| Qid: | Q23013092 |
| Location: | Iles Habibas Algeria |
| Coordinates: | 35.7206°N -1.1334°W |
| Yearbuilt: | 1878[1] |
| Construction: | masonry tower |
| Shape: | quadrangular tower with balcony and lantern atop 1-storey keeper’s house[2] |
| Marking: | white tower, |
| Height: | 13.8m (45.3feet) |
| Focalheight: | 113.3m (371.7feet) |
| Intensity: | 180 W |
| Characteristic: | Fl W 5s. |
| Managingagent: | Office Nationale de Signalisation Maritime |
The Habibas islands (ar|جزر حبيبة) 35.7247°N -1.1333°W comprise a small archipelago of two small, rocky islands, Gharbia and Charguia, located about 12 km off the Algerian coast, north-west of Oran. Administratively, they lie within Bou Zedjar municipality in Aïn Témouchent Province, Algeria. The islands and surrounding waters constitute the Iles Habibas Marine Nature Reserve.
The islands are of volcanic origin. The largest, Gharbia, is 1.3 km long. The total land area of the archipelago is about 40 ha.[3] The highest point on the islands is 105 m. There is no permanent population, but there is a small jetty, a lighthouse (built in 1879) and a few small buildings.
The islands' scrub vegetation includes Ephedra fragilis, Withania frutescens and Frankenia corymbosa. The archipelago has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports significant breeding populations of Audouin's gulls and Eleonora's falcons.[4]
By the end of 2006, a project to rehabilitate and maintain the islands was to commence, backed by Algerian and French funding. The stated objective was to support the local ecosystem.[5]