The El Kala National Park and Biosphere Reserve (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

: محمية القالة الوطنية) is one of the

national parks of Algeria National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

in the extreme north-east of the country. It is home to several

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

s and a unique

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syst ...

in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

basin. Several parts of the park have been designated as protected Ramsar sites.

History

The El Kala National Park and Biosphere Reserve was created by decree n° 83-462 of July 23, 1983, and recognized as a

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

by the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

on 17 December 1990.Sarri Djamel, Djellouli Yamna, Allatou Djamel
Biological diversity of the National Park of El-Kala (Algeria), valorization and protection
''Researchgate.net'', 2014 From 1994 to 1999, the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

financed a project to develop a natural resources management model for the park.

Geography

The park's highest hill is djebel El-Ghorra at 1202 m. The average temperature goes from 9 °C to 30 °C. The park has 50 km of shores facing the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

. The park has 6 lakes: *Lake Oubeira (2200 ha) *Lake Tonga (2600 ha) *Lake Mellah (860 ha), the only lagoon in Algeria which communicates with the sea *Marais of Bourdim (11 ha) *Blue lake (3 ha) *Black lake (6 ha)

Biosphere

The El Kala National Park and Biosphere Reserve is home to 40 species of mammals, 25 bird of prey species, 64 freshwater bird species and 9 marine bird species. The

Barbary stag The Barbary stag (''Cervus elaphus barbarus''), also known as the Atlas deer or African elk, is a subspecies of the red deer that is native to North Africa. It is the only deer known to be native to Africa, aside from ''Megaceroides algericus'', ...

is prevalent in the park. An investigation led between 1996 and 2010 listed 1590 different types of vegetables in the park and 718 animal species. The main tree species are the

Quercus suber ''Quercus suber'', commonly called the cork oak, is a medium-sized, evergreen oak tree in the section ''Quercus'' sect. ''Cerris''. It is the primary source of cork for wine bottle stoppers and other uses, such as cork flooring and as the core ...

(dominant), the Zeen oak, the

Quercus coccifera ''Quercus coccifera'', the kermes oak, is an oak bush in the '' Ilex'' section of the genus. It is native to the Mediterranean region and Northern African Maghreb, south to north from Morocco to France and west to east from Portugal to ...

, the

Aleppo pine ''Pinus halepensis'', commonly known as the Aleppo pine, also known as the Jerusalem pine, is a pine native to the Mediterranean region. Description ''Pinus halepensis'' is a small to medium-sized tree, tall, with a trunk diameter up to , ex ...

, the glutinous Alder, Willows, the

White Poplar White poplar is a common name used to refer to several trees in the genus ''Populus'', including: * ''Populus alba'', native to Eurasia * '' Populus grandidentata'', bigtooth aspen * ''Populus tremuloides ''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous ...

. Other tree species in the park include

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as ...

, Acacias,

Maritime pine ''Pinus pinaster'', the maritime pine or cluster pine, is a pine native to the south Atlantic Europe region and parts of the western Mediterranean. It is a hard, fast growing pine bearing small seeds with large wings. Description ''Pinus pinast ...

s and

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide ...

es. 175 species of mushrooms were listed. The park is threatened by the creation of a

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

which would threaten the rare

animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage ...

s and

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae excl ...

s of the park. It has been proposed that the highway should avoid this region and go further south.

Gallery

Rainbow in the National Park of El-Kala. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg, Rainbow in the park Parc National d’El-Kala 3.JPG, Walkway through the lake Blue Lake. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg, Blue Lake File:Lac tonga el kala.JPG, Lake Tonga Plegadis falcinellus. Mahieddine Boumendjel.JPG, Glossy ibis in the park Flamants roses. Phoenicopterus roseus. Lac des Oiseaux. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg,

Greater flamingo The greater flamingo (''Phoenicopterus roseus'') is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family. It is found in Africa, the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East, and in southern Europe. Taxonomy The greater flamingo was desc ...

s in the park La cytinelle ou cytinet. Cytinus hypocistis. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg, '' Cytinus hypocistis'' in the park Glaieul de byzance. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg, '' Gladiolus communis'' in the park Aubépine épineuse. Crataegus laevigata. Mahieddine Boumendjel.jpg, ''

Crataegus laevigata ''Crataegus laevigata'', known as the Midland hawthorn, English hawthorn, woodland hawthorn, or mayflower, is a species of hawthorn native to western and central Europe, from Great Britain (where it is typically found in ancient woodland and ol ...

'' in the park

Human population

87,000 people live in the El Kala National Park and Biosphere Reserve.

Tourism

The park averaged 30,000 visitors in 2001.

References

External links

Park data on UNEP-WPMC

A petition for the preservation of the park

{{authority control National parks of Algeria Ramsar sites in Algeria Geography of El Taref Province Protected areas established in 1993 Biosphere reserves of Algeria Tourist attractions in El Taref Province 1993 establishments in Algeria