The Praslin National Park and surrounding areas Important Bird Area lies in the southern part of the island of Praslin in the Seychelles archipelago of the western Indian Ocean.

Description

The 700 ha

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA) extends from sea-level to the highest point of the island at an elevation of 367 m. It includes the 330 ha Praslin National Park as well as additional land to the south-east. The hill-slopes of the site are mainly covered by mixed

secondary forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a timber harvest or clearing for agriculture, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident. ...

containing a high proportion of native plants, notably all six of Seychelles’ endemic palm species. It includes the palm forest of the World Heritage listed

Vallée de Mai Vallée de Mai Nature Reserve ("May Valley") is a nature park and UNESCO World Heritage Site on the island of Praslin, Seychelles. It consists of a well-preserved palm forest, flagship species made up of the island endemic coco de mer, as well ...

, as well as many small streams and waterfalls. The south-eastern part of the site is drier, characterised by boulders and caves amongst

scrub Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," ...

vegetation.

Fauna

The site was identified as an IBA by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

because it supports populations of Seychelles kestrels, Seychelles blue pigeons,

Seychelles swiftlet The Seychelles swiftlet (''Aerodramus elaphrus'') is a small bird of the swift family. It is found only in the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean. It is 10–12 cm long with a wingspan of 28 cm and a weight of about 10 g. The upperp ...

s, Seychelles bulbuls and

Seychelles sunbird The Seychelles sunbird (''Cinnyris dussumieri'') is a small passerine from the sunbird family. It is named after the French explorer Jean-Jacques Dussumier. It is native to the Seychelles, where it is known as ''kolibri'' in Seychellois Creole. ...

Reptile Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...

s and

amphibian Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...

s found at the site include the

Seychelle Islands tree frog The Seychelle Islands treefrog or Seychelles treefrog (''Tachycnemis seychellensis'') is a species of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. It is endemic to Seychelles. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, rivers, s ...

, six caecilians, four

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos ar ...

s, two

skink Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. Ski ...

s and two snakes, all of which are endemic.

Hawksbill turtles The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is large ...

nest on the beaches and green turtles feed along the coast. Most of the Praslin population of the

Seychelles fruit bat The Seychelles fruit bat or Seychelles flying fox (''Pteropus seychellensis'') is a megabat found on the granitic islands of Seychelles, and on the Comoros and Mafia Island. It is a significant component of the ecosystems for the islands, disper ...

roosts in the IBA.

References

Praslin, Seychelles Important Bird Areas of Seychelles National parks of Seychelles {{Seychelles-geo-stub