biological diversity and tropical forests in tunisia - PART

Audouin's gulls Lams audouinii are the rarest breeding gull of the
Europe and North Africa re'giar.-(Heinzel et.al. 1979). They only breed on
rocky islands in the Mediterranean sea and there are reports of a small
breeding colony at Calite (Caulthier 1978). This species is it serious
danger of extinctioc and any breeding colony is of international
significance.
Nesting birds at the Calite archipelago
Shag
Cory's shearwater
Storm petrel
t Eleonora' s falcon
t Peregrine
Kestrel
Herring gull
t ~udouin's gull
Non-nesting birds include :
Grey heron
Booted eagle
Common sandpiper
Turtle dove
Bare owl
Swift
t = Threatened Species
include :
Blue rock thrush
Spanish sparrow
Rock dove
Woodchat shrike
Sardinian warbler melac
Dartford warbler
Marmora's warbler
Goldficch
Hoopoe
Wood pipit
Grey wagtail
Icterine warbler
Whitethroat
Wood warbler
Wheatear
Her etofaura. The rich herpetofauna is Atlanto-mediterranean in
o r i i m 7 ) , and the most abundant are lacrrtids and Scincids:
C. Influences
Scincus sp.
Terentola sp.
Testndo graeca
Caretta caretta
There is a small village of fishermen on Calite. About 10 families
(approximately 35 people) were permanent residents on the island in 1978,
and in prime lobster season the population was augmented by an additional
18 families, raising the population to c.158 people. In addition to the
houses of the villagers, a primary school and a military base (with aboat
40 people) have been established on Galite. Galiton is occupied by a
lighthouse and its attendants.
The activities of the fishermen are having a profoand icfluecce oc
aome of the rare fauna of the area. To protect the fish popalatiocs, some
fishemec seek to eliminate natural predators, inc1adir.g the rars marine
tortoise Thalassochyelys corticata, which sometimes become ectacgled ic
fish nets. Mork seals are killed because they eat fish acd sometimes
damage nets.