| Gouraya National Park | |
|---|---|
 The Aiguades | |
  | |
| Location | Béjaïa Province,Algeria |
| Nearest city | Béjaïa |
| Coordinates | 36°46′N5°6′E / 36.767°N 5.100°E /36.767; 5.100 |
| Area | 20.8 km2 (8.0 sq mi) |
| Established | 1984 |
| Visitors | 60.000 (in 2005) |
 | |
Thenational park of Gouraya (Arabic:الحديقة الوطنية قورايا) is one of thecoastalnational parks of Algeria. It is located inBéjaïa Province, near the shrine ofSidi Touati.
The park became an Algerian National Park in 1984, and has beenUNESCO-recognized as abiosphere reserve in 2004.[1]
The park owes its name to the Gouraya Mountain (altitude 660m) located within the park's boundaries.[2] The ground elevation in the park oscillates between -135m and 660m. There is also a lake, the Lake Mézaïa.[1]
The park is located on a calcaro-dolomitic ground.[3]
The park is north-east ofBéjaïa, close to the city. The park includes manybeaches andcliffs, which make it aswimming destination for many Algerians.
The permanent population in the Gouraya National Park is of Berber origins, 1,655 inhabitants across 13 villages.[1]
The park is home to a wide variety offlora andfauna, includingBarbary macaques andjackals who live in the park's forests. The Barbary macaque is aprimate with a very restricted range in portions of northwesternNorth Africa and disjunctively inGibraltar.[1]
In 2011, the FrenchInstitut National de la Recherche Agronomique led a phytosociological study which concluded there were 7 vegetation groups belonging to 4 phytosociological classes:[3]
