The Réghaïa forest or Kadous forest is a forest located in Réghaïa in the wilaya of

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. The forest is managed by the ''Conservation des forêts d'Alger'' (CFA) under the supervision of the ''Direction générale des forêts'' (DGF).

Location

The Réghaïa forest is located 29 kilometers east of

. It is located in the commune of Réghaïa in the

Mitidja Mitidja, (Arabic: ) is a plain stretching along the outskirts of Algiers in northern Algeria. It is about long, with a width of . Traditionally devoted largely to agriculture and serving as the breadbasket of Algiers, the area has in recent decad ...

Presentation

The Réghaïa forest is governed by decree no. 84-45 of February 18, 1984, amended and supplemented by decree no. 07-231 of July 30, 2007. With a wooded area of 30 hectares, this forest is the only reclaimed marshland in the wilaya of Algiers. It was classified by the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on We ...

on June 4, 2003, as a nature reserve of international importance. This natural forest site has a

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 east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

climate, hot in summer and cold in winter, making it unique in the

biogeographical region. This forest area is part of the five

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

s (marine, marsh, dune, lake and forest) of the Réghaïa protected area, the lake, which covers an area of 1,575 hectares: 900 ha of sea, 600 ha of forest and dune, plus a 75 ha freshwater lake. This forest and its surrounding biosphere are classified as a nature reserve.

Fauna

The fauna of the Réghaïa forest is rich in

zoological Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

ornithological Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...

and

entomological Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the ...

diversity. The forest is home to 21 species of

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s (

jackal Jackals are Canidae, canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe Canina (subtribe), canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-b ...

, genet, wild boar, famed fox, etc.).

Mammals

Algerian hedgehog

The

Algerian hedgehog The North African hedgehog (''Atelerix algirus'') or Algerian hedgehog, is a mammal species in the family Erinaceidae native to Algeria, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Spain, and Tunisia. Little is known about this hedgehog, even though the most common b ...

(''Atelerix algirus) is found in this Algerian forest. This white-bellied hedgehog lives in the coastal regions of Algeria. It is pale in color and weighs from 700 to 950 g. This hedgehog is a protected species throughout Algeria.

Golden jackal

The African wolf (''Canis lupaster'') is a very shy, nocturnal and discreet carnivorous mammal. Its body length (without tail) varies between 70 and 85 cm, its height at the withers between 38 and 50 cm, its tail length is 25 cm, with a weight of 7 to 14 kg, while its maximum speed oscillates between 40 and over 50 km/h.

Crested porcupine

The

crested porcupine The crested porcupine (''Hystrix cristata''), also known as the African crested porcupine, is a species of rodent in the family Hystricidae native to Italy, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest porcupine species in the world. ...

(''Hystrix cristata'') is a nocturnal terrestrial

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

that tolerates steep terrain.

Wild rabbit

The

wild rabbit Wild, wild, wilds or wild may refer to: Common meanings * Wilderness, a wild natural environment * Wildlife, an undomesticated organism * Wildness, the quality of being wild or untamed Art, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Wild ...

(''Oryctolagus cuniculus'') is a lagomorph mammal; wild numbers are common in

, but declining. Lepus_capensis

Cape hare

The

Cape hare The Cape hare (''Lepus capensis''), also called the brown hare and the desert hare, is a hare native to Africa and Arabia extending into India. Taxonomy The Cape hare was one of the many Mammalia in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, mammal ...

(''Lepus capensis'') is a rodent.

Genet

The African genet (''Genetta genetta afra'') is a very shy and discreet nocturnal carnivorous mammal, whose size, color and morphology can sometimes be mistaken for that of a cat. There are numerous subspecies in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and the

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

. It is a representative species of the Viverridae family. Herpestes_ichneumon

Ichneumon mongoose

The ichneumon mongoose (''Herpestes ichneumon'') is a mammal known locally as zerdi in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

and izerdhi in Berber. Both names derive from the Arabic verb "zarada" meaning "to swallow", reflecting the mongoose's ability to swallow its food and small prey.

Barbary stag

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'', ...

(''Cervus elaphus barbarus benetti'') is a large cervid subspecies of the

Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...

found in Algerian forests. It is on the verge of extinction as the only representative of the Cervidae family in

. The

is diurnal, but often eats at night in fields and meadows as a crepuscular and nocturnal species, where it feeds as a

herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...

and ruminant. It prefers fir (''Abies alba'') to spruce (''Picea abies'') and wood, eating the buds and young shoots of trees and

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s, except for thorny trees, which it avoids.

Wild boar

The

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...

(''Sus scrofa'') colonizes virtually every habitat in this forest. When the soil is damp, this animal turns over the earth with its strong stoppers in search of invertebrates and plant roots. Its lifespan varies between 8 and 10 years.

Birds

The Réghaïa forest is a site visited by several species of migratory, resting, sedentary and nesting birds. It is home to three globally endangered waterbird species, namely the marbled teal, the

Ferruginous duck The ferruginous duck (''Aythya nyroca''), also known as ferruginous pochard, common white-eye or white-eyed pochard, is a medium-sized diving duck from Eurosiberia. The scientific name is derived from the Ancient Greek word, (), an unknown se ...

and the

white-headed duck The white-headed duck (''Oxyura leucocephala'') is a small diving duck some long. The male has a white head with black crown, a blue bill, and reddish-grey plumage. The female has a dark bill and rather duller colouring. Its breeding habitat is ...

, which nest at Réghaïa. Around 3,000 waterbirds frequent this forest and its lake, which hosts an average of 47 local and migratory bird species each year.

Flora

The Réghaïa forest adjoining the lake is populated by hydrophilic trees (''

Salix alba ''Salix alba'', the white willow, is a species of willow native to Europe and western and Central Asia.Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland''. BSBI Handbook No. 4. .Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain an ...

'', ''

Populus alba ''Populus alba'', commonly called silver poplar,Webb, C. J.; Sykes, W. R.; Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. IV. Naturalised Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms, Dicotyledons. 4. Christchurch, New Zealand, Botany Division, D.S.I.R. si ...

'', ''

Eucalyptus camaldulensis ''Eucalyptus camaldulensis'', commonly known as river red gum, is a flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae, and is Endemism, endemic to Australia. It is a tree with smooth white or cream-coloured bark, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flow ...

'') and the plants that live there are the cattail Typha latifolia and the rush ''Juncus acutus'', as well as the halophilic ''Plantago coronopus'' group. Groups of ''Pancratium maritimum'', ''Lotus creticus'', ''Ammophila arenaria'' and ''Chamaerops humilis'' grow in narrow strips along the coast. The

scrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally o ...

that forms a more or less narrow belt around the forest and lake provides good protection for birdlife. It is represented by the Oleo-lentisque composed of ''Olea europaea'', ''Pistacia lentiscus'', ''Crataegus monogyna'', ''Rubus ulmifolius'', ''Smilax'' ''aspera'' and ''Hedera helix''.

Hunting center

The Réghaïa forest is home to a cynegetic center in the southwest of its perimeter, which collaborates actively with the

Zéralda Zéralda (; , Latn, ar, zarālda) or Zeralda, is a commune in the province of Algiers, Algeria. Notable people * Mohamed Belhocine, Algerian medical scientist, professor of internal medicine and epidemiology. * Abdelaziz Bouteflika, fifth Presi ...

cynegetic center. It was created by decree no. 83-75 of January 8, 1983. The Réghaïa cynegetic center was upgraded in 2006, after having long been a protected reserve reserved exclusively for the specialists who carried out their work there. It was then promoted in 2011 to manage the Réghaïa nature reserve. The ''Réghaïa Cynégétique Center'', in collaboration with the ''Direction Générale des Forêts'', ensures that the Réghaïa wetland remains on the

list of wetlands. The CCR has four essential missions: hunting, ornithological monitoring, scientific research, communication and public awareness. It includes an education and awareness center, an exhibition hall for plant and animal species, and two rooms, one for practical work in the natural sciences and the other for film screenings. It is also a hunting center for breeding waterfowl to repopulate water bodies with certain species.

National ringing center

The Réghaïa forest is home to the National Bird Banding Center (CNB). This center tracks wild birds by marking them with bands in order to study several aspects of their life in the wild, such as migratory movements. The CNB collaborates with a number of international centers, as the regions traveled by banded birds can be very distant, especially during migration. Each ring placed on a bird is unique, thanks to an alphanumeric code coupled with a file containing various information on the bird (species name, sex or age) as well as the date and location of banding. This information can be supplemented by biometric data (weight, wing and beak length, adiposity, etc.). Through the organization of bird releases throughout Algeria, this center is working towards the creation of a national network of banding units and, ultimately, integration into the international network.{{Cite web , last=Rif , first=Nahla , date=2009 , title=ZONES HUMIDES ALGÉRIENNES. Vers une envolée "ornithologique" , url=http://iflisen2008.over-blog.com/article-27713958.html , language=fr

References

Forests of Algeria