Activities to implement the Single Species Action Plans relevant to the region. The majority of the Northern African countries monitor migratory waterbirds. In most of these countries, particularly Globally Threatened and Near Threatened species are monitored, e.g. Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris), Audouin's Gull (Larus audouinii), White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala), Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca), Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa), Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) and Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus xxxxxxx). In Tunisia legal protection for these species (and other waterbird species) is provided through the annual hunting decree. The legal protection of most of the key sites for White-headed Duck, Ferruginous Duck, Eurasian Spoonbill and Black-tailed Godwit was maintained during the reporting period, but weak law enforcement is compromising conservation efforts. In Morocco the monitoring of the Northern Bald Ibis population in the Souss Massa National Park continued. The population had a good reproductive season with 115 breeding pairs and was estimated at 524 individuals in 2014. On the Canary Islands, conservation action was carried out for the Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus), which is also listed in annex II under the Barcelona Convention. Emergency situations that have happened and affected waterbirds and/or their habitats and response to them: In Tunisia, following the social and political unrest in 2011, natural habitats and resources remain under severe threat due to uncontrolled human activities such as poaching, extraction, urban development, pollution, etc. These are still impacting on key sites and bird populations (for example in the Ichkeul National Park). In Libya many important sites have been affected by the ongoing civil war. Fighting is taking place near to several important wetlands especially on the coastline, in central Libya and in the western part near Abokammash and Almanghoub sebkhas. The area around Benghazi, which is one of the most important zones for birds and includes many wetlands, has also known intense fighting with different types of weapons and it is estimated that this might have had important impacts on these sites and the avifauna. However, it was currently impossible to make an impact assessment. The huge spread of arms of different types (including guns), the absence of law enforcement and the enormous increase of bird hunters have negative impacts on migratory waterbirds. Moreover, due to the chaos and the absence of law enforcement, buildings are extending i...
Activities to implement the Single Species Action Plans relevant to the region. In Tunisia legal protection for particularly Globally Threatened and Near Threatened species, such as Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris), Audouin's Gull (Larus audouinii), White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala), Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca), Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa) and Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) and other waterbird species is provided through the annual hunting decree. The legal protection of most of the key sites for White-headed Duck, Ferruginous Duck, Eurasian Spoonbill and Black-tailed Godwit was maintained during the reporting period, but weak law enforcement is compromising conservation efforts. • Specific attention is paid to these species during the International Waterbird Census and breeding survey s in Tunisian wetlands resulting in the regular update of the population data available. New or major ongoing activities on habitat (site) inventory, conservation or restoration and rehabilitation of waterbird habitats: • Several on-going conservation projects (some of them funded by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund - CEPF) carried out in partnership between international and national NGOs and the biodiversity conservation authorities, allowed updating of relevant data on wetlands and key sites (IBAs and Ramsar sites) like Lake Tunis, Sebkhet Xxxxxxx, Maâmoura Lagoon, Korba Lagoon, Sebkhet Xxxxxxx, Lake Ichkeul, etc. • An important action to remove waste deposited illegally in Sebkhet Xxxxxxx IBA and Ramsar site was initiated and coordinated by two NGOs (RET & AEDS) in the framework of the AAO-CEPF Ecotourism • project in January 2016. A similar action organised by AAO took place at Lake Tunis. Both events were great examples of how effective NGO-authorities partnerships and citizen involvement can contribute to site restoration. • Two fam-trips were organised by Réseau Enfants de la Terre (RET) and the partners of the AAO-CEPF Ecotourism project bringing tourism professionals, journalists and representatives of hiker organisations and state institutions to wetlands in Tunis and on the Cape Bon. During these tours, Local Conservation Groups (LCG) promoted birdwatching tourism, waterbird conservation and the local networks of service providers (guides, guest houses, rural women, etc.). • A study, conducted by IUCN-Med in partnership with Direction Generale des Forêts (DGF) and other national partners, on the value of eco-system services provided by Ichkeul National Park had been ongoing since 2015 and the fir...
Activities to implement the Single Species Action Plans relevant to the region. (please check for the AEWA SSAP at the AEWA website Eurasian Spoonbill ISSAP - Attendance at the VIII International Spoonbill Workshop/AEWA Eurasian Spoonbill International Expert Group meeting; presenting monitoring data and migration strategies, planning further activities for C & SE European population based on SSAP. Ferruginous Duck ISSAP - Monitoring of passage populations was implemented on six carp-fishponds, known as the most important migratory sites for the species.
