ure News 11 - Gibraltar Ornithological & Natural History Society

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GIBRALTAR NATURE NEWS 4 ONCE AGAIN, WE ARE DEDICATING PART OF NATURE NEWS TO PROMOTING KNOWLEDGE OF SOME OF THE MAIN WILDLIFE SITES OF THE STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR Information used in these articles was collected during GIBMANATUR, the Gibraltar-Morocco Interreg IIIA project of collaboration between GONHS and the Institut Scientifique of the University of Rabat-Agdal Reeds and rushes in smir marsh The wetlands of Smir lie north of the city of Tetouan, separated from the lowlands below the city by the headland and hills of Cabo Negro. To the north of Smir are the foothills of Jbel Moussa, to the west a continuation of the limestone mountains that encircle Tetouan, and to the east the Mediterranean Sea. Visitors to the area will often drive along the coast road south from the Spanish enclave of Ceuta (Sebta) towards the town of M’diq, and, if they turn their eyes away from the yacht marina inland, will think that the wetland consists simply of one lagoon. In fact, although much decreased in size through recent decades, the wetlands and a complex of marsh, lagoons and a reservoir make up the most important wetland habitat on the east side of the Tangier Peninsula. The zone covers a surface area of about 175 hectares. While it has a typical Mediterranean climate, its proximity to the Strait of Gibraltar makes SITES AROUND THE STRAIT 5 THE SMIR WETLANDS it subject to high winds. Rainfall is over 600 mm per annum. Apart from direct rainfall, there are several main sources of water feeding the wetland. The sea enters the easternmost lagoon which is brackish and has surrounding it a vegetation typical of salt marsh. A significant amount of water enters the marsh from the south from the sewage outflow of M’diq. A considerable amount of groundwater flows in from the surrounding limestone hills, while the river Smir and several other smaller streams also supply water to the system. There are a number of important habitats in the area, all more or less influenced by the wetland system. One of these is made up of several areas of Tamarisk Tamarix africana scrub, much used by resident and migrant passerine birds especially when they are in flower as they have many invertebrates. Another sizeable area is made up of rushes Juncus spp., and also of bulrushes Typha spp. and reeds Phragmites australis. Around the eastern lagoon is a typical low salt marsh vegetation dominated by glassworts. One of the main habitats for birds over recent years has been the “new lagoon” created when the new Tetouan-Tangier motorway blocked drainage in a series of fields and result in flooding. The main vegetation here is the reed Phragmites australis. Deeper waters are provided by the nearby Smir reservoir or barrage. The whole of the area is extremely interesting for its fauna. Despite regular spraying to control mosquitoes, there are interesting invertebrates including several dragonflies rare in Morocco. Reptiles and amphibians, in particular Moroccan Toads Bufo mauritanicus and Stripeless Tree Frogs Hyla meridionalis abound and are most obvious and vociferous in spring. But it is for birds that the Smir wetlands stand out. It is a vital link in the chain for migrant birds, not just from wetland habitats, as data collected during GIBMANATUR has shown. It is also an important wintering site for many species, including Shoveler Anas clypeata, Common Coot Fulica atra and Penduline Tits Remiz pendulinus, considered a rarity in Morocco before our study. Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula are regular in Barrage Smir. Barrage Smir Possibly of greatest interest is the community of resident birds, some of which are of species rare or absent in the rest of Morocco – and indeed from the area of the Strait. Smir is considered among the seven top sites for wintering waterbirds in Morocco. The most significant discoveries of GIB- MANATUR are probably those related to nesting
Bufo mauritanicus Phragmites australis New Lagoon Purple swamphen Hyla meridionalis birds. There are 26 species of birds usually associated with wetlands nesting at Smir. These include 5 herons, 5 from the rail family and 5 warblers. Six species have been recorded nesting at Smir for the first time, these being the Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina, the Red-knobbed Coot Fulica cristata, the Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus, the Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius, the River Kingfisher Alcedo atthis and Savi’s Warbler Locustella luscinioides. There is a sizeable heronry with numbers of Cattle Egrets Bubulcus ibis and Little Egrets Egretta garzetta, Squacco Herons Ardeola ralloides and Black-crowned Night Herons Nycticorax nycticorax, and Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia, which first nested there in 1994. Glossy Ibises Plegadis falcinellus are frequent and regular and would be expected to nest there soon, provided the habitat survives. At least ten pairs of Purple Heron Ardea purpurea also nest there – a species very much in decline in Morocco. Other nesting species include Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus and Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus. Purple Swamphens Porphyrio porphyrio are common – over 120 counted in May 2006, probably representing the most important population in Morocco. Significantly, many species were confirmed nesting in the New Lagoon, and others may do so, including Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca, while others species, such as Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida and Great White Egret Egretta alba turn up regularly. It is quite impressive to see a habitat become so important for birds in just a few years, and shows the resilience of the species in question and the logic of habitat creation and restoration in the region. However, as reported in Gibraltar Nature News 14, there is still concern about the future of the Smir marshes, particularly as the dumping of spoil continues and the threat from various developments increases. This is occurring in spite of the site being included in the planned intercontinental Biosphere Reserve linking Spain and Morocco. For now the future of the site remains uncertain, but we hope that if we combine our effort with that of our Moroccan colleagues, we could manage to influence the protection of at least some of the wetland habitat that exists here. Maximum counts of selected wetland bird species Species Max. counts Little Grebe 68 Great Crested Grebe 45 Cattle Egret 3159 Squacco Heron 17 Purple Heron 18 Glossy Ibis 146 Eurasian Spoonbill 26 Greater Flamingo 350 Greylag Goose 99 Eurasian Wigeon 718 Common Teal 364 Mallard 371 Northern Shoveler 1472 Red-crested Pochard 259 Common Pochard 335 Tufted Duck 51 Common Coot 2000 Red-knobbed Coot 116 Purple Swamphen 154 Stone Curlew 40 Ringed Plover 60 Northern Lapwing 90 Black-tailed Godwit 84 Eurasian Curlew 23 Smir wetland Dumping threatens Smir marsh GIBRALTAR NATURE NEWS 5
Page 1 and 2: PERSISTENT WRECKAGE For the third t
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Page 7 and 8: Senecio leucanthemifolius Gynandrid
Page 9 and 10: Quercus suber in the mist The mamma
Page 11 and 12: 1ST INTERNATIONAL CAVE MONITORING F
Page 13 and 14: sun and thus a higher rate of evapo
Page 15 and 16: Bougainvillea Bougainvillea spectab

ure News 11 - Gibraltar Ornithological & Natural History Society

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