The Aïr and Ténéré National Nature Reserve () is a national nature reserve in

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

. It includes several overlapping reserve designations, and is designated a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. It covers both the eastern half of the

Aïr Mountains The Aïr Mountains or Aïr Massif (Air Tamajeq language, Tamajăq: ''Ayǝr''; Hausa language, Hausa: Eastern ''Azbin'', Western ''Abzin'') is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara. Part of the West Sa ...

and the western sections of the Ténéré desert. It has been identified 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 i ...

as an

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 ...

. The mountains are an important spot for

afrotropical The Afrotropical realm is one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Sub-Saharan Africa, the southern Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, and the islands of the western Indian Ocean. It was formerly known as the Ethiopi ...

and

palaearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is a biogeographic realm of the Earth, the largest of eight. Confined almost entirely to the Eastern Hemisphere, it stretches across Europe and Asia, north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. Th ...

migratory birds. The Aïr and Ténéré Natural Reserves

was established in 1991, and designated as a site in danger in 1992. It was designated under criteria vii, ix, x, and is designated #573. The entire reserve covers , which made it the second largest nature reserve in Africa, and the fourth largest in the world. UNESCO's Aïr and Ténéré Natural Reserves include two parts: ;Aïr and Ténéré National Nature Reserve :

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

type IVnep-wcmc site record
/ref> :Established 1 January 1988 :64,560 km² ; Aïr and Ténéré Addax Sanctuary :Strict Nature Reserve IUCN type Ia :Established 1 January 1988 :12,800 km² In 2023, UNESCO reported that the reserve was under threat due to civil unrest and mining. Though illegal activities continue to threaten the reserve, local involvement has helped control gold panning. The 2023 UNESCO report told of four ecological missions. These missions confirmed Dama and Dorcas gazelles and Barbary sheep were still present on the reserve. The addax has not been sighted in 20 years. As for birds, 50 species have been observed with the number of Nubian bustards showing a sharp descrease. In contrast, 165 species of birds were observed in the initial UNESCO listing. The declining biodiversity in the reserve is one of the reasons it is listed on the World Heritage in Danger list due to the flagship species significance in the "outstanding universal value" of the site.

Geography

Aïr is, geographically speaking, an island of Sahelian-type fauna and flora, isolated in a Saharan desert environment. It therefore constitutes a set of exceptional relict ecosystems combined with mountain and plain landscapes of exceptional interest and aesthetic value, justifying its inclusion on the UNESCO world heritage list. The living dunes of the Ténéré quickly modify the landscape by displacement and deposition of sand. The region contains mountains of blue

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

presenting a unique aesthetic interest in this environment.

Fauna

The reserve includes natural habitats important for the survival of three

threatened species A threatened species is any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which is vulnerable to extinction in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensatio ...

: the

dorcas gazelle The dorcas gazelle (''Gazella dorcas''), also known as the ariel gazelle, is a small and common gazelle. The dorcas gazelle stands about at the shoulder, with a head and body length of and a weight of . The numerous subspecies survive on veget ...

, the rhim gazelle, and the

addax The addax (''Addax nasomaculatus''), also known as the white antelope and the screwhorn antelope, is an antelope native to the Sahara Desert. The only member of the genus ''Addax'', it was first described scientifically by Henri de Blainvil ...

. In total, 40 species of

mammals A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the 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 middle e ...

, 165 species of

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

, 18 species of

reptiles Reptiles, as commonly defined, are a group of tetrapods with an ectothermic metabolism and Amniotic egg, amniotic development. Living traditional reptiles comprise four Order (biology), orders: Testudines, Crocodilia, Squamata, and Rhynchocepha ...

and one

amphibian Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...

species have been identified in the reserve.

References

Jennifer Talbot. The Tuareg People and the Air Tenere Conservation and Development Project, Niger, West Africa
Population-Environment dynamics : transitions and sustainability, University of Michigan, 1998.

External links

UNESCO World Heritage Site profile

UNEP-WCMC World Heritage Site datasheet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Air And Tenere National Nature Reserve National parks of Niger Protected areas established in 1988 Important Bird Areas of Niger World Heritage Sites in Niger