Dawoud island protected area -Rosetta branch (An Ecological Study)

     Egypt has a total of 35 natural reserves which are usually listed in accordance with the criteria defined all over the world. These cover more than 97000 square kilometers, which represents 9.7 % of total land area.
 
     Prime Minister's decree no. 1969 of 1998 declared the 144 islands of the River Nile as reserves. 30 of these islands are located in Rosetta branch and 19 in Damietta branch, as wetlands, with an area of 160 km². They harbor unique flora and are regarded as great reservoir of rare genetic diversity, and, therefore, have special biological significance.
  
     Dawoud Island, in the Rosetta branch, covers an area of 1.4 km2. Different kinds of pollution, pesticides flow because of the leaching operation from the agricultural lands as well as agricultural drainage from the nearby farmlands in delta to the Rosetta branch.
     Natural reserves have several interesting geographical formations, and also include high density of land use. The geographical variables support a rich vegetation, more than 134 species of flora, 20 species of birds, 7 species of mammals including the red fox, as well as a number of other species.
     At the same time, human development negatively impact some of these reserves. Conservation should take top priority in these areas.
     Finally, if the natural reserves are properly designed and managed, touristic activities cannot be fixed in these reserves, especially when considering the conservation of biodiversity on the island, because of the conflict of interest between the preservation of these natural reserves and tourism as a human activity