Working on biodiversity in a post war country: Key ... · in a post‐war country: Key Biodiversity...
Transcript of Working on biodiversity in a post war country: Key ... · in a post‐war country: Key Biodiversity...
Gathering information on Iraq’s Biological Diversity:
The Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) Project
A joint project of theMinistry of Environment
and Nature Iraqwith funding support from the Italian
Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea
Middle East391 Important Bird Areas (IBAs), covering 315,650 km², are
equivalent to 5% of the land area of the Middle East Individual IBAs range in size from 0.08 to 841 km²IraqIn Iraq there are over 40 IBAs which is about 11% of the total IBAs of
the ME
Following the same basic criteria but not based just to bird species, KBAs or Key Biodiversity areas,
are seen as the building blocks of landscape‐level conservation
planning
From IBAs to KBAs
KBA Program Objectives• 6‐monthly survey
of KBA sites
• Information on flora, fauna and overall habitats status
• Major threats to these sites
• Evaluate these sites against KBA criteria
• Provide advice to the Ministry of Environment and other Iraqi stakeholders on the future
management and restoration of these sites
• Advocate for the protection, conservation and/or restoration of these sites, and
• Publish relevant scientific and technical papers and reports on the findings of this work.
KBA Surveys began in the south in 2005
Surveys of KBAs were extended to Iraqi Kurdistan in 2007
And in 2009 areas in Central & Western Iraq were included
Conflicts affecting the region
• Iran‐Iraq War –
1980‐1988
• First Gulf War –
1990‐1991
• Iraq uprising ‐
1991
• Second Gulf War –
2003‐2010*
* On August 31, 2010 U.S. President Barack Obama declared an end to combat operations
KBA Surveys 2005‐2010SAMPLING GROUP PERIODS SAMPLEDBenthic Invertebrates • Winter (06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09);
• Summer(06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09)
Phytoplankton • Winter (06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09); • Summer (05, 06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09);
Zooplankton • Winter (06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09); • Summer (05, 06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09)
Plants & Habitats • Winter (05 partial survey, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10); • Summer (05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10)
Fish • Winter (06, 07, 08 –
Kurdistan only, 09 ‐
Central & Southern Iraq) • Summer (05, 06, 07*, 08 –
Kurdistan only, 09 ‐
Southern Iraq)
Birds • Winter (05 partial survey, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10); • Summer (05, 06, 07, 08, 0, 109)
Water Quality • Winter (06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09); • Summer (05, 06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09)
Sediments • Spring (05), Winter (06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09),• Summer (05, 06, 07, Kurdistan 08 & 09)
Mammals • Winter (2008, 2010)• Summer (2007, 2010)
Outputs:10 Unpublished Reports
PUBLICATIONS:
4 in 2005
2 in 2006
5 in 2007
15 in 2008
24 in 2009
7 in 2010
Total: 57
reports on
biodiversity
KBA ‐
Flora
• The Flora of Iraq volumes (1966 and 1988 by Guest and Townsend) was to be comprised of nine volumes between 1966 and 1988 by
Guest and Townsend covering over 3000 species but only six volume were completed
(on 1783
species)• In 2009, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
conducted a review of the Flora of Iraq and Flora Iranica
and developed a preliminary
Flora checklist for Iraq that consisted of over 4500
plant species
• This list has been used as part of the KBA Plant Database
• Nature Iraq has a provisional checklist of 49 wetland plant species
observed in the
Mesopotamian Marshlands and riparian areas between 2005 and 2007
KBA ‐
HabitatsMesopotamia
Marshlands
National
Park ProjectPilot Project on Habitats Classification
and Mapping: provisional
Iraqi Marshlands Habitat Classification Scheme
TERRESTRIAL HABITATS
1. Desert1.1 Desert
shrub
1.2 Unvegetated
desert1.3 Unvegetated
saline
lands
2. Woodlands2.1 Woodland, forest and other wooded area2.2 Shrub
3. Herbaceous vegetation3.1 Grassland3.2 Steppe3.3 Sparsely vegetated land
KBA ‐
Birds• Nature Iraq is the Iraqi partner canditate
of Birdlife
International• Nature Iraq has prepared a more up‐to‐date
checklist of all Iraqi bird species based on the KBA Project surveys (2005‐2010), which will be
published in 2010 as a provisional list• This list contains 414 bird species
and provides
referenced information on conservation status, breeding status, and Iraq status.
Conservation Concern Species Breeding Status Iraq Status
78
Conservation
Concern Species
179
confirmed
breeding
bird species
Approximately
123
resident species
6
probable
breeding
bird species
Approximately
232
migrant and/or visiting species
30
possible
breeding
bird species
35 vagrant or rare visitors
199
species
with
unknown breeding status
Endemic Bird Species of Iraq
Common Name Latin Name Conservation Status Iraq Status Breeding
Status
Little Grebe Tachybaptus
ruficollisConservation Concern (CC),
Endemic Race (EndR)
Resident (only
endemic race);
Winter visitor.Confirmed
Mesopotamian
Crow Corvus
capellanus Conservation Concern (CC),
Endemic Race (EndR) Resident Confirmed
Hypocolius Hypocolius
ampelinusConservation Concern (CC),
Endemic (End)Breeding summer
visitor Confirmed
Basra Reed
WarblerAcrocephalus
griseldis
Globally Threatened (GT),
Conservation Concern (CC),
Endemic
Breeding summer
visitor Confirmed
Iraq Babbler Turdoides
altirostrisConservation Concern (CC),
Endemic (End) Resident Confirmed
Terrestrial Fauna• The IUCN Red List 2010 The IUCN Red List provides a list of terrestrial
species
that have been assessed on the basis of their conservation status
• Total number of species: 416• Species of Conservation Concern: 45
Class No. of assessed species Class No. of assessed
species
AMPHIBIA 6 MAMMALIA 75
AVES 293 REPTILIA 23
INSECTA 18
Freshwater Fauna
• The IUCN Red List 2010 The IUCN Red List provides a list of freshwater species
that
have been assessed on the basis of their conservation status
• Total number of species: 111
Class No. of assessed species Class No. of assessed species
ACTINOPTERYGII 3 INSECTA 17
AMPHIBIA 6 LILIOPSIDA 2
AVES 73 MAMMALIA 6
CHONDRICHTHY ES 1 REPTILIA 1
CRUSTACEA 2 Total number 111
Flora of Iraq Project
A joint project initiated in 2009 between the Ministry of Environment and the Twin Rivers Institute for Scientific Research (AUI‐S)
New List of proposed KBA Sites
Nature Iraq’s KBA Surveys
2005‐2010
The initial list of Important
Bird Areas and Important
Wetland sites was greatly
expanded over time
The updated list of
proposed Key Biodiversity
Areas has been developed
and currently includes 88 sites
in Iraq
9
Terrestrial
EcoregionsTigris‐Euphrates
alluvial
salt
marsh
(PA0906)
Arabian
Desert
and
East
Sahero‐Arabian
Xeric Shrublands
(PA1303)
Mesopotamian Shrub Desert (PA1320)
Middle East Steppe (PA0812)
Eastern
Mediterranean
conifer‐
sclerophyllous‐broadleaf forest (PA1207)
Red
Sea
Nubo‐Sindian
Tropical
Desert
and
Semi‐Desert (PA1325)
South
Iran
Nubo‐Sindian
Desert
and
Semi‐
Desert (PA1328)
Gulf Desert and Semi‐Desert (PA1323)
Zagros Mountains Forest Steppe (PA0446)
4
Freshwater Ecoregions441 Lower Tigris and Euphrates River Basin
442 Upper Tigris and Euphrates River Basin
440 Arabian Interior
445 Orumiyeh
1
Marine Ecoregion90 The Gulf
Ecoregions
of Iraq