biological diversity and tropical forests in tunisia - PART

All of the large mammals of Tunisia are threatened, with the exception
of the wild boar. The boar is a hardy animal that is unwittingly
protected by the Islamic prohibition on eating pork. Rare and endangered
mammals listed for Tunisia in the IUCN Red Data Book (in: Grant 1980)
include the barbary hyena, barbary deer, dorcas gazelle, Cuvier's gazelle
and slender-horned gazelle.
Several mammal subspecies are endemic to North Africa; these include
rabbits and the larger mammals, such as barbary deer, barbary hyena and
(according to some) the Ichkeul buffalo. Full species of mammals endemic
to North Africa are all rodents and are noted in Annex 2.
2.4.2. Birds
Tu~isia's avian fauna includes North African endemic (Moussier's
redstart) acd sub-Saharan (black-headed bush shrike) species as well as
many that are threatened throughout their range. Rare and endangered
birds listed in the Red Data Book (IUCN 1985) that occur in Tunisia
icclildi :
White stork Peregrine
Marbled teal Audouin ' s gull
White-headed duck Red-necked night jar
Red kite Houbara bustard
White-tailed sea eagle Little bustard
Bearded vulture Slender-billed curlew
Little b~stards are listed because they once occurred in northern
Tunisia, and still may, but their status is uncertain. Ostriches were
extirpated from Tunisia earlier this century, but they have been
reintroduced at Bou Hedma National Park (section 5.4.4). Griffon
vultures, bearded valtures and white-tailed sea eagles were hunted in the
beginning of the cectury and are now very rarely seen in Tunisia.
One of the most important sites for migrating raptors and passerine
birds is the Cap Bon pecinsula. Cap Bon is an internationally important
bottleneck area for migratory birds in the Mediterranean region r rim met
1987). Aboat 40,000 raptors of over 20 species rest at Cap Bon before
crossing the Mediterranean sea to Sicily in the spring. The most common
species reported are honey buzzard, black kite, buzzard, marsh harrier,
lesser kestrel and kestrel. Many passerines also rest at Cap Bon before
making the 150 km flight. Large numbers of sparrowhawks were formerly
captured for use in quail hunting, but this practice has been restricted
to a very small number today.
Tucisia also has sites of very high international importance for
waterfowl acd waders. The most important sites are Lake Ichkeul, the Gulf
of Gabes and Sebkhet Kelbia, described in Sections 3.3.1.1, 3.l.4 and
3.3.2.4, r+spectively.