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Algeria

Twenty-one IPAs have initially been identified for northern Algeria. Many other sites may also deserve to be included, depending on further studies, particularly in the Collo Peninsula, the Tlemcen Mountains, the Arzew Peninsula, Cape Falcon, Ouarsenis, Sersou, the Aflou region and Djebel Aissa. Sites in the steppe and Saharan zones of the country have not been inventoried, since they are located beyond the Mediterranean part of Algeria.

With an area of 2,381,741km2, Algeria is both the largest country with a Mediterranean coastline and the largest country in Africa. It is bordered by Tunisia, Libya, Niger, Mali, Mauritania and Morocco. The Sahara desert covers more than four-fifths of the country, but in the north lie the Tellian and Saharan Atlas, parallel ranges, between which are large areas of plain and highland. North eastern Algeria up to the Tunisian border is occupied by the Aurès Massif, the Tell coastal strip and the Nememcha Plateau.

Since Algeria is influenced by the sea, relief and elevation, its climate is classed as ‘temperate extra-tropical Mediterranean’, characterized by a long period of summer drought that varies from 3-4 months on the coast to 5-6 months on the high plains and more than 6 months in the Saharan Atlas. All Mediterranean bioclimates are represented in the north, from perhumid (Babor Mountains) to semi-arid (Sahel d’Oran).

The main types of vegetation found in northern Algeria are:

• Sclerophyllous forests (holm oak, cork oak, etc.), deciduous forests (Algerian oak, afares oak, maples) and conifer forests (Aleppo pine, black pine, maritime pine, thuja, cedar, fir);

•Scrub shrubland, which includes evergreen vegetation dominated by mastic, rock rose, brooms, diss grass, rosemary and Globularia;

• Meadows and asphodel grassland;

• Hygrophilous vegetation represented by riparian forests with white poplar, alder and narrow leaved ash, as well as the vegetation of marshes, lakes, ponds and lagoons;

• Salt-loving and littoral vegetation, including the vegetation of coastal dunes, cliffs and coastal scrub.

Approximately 4,000 plants have been recorded in Algeria of which 464 are national endemics.

Twenty-one IPAs have initially been identified in northern Algeria. Algerian IPAs cover all vegetation stages and are often marked by a large elevational range, as in the Aurès Massif (100–2,300m) and Djurdjura (600–2,300m). Several coastal IPAs have high plant diversity and are rich in endemic species, which are often highly localized (stenoendemic). Forested environments are well represented, particularly with cedars or oaks (Quercus canariensis, Q. suber and Q. ilex) and several IPAs are rich in wetland

The number of endemics in northern Algeria is 407, including 224 endemic to Algeria alone, 124 shared with Morocco, 58 with Tunisia and one with Sicily. Some IPAs have a flora with a particularly high proportion of national endemics or stenoendemics, such as Djurdjura National Park with over 25 sub-national and stenoendemics, and El Kala 1 & 2 and the Babor Mountains, each with 20.

Many other sites may also deserve to be included. Sites in the steppe and Saharan zones of the country have not been inventoried, since they are located beyond the Mediterranean part of Algeria. Eight IPAs are entirely or partly located inside national parks, while 13 others enjoy no management or protection measures. The Babor Massif is in the process of being listed as a natural reserve.

The main threats to Algeria’s IPAs are fire, followed by overgrazing, resulting in the direct disappearance of species and the erosion of topsoil, making it difficult to restore the vegetation cover. Some sites also suffer from too many visitors or from quarrying. Pollution from domestic effluents is a threat to many wetlands, while some IPAs are affected by deforestation. The lack of security that prevailed in part of Algeria for several decades often prevented management or conservation measures from being implemented and impeded data collection on the ground.

Coordinating organisation:

• University of Sciences and Technology

Contacts:

• Salima Benhouhou and Nassima Yahi