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IQ037
Haur Lafta
Location Iraq, Al-Muthanna
Central coordinates 45o 30.00' East  31o 21.00' North
IBA criteria A4iii, B1i, B2
Area 20,000 ha
Altitude 13 m
Year of IBA assessment 2001

Nature Iraq (Affiliate)



Ornithological information The site was listed as a wetland of international importance by Carp (1980), and was considered by Scott and Carp (1982) to be possibly of great importance for wintering waterbirds, but there is no specific ornithological information available.

Site description An isolated haur c.5 km north of the River Euphrates and c.80 km west-north-west of Nasiriya, fed by floodwater from the Euphrates.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species Season Period Population estimate Quality of estimate IBA Criteria IUCN Category
Marbled Teal Marmaronetta angustirostris breeding  1997  present [units unknown]  -  B1i, B2  Vulnerable 
A4iii Species group - waterbirds winter  1979  20,000 individuals  poor  A4iii   

Habitats

IUCN habitat Habitat detail Extent (% of site)
Wetlands (inland)   100%

Land use

Land-use Extent (% of site)
unknown -

Other biodiversity No information available to BirdLife International.

Management considerations No conservation measures are known to have been taken. The site may have suffered major habitat degradation or destruction following the decline in the flow of the Euphrates since the 1970s (see site 039) but there is no other information on current threats and no conservation measures are known to have been proposed.

References Carp (1980), Georg and Savage (1970a), Scott and Carp (1982).

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Recommended citation  BirdLife International (2013) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Haur Lafta. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 25/05/2013

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife