The Sebkhates des Aurès wetland complex is located on the high plateaux of eastern Algeria, formerly known as the ‘land of lakes’, and is one of Algeria's most important regions for waterbird conservation, encompassing 10 Ramsar sites. For several years now, a waterbird monitoring programme has been in place as part of the complex's regional wetlands observatory, set up by the ANAO with AFD funding from the ‘CSOs and wetlands’ project. This programme identified glaring gaps in our knowledge of waterbirds, particularly in terms of species recognition, inventories and population status updates.

To capitalize on existing monitoring activities and enrich the databases with new observations, this project will develop a Waterbird Atlas as a tool for site users, managers and researchers to recognise species, their status and distribution. The work will involve the participation of naturalist photographers (Algerian Wildlife Watchers Association), the hunters' federation, local associations (NGOs) and government officials. It will be a reference for hunters who are not familiar with the species that are authorised or prohibited for hunting. The development of the Atlas will make it possible to establish databases to support regular, long-term updates to monitor changes in waterbird populations and the state of health of wetlands. The book will be published in French and Arabic, with species nomenclature in the local language (Amazigh: Chaoui). The first of its kind in Algeria, the Atlas will serve as an initial roadmap for similar work to be developed for other fauna groups.