Abstract
Summary Natural environments and habitats suffer from different kinds of risks due to the increase of human population and their activities. More attention and hard work is needed to keep the components of biodiversity in natural state and under control is needed. Present paper addressed the Libyan legislations concerning the biodiversity conservation and protected areas. Although, there are successive issuances of legislations for the protection of the Libyan environment, but they are mostly focused on the causes of pollution. There are 12 protected areas and national parks in Libya, conversely, there are many other sites with unique landscapes and good biodiversity components in need to be protected such as Farwa complex (Lagoon and Island). In 2009 the Lagoon was declared as a reserve area for prevent the fishing. The area has diverse unique habitats of extensive tidal areas and mudflats and an accumulation of Posidonia oceanica on the northern part of the island. These conditions provide good nesting grounds for some species such as Sterna albifrons (Pallas, 1764), Sterna hirundo (Linnaeus, 1758) and Charadrius alexandrinus (Linnaeus, 1758). Moreover, the area attracts many migratory species in large numbers of individuals during their flight to Africa or to spend winter season in Libya. Four endangered bird species were reported by the area, as well as one of the endangered species in the Mediterranean region Loggerheaded turtle Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) that uses the Island’s sandy beach for nesting. Over all, a high priority for protection measures is necessary to maintain the current character and components of the area. Key words: Legislation, Conservation and Breeding