Birdwatching in Ouarzazate, Morocco - Hôtel Riad Dar Daïf

Birdwatching
in Ouarzazate

Birdwatching around the Ouarzazate’s lake and from Riad Dar Daïf.

Passing the large wooden door of the riad Dar Daïf, and on the left of the nearby mausoleum which includes the remains of Marabout, a path will lead you through the gardens.

From the first steps taken, you will be able to observe the birds as nature is abundant and protective. A little further, and after having passed through crops, you will reach the Ouarzazate wadi which leads to the banks of the lake.

This lake is both the meeting point of two large wadis, that of Ouarzazate and that of Dadès, but it is also the result of the construction of the Al Mansour Ed-Dahbi dam which allows downstream the regulation of irrigation water all along the Drâa wadi.

The lake has been listed as a site of biological and ecological interest in the global Plan for Protected Areas of Morocco. It is part of the Moroccan South East Oasis Biosphere Reserve. Hunting is prohibited.

Ramsar

Even more emblematic, the Ramsar convention relating to wetlands important international has been classified under the name Ramsar – Middle Drâa a vast area ranging from Lake Ouarzazate to the town of M’hamid Ghizlane at the edge of the great Sahara desert and through the Drâa valley with its gorges and palm groves.

Lake Ouarzazate is home to many sedentary birds and provides stopovers perfectly suited to migratory water and desert birds. About twenty winter bird species nest in the lake area, while about a hundred other bird species are more particularly attracted by the nearby palm groves.

Three species of threatened or vulnerable waterbirds are known to breed on the site: the Least Bittern, the Shelduck Casarca, the Marbled Teal. And three vitale species live near the water: the white stork, the stone curlew and the Persian Bee-eater.

Lake Ouarzazate and its surroundings thus present themselves to all nature and bird enthusiasts as a favorite place for unique observation spots.

See also: https://rsis.ramsar.org/RISapp/files/RISrep/MA1482RIS.pdf