Dix années de suivi des anatidés nicheurs sur le lac de Sidi Boughaba (Nord-ouest Marocain) : Situation, tendances d’évolution et perspectives de recherche

Abstract

Ten-year survey of breeding Anatidae of Lake Sidi Boughaba (North-western Marocco) : status, tendencies of change and avenues for future research. A ten years survey of duck species was carried out in the Ramsar site and Important Bird Area (IBA) of Sidi Boughaba. No such survey has ever been conducted before in Morocco to study the change in number of breeding duck species in the country. Overall results have shown the appearance of new breeding species in the site : Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina), Common Pochard (Aythya ferina) and White-Headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala). Other species have become more regular like Gadwall (Anas strepera) and Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca) while the vulnerable Marbled Teal (Marmaronetta angustirostris) and the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) continue to breed in this wetland with numbers that remain stable though the numbers of females with ducklings are decreasing in these two species. The number of breeding ducks species in this wetland is the highest in Morocco and in the Maghreb. The overall results showed that the numbers of Gadwall, Red-crested Pochard, Common Pochard and Ferruginous Duck are markedly increasing following the same expansion patterns at both regional and Mediterranean levels. The initiation of similar researches on other wetlands is essential to assess the abundance of duck populations and indicate trends of this breeding waterfowl group at larger scales.

Discovering the secret lives of White-headed Ducks: Unveiling population trends and phenology at Morocco’s two best wintering and nesting sites, Merja Fouwarate and Lake Sidi Boughaba

“…Since its reappearance in Morocco in the 1990s, the White-headed Duck has been exhibiting a progressive expansion of its population in this country, both numerically and geographically (El Hamoumi et al 2017;Ouassou et al 2021). In this context, the species has been observed on the Sidi Boughaba Lake only since 2007 (Cherkaoui et al 2013), while in Merja Fouwarate it appeared only in 2012 (Maire et al 2013). Although at present the species is observed in seven northern wetlands of Morocco (El Hamoumi et al 2017), 73% of its numbers (winter or breeding) are recorded at the two Ramsar sites, which are the subject of this study (Ouassou et al 2021).…”

“…A large part of this marsh is occupied by hydrophytes (Typha angustifolia, Bolboschoenus maritimus, Juncus acutus, Phragmites australis, Nerium oleander).On its western bank, the marsh is bordered by the built-up area of the city of Kenitra, and on its eastern and northern banks, by small patches of eucalyptus, pine and tamarix. During lowwater periods, the edges of the site are flooded, showing a wide mudflat where the plant cover is often grazed by cattle (Lahrouz et al 2013). These habitats provide favourable conditions for approximately 60 species of waterbirds, which can exceed 20,000 individuals during wintering and passage periods (Lahrouz 2015).…”

“…Its immediate slopes are covered by a very dense thicket of Juniperus phoenicea, mixed with Olea europaea, Retama monosperma and Pistacia lentiscus; a forest of eucalyptus occupies the Eastern shore of the lake (Atbib 1979(Atbib , 1983. Unlike the Merja Fouwarate, whose ornithological history dates from the last two decades, the bird community of Sidi Boughaba has been the subject of numerous publications (Frété 1959(Frété , 1970Thévenot 1976;Rguibi Idrissi et al 2002;Harchrass et al 2010;Cherkaoui et al 2013). The above-mentioned references testify to its importance as both a wintering and breeding site for many waterbirds.…”

“…This paper is based on the results of the species monitoring at the two above-mentioned sites from 2011 to 2022, with an interruption in 2020, due to the containment measures imposed by the Covid 19 epidemic. This monitoring consists of monthly counts using a pair of binoculars and a telescope; it is limited to the breeding season of the White-headed Duck at the two sites (Lahrouz et al 2012;Cherkaoui et al 2013), which extends over seven months (January to July). During the last two years (September 2021 to December 2022), counts were extended to all months of the year, in order to determine the phenological cycle of the species.…”