Gouraya National Park

Coordinates: 36°46′N 5°6′E / 36.767°N 5.100°E / 36.767; 5.100
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Gouraya National Park
The Aiguades
Map showing the location of Gouraya National Park
Map showing the location of Gouraya National Park
LocationBéjaïa Province, Algeria
Nearest cityBéjaïa
Coordinates36°46′N 5°6′E / 36.767°N 5.100°E / 36.767; 5.100
Area20.8 km2 (8.0 sq mi)
Established1984
Visitors60.000 (in 2005)
Map

The

national parks of Algeria. It is located in Béjaïa Province, near the shrine of Sidi Touati
.

History

The park became an Algerian National Park in 1984, and has been

biosphere reserve in 2004.[1]

Description

The park owes its name to the Gouraya Mountain (altitude 660m) located within the park's boundaries.[2] The ground elevation in the park oscillates between -135m and 660m. There is also a lake, the Lake Mézaïa.[1]

The park is located on a calcaro-dolomitic ground.[3]

The park is north-east of

swimming
destination for many Algerians.

Population

The permanent population in the Gouraya National Park is of Berber origins, 1,655 inhabitants across 13 villages.[1]

Wildlife

A magot in Yemma Gouraya.

The park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, including Barbary macaques and jackals who live in the park's forests. The Barbary macaque is a primate with a very restricted range in portions of northwestern North Africa and disjunctively in Gibraltar.[1]

In 2011, the French

Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique led a phytosociological study which concluded there were 7 vegetation groups belonging to 4 phytosociological classes:[3]

  • Quercetea ilicis Braun-Blanquet (1947)
  • Querco-Fagetea Braun-Blanquet & Vlieg (1937)
  • Crithmo-limonielea Braun-Blanquet (1947)
  • Asplenietea rupestris (H.M) Braun-Blanquet (1934)
Protected fauna[1]
Endangered animals[1]
Marine mammals of national importance[1]
  • Sperm whales (
    Physeter macrocephalus
    )
  • Short-beaked common dolphins (
    Delphinus delphis
    )
  • Bottlenose dolphins (
    Tursiops truncatus
    )
  • Harbour porpoises (
    Phocoena phocoena
    )

Gallery

  • Yemma Gouraya, next to Béjaïa.
    Yemma Gouraya, next to Béjaïa.
  • The city of Bougie at the base of Yemma Gouraya mountain.
    The city of Bougie at the base of Yemma Gouraya mountain.
  • Monkeys' peak (Pic des singes), above the Cap Carbon.
    Monkeys' peak (Pic des singes), above the Cap Carbon.
  • Fort Gouraya, which culminates at 672m.
    Fort Gouraya, which culminates at 672m.
  • Dead fish on the river Summam, probably from pesticide pollution due to heavy rains (2008).
    Dead fish on the river Summam, probably from
    pesticide pollution
    due to heavy rains (2008).
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gouraya National Park.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Biosphere Reserve Information, Unesco.org, 3 April 2006
  2. ^ Gouraya National Park - Biodiversity at its Best, Algeria.com
  3. ^ a b K. Rebbas, Errol Véla, Approche phytosociologique du Parc National de Gouraya (Béjaïa, Algérie), Inra.fr, 2011

External links

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