Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

Ornithological information See Box for key species. In addition, Chott Boul is one of the only sites where Podiceps nigricollis overwinters in the area; 180 were recorded in December 1998. Counts of other species include 4,000 Larus fuscus in 2001. Chott Boul and the southern parts of Aftout es Saheli hold only known nesting colony of Phoenicopterus minor in West Africa (see site MR012).

Site description Chott Boul is a coastal wetland formed by an ancient mouth of the Senegal river, now isolated from it and with only temporary connections to the sea (behind a 10-km strip of coastal dunes). It lies 175 km south of Nouakchott and 70 km west of Rosso. The total area is approximately 15,500 ha, of which 7,000 ha is a marine zone of mudflats, intertidal saltmarsh, fresh water and brackish zones. The terrestrial zone is made up of 8,500 ha of wetland, floodable plains with temporary and permanent swamps, lakes and marshes of brackish to hyper-saline water. Fresh water enters the system between September and November from Hassi Baba swamp, part of the Diawling-Tichillit system within Diawling National Park (site MR021). Thus, the southern edge of Chott Boul is contiguous with Diawling while Aftout-Es-Saheli (MR012) lies immediately to the north and is fed by a swamp connecting the Grand Lac at Chott Boul with the southern flood-plain of the Aftout.

Other than for this swamp, Chott Boul is limited to the north by mobile and stable dunes and to the east by a flood-plain and rice-fields. The dunes to the north are covered by Euphorbia balsamifera and Tamarix senegalensis. The northern part of the site is an unvegetated, flat saltpan, which may once have been an area of mangroves. The south is characterized by halophytic vegetation, the remnants of flood-plain forests (Acacia nilotica, Tamarix senegalensis) and grasslands (Sporobolus robustus, Vetiveria nigritana and Juncus rigidus).

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species	Season	Period	Population estimate	Quality of estimate	IBA Criteria	IUCN Category
Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata	winter	2001	4,590 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus	winter	2001	1,543 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor	resident	-	present [units unknown]	-	A1	Near Threatened
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta	winter	2001	5,650 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	winter	2001	7,900 individuals	-	A4i	Near Threatened
Slender-billed Gull Larus genei	winter	2001	800 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Caspian Tern Sterna caspia	winter	2000	986 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	winter	2001	20,000 individuals	unknown	A4iii

Protected areas

Protected area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Chat Tboul	Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar)	15,500	is identical to site	15,500

Habitats

IUCN habitat	Habitat detail	Extent (% of site)
Artificial landscapes (terrestrial)		9%
Rocky areas		49%
Grassland		38%
Desert		2%

Land use

Land-use	Extent (% of site)
agriculture	-
fisheries/aquaculture	-
hunting	-
nature conservation and research	-
tourism/recreation	-
water management	-
other	-
Notes: Local salt collection.

Other biodiversity The canids Fennecus zerda (DD) and Vulpes pallida (DD) occur, as does the nationally vulnerable Varanus griseus.

Management considerations Chott Boul is currently protected by the Marine Nationale as a maritime surveillance zone. The site receives a managed inflow of fresh water from Diawling National Park (site MR021), in collaboration with the OMVS (Organisation de mise en valeur du Fleuve Senegal), in September–October each year. A few nomad families who graze sheep and goats and collect salt inhabit the area. Artisanal fishermen, visit the permanent lakes. Hunting, particularly of pelicans, is believed to be a problem. Visitors from nearby urban centres are responsible for poaching and dumping in the area. The main threats, however, come primarily from development projects and include the intensification of agriculture, resulting in ingress of fertilizer-rich waste water from rice-fields, and accumulation of pesticides from agricultural pest-control. Such contaminants would become concentrated through evaporation. Another risk comes from the possible expansion of intensive shrimp fishing that occurs in the marshes and swamps in the delta. This form of fishing uses very fine nets (20 mm mesh) and poses a risk to fish stocks as large numbers of juvenile fish are destroyed.

References De Naurois (1969), Hamerlynck and ould Samba (1995), IUCN (1999), Measson (2001).

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Recommended citation  BirdLife International (2013) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Chott Boul. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 20/06/2013

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