The Northern Bald Ibis or Waldrapp Geronticus eremita is a species of arid semi-deserts and steppes, which was formerly widely distributed as a breeding bird across North Africa, the Middle East and the European Alps. Just over 100 breeding pairs now remain in the wild at two sites in Morocco whilst two further wild pairs remain in Syria. There is also a population in Turkey, which is maintained for part of the year in captivity, and a large captive population in zoos. The species is classified by IUCN as ‘Critically Endangered’, the highest threat category. The wild population has grown during the past decade, which represents the first evidence of population growth in the species' recorded history. Conservation action in Morocco has contributed to this recovery. A large part of the contribution of research to conservation action has been to establish and document the value of simple site and species protection. Quantitative assessments of the importance of sites for breeding, roosting and foraging have helped to prevent disturbance and the loss of sites to mass-tourism development. Wardening by members of the local community have reduced disturbance by local people and others and increased the perceived value of the birds. Monitoring has suggested additional ways to improve the breeding status of the species, including the provision of drinking water and removal and deterrence of predators and competitors. These actions have been evaluated by subsequent testing. Steppe and two-year fallows were shown to be the key feeding habitats, and maintaining such non-intensive land uses in future may present major management challenges. The recovery in the Souss-Massa region remains precarious because the population is concentrated in a few places where adverse changes are possible. However, it could provide opportunities for natural extension of the range to formerly occupied sites further north in Morocco.
The main wild population of the Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita breeds on the Atlantic coast of Morocco in the Agadir region. This paper describes the numbers of breeding pairs over the last two decades, the recent breeding performance, the causes of egg and chick losses and their conservation implications. Since 1980 there has been no overall decline in numbers with, over the last 5 years, 59–74 pairs breeding and a peak prebreeding population of around 220 birds. In contrast with the now extinct Northern Bald Ibis populations in Turkey and elsewhere in Morocco, the birds are present in the Agadir region throughout the year and do not appear to migrate from the area outside the breeding season. Breeding performance is highly variable from one year to the next but does not appear to be related to rainfall in the vicinity of the colonies as has been reported elsewhere. It is suggested that coastal fogs in this region may buffer the adverse impacts of low rainfall and may in part account for the year‐round residency of the birds. The main causes of breeding failures have been loss of eggs to predators and, most importantly, poor chick survival as a result of starvation and predation. Conservation action to date has focused on reducing the negative influences on breeding success but it is recognized that for such a long‐lived bird adult survival is also likely to be an important limiting factor on the population size.
The Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita is a globally threatened species with its main remaining world population breeding in an area of sea cliffs and coastal semi‐desert steppe near Agadir in southern Morocco. Between 1998 and 2002, we showed experimentally that the small‐scale provision of fresh water near the breeding colonies led to an increase in the productivity of the birds. The increase was greatest in years with low natural rainfall but was positive in all years tested. The supplementary fresh water appears to help buffer productivity against the impacts of low rainfall and its provision is now part of the ongoing conservation measures for this species.
Shrews(Soricidae, Mammalia) of the National Park Souss-Massa, Morocco. -With 420 trap-nights we sampled shrews in different habitats of the Souss-Massa National Park. Crocidura viaria (n=11) was found in 5 habitats (cultivated land, wetland, beach dunes with Chenopodia, sand dunes with patchy vegetation and also in the Euphorbia association). No shrews were captured in Eucalyptus forest with undergrowth. Southward from Essaouira, C. viaria is obviously the most frequent species in dense or patchy lowland vegetation. Two other species (C. whitakeri and C. tarfayaensis) which occur in sympatry in the Agadir region were not captured. They live probably not in syntopy with C. viaria and their ecological requirements remain to be studied.
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