Mangrove and Alhafeya Protected Area in Khor Kalba

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Mangrove and Alhafeya Protected Area in Khor Kalba

  • Country: 
    United Arab Emirates
  • Site number: 
    2125
  • Area: 
    1,494 ha
  • Designation date: 
    10-03-2013
  • Coordinates: 
    24°59'N 56°21'E
Materials presented on this website, particularly maps and territorial information, are as-is and as-available based on available data and do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Overview

Mangrove and Alhafeya Protected Area in Khor Kalba. 10/03/2013; Sharjah; 1,494 ha; 24°59'54"N 56°21'45"E. National Protected Area. Located in the far east of the country near the border with Oman, the site comprises coastal subtidal, intertidal (sand beach, mangroves, mud and tidal channels), supratidal sand, salt marsh and saline flats, as well as encompassing a narrow alluvial plain dominated by Acacia woodland. The Avicennia marina mangrove trees found in Kalba are the tallest and comprise the most extensive mature woodland in the biogeographic region; they provide breeding, nursery and feeding grounds for several fish and invertebrate species, besides protecting the coastline from storm damage and erosion while trapping sediments washed off the land. The critically endangered Hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) and endangered Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) can be observed near the mouth of the mangrove's inlet, entering the creeks at high tide to feed on sea grasses and algae. The area is of great ornithological interest, and an endemic subspecies, the White-collared Kingfisher Todiramphus chloris kalbaensis, breeds almost exclusively at this site, which is also one of just two breeding localities in the region for Sykes's Warbler Hippolais rama. The management and monitoring of this site is carried out with the involvement of the local residents, and an educational visitor centre is planned. Ramsar Site no. 2125. Most recent RIS information: 2013.

Administrative region: 
Sharjah Emirate

  • National legal designation: 
    • Protected Area
  • Last publication date: 
    10-03-2013

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Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS)