Boundaries

This ecoregion includes the valley of the Orontes River of Lebanon and Syria, and northern tributaries of Turkey and Syria. It is surrounded by the Turkish mountain region to the north, the Jabal an Nusayriyah Mountains and Nur Daglari Mountains to the west, the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountains to the south, and Jabal ar Ruwaq to the southeast. It is bounded by the Southern Anatolian ecoregion [432] to the north, Coastal Levant ecoregion [436] to the west, Upper Tigris & Euphrates ecoregion [442] to the east, and Arabian Interior ecoregion [440] to the east and south.

Topography

The Jabal an Nusayriyah and Nur Daglari mountain ranges to the north and south of the Orontes sea outlet separate the basin from Mediterranean drainages, and plateau deserts to the east separate it from other basins. The highest elevations in the ecoregion occur in the Lebanon Mountains, with peaks above 2900 m.

Freshwater habitats

Amik Lake was once an important freshwater habitat, relatively unusual in Southwest Asia.

Terrestrial habitats

This area is a fertile valley surrounded by plateau and mountain ranges with desert and semi-desert conditions. It falls predominantly within the Eastern Mediterranean conifer-sclerophyllus broadleaf forests terrestrial ecoregion, with pockets of Southern Anatolian montane conifer and deciduous forests in the west, and an area of Eastern Anatolian deciduous forests in the north.

Description of endemic fishes

There are no endemic genera, but the endemic species include five cyprinids (Acanthobrama centisquama, Alburnus orontis, Barbus lorteti, Chondrostoma kinzelbachi, Pseudophoxinus libani) and one balitorid (Schistura namiri).

Other noteworthy fishes

Bahrat Homs, an old storage reservoir on the Orontes River, has introduced carp and is overfished. Other exotic fish species may be competing with native species.

Ecological phenomena

The loss of the Amik Lake restricts knowledge of its fauna to historical documents, mostly from the nineteenth century. There was an extremely rich bird fauna with possible endemic taxa. Replacement of original marshes with irrigation channels impoverished the fish fauna in this basin.

Justification for delineation

This ecoregion was delineated base on its high level of endemism and diverse fauna in a small basin. Bahrat Homs is an important wintering and staging area for migratory waterfowl.

Level of taxonomic exploration

Good