Jabal Al-Kabeer reserve
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Habitat: Semi –steppe batha
Ecozone: Central highlands
Area handed over: 9,500 dunums
IUCN criteria: IV -Managed Reserve
Land owner: Government
Governorate: Nablus Governorate
North Palestine
Phytogeographical Regions: Mediterranean Sea
Rainfall: 300-500 mm
Soil: Terra Rossa, Rendzina
Nearby village: Azmout, Albathan, Alnasarieh, Alaqrabanieh
Jabal AlKabeer Nature Reserve is located 460m above sea level on the lands of Azmut village, between a mountain plateau and flat land.
It oversees the cliffs of Bathan village (also known as the Rock Downhill), the Jordan Valley, and Ajloun Mountains in Jordan. This gives the area its distinctive features: the climate of the valley and the mountainous area with many slopes.
The visitors reach the beginning of the reserve by passing through a bumpy road. The Palestinian Authority owns 9 thousand dunams from the total 23 thousand dunams of the reserve's area. The Israelis' control over large parts of the reserve as well as the establishment of the settlement Elon Moreh constitutes an obstacle to the protection of the reserve and furthermore results in the decrease of its distinctive natural resources.
In case the visitor wants to get some rest and to renew his energy during the trip, he should look out for some thyme. This plant is one of the many plants growing in the reserve and very rich in its aromatic fragrance . What's more, the existence of such plants proves that the reserve is affected by the Mediterranean climate.
One bird that is very characteristic for the reserve is the laughing dove. It is known for its beautiful dark red-brown color and feeds on seeds and ants during the time of reproduction. Visitors can also see the common kestrel flying above the reserve, a Palestinian endangered middle-sized bird which was recorded in the reserve by bird experts in 2015. The reserve is also the habitat of a variety of other birds. Moreover, during the past year, the Palestine Viper snake as one of the most poisonous snakes was recorded to be living inside the reserve.
During the trip of about 6-7km length in the reserve, the visitor will face difficulty in going down from the upper part to 600m long lower part in the cliffs of Bathan Valley.
However, upon reaching the end of the reserve, the visitor will be able to enjoy the reserve's beauty as a variety of different plants are blossoming on both sides of the path. Particularly striking is also one big tree with a trunk with many branches at the end of the trip. This tree is around 2 to 4 meters high and is called "Alsidr – Buckthorn". Any visitor passing through this ending point will not be able to resist looking upward to contemplate on the mountain that rises in front of him and forms a beautiful sight for visitors.
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Nedal Sawalmeh 0598222466
Ala Hammouz 0599392393
Riziq Ghayada 05284722019