become a common practice in at least the main survey area. Recommendations: Overall, a management plan should be developed with the involvement of local stakeholders. The key recommendation for the site is to raise awareness amongst residents of the importance of protecting the native flora and fauna of their surroundings. It is also necessary to enforce environmental laws for protected areas, particularly by providing training and capacity building to the already-active environmental police on conservation management issues. It is recommended to convert the area into a national park, as some residents have suggested and should this take place, more comprehensive survey must be conducted to fully document the biological resources of the area. References Coad B. W. (2010). Freshwater Fishes of Iraq. Sofia-Moscow: PENSOFT Publishers. No.93.