Ichkeul National Park
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How it came to be
Ichkeul National Park lies in northern Tunisia, 25 km south-west of Bizerte, and takes in the mountain of Djebel Ichkeul, Lake Ichkeul and the surrounding marshes. The lake is the last survivor of a chain of lakes that once stretched across North Africa. Under the Hafsid dynasty in the 13th century it was a hunting reserve.
The lake and marshes are a wintering ground for hundreds of thousands of migratory birds, and in some years more than 300,000 ducks, geese and coots gather at once. Three species of global conservation concern visit: the white-headed duck, the ferruginous duck and the marbled duck. More than 200 animal and 500 plant species have been recorded.
It became a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1977 and a World Heritage site in 1980. Dams later built on the rivers feeding the lake sharply reduced the inflow of fresh water; reeds and other freshwater plants gave way to salt-tolerant ones, and bird numbers fell. The park was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1996 and removed in 2006, after steps to retain fresh water.
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