Important Bird Area

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An Important Bird Area (IBA) is an area designated as globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations.

IBAs are determined by an internationally-agreed set of criteria. To be listed as an IBA, a site must satisfy at least one of the following conditions:

• provide habitat to sustain a population of an internationally threatened species.
• house large numbers or concentrations of migratory birds, shorebirds, or seabirds.
• be part of a large number of range-restricted or biome-restricted species.

Generally, IBAs must be amenable to conservation and wildlife management as well. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed by BirdLife International; IBAs in a given country are designated by a national conservation organization.

[edit] Some IBAs

• Ythan Estuary, Scotland
• Fowlsheugh, Scotland
• Farne Islands, England
• Kullaberg, Sweden
• Richardson Bay, USA
• Lake Žuvintas, Lithuania
• Hutovo Blato, Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Belum-Temengor, Malaysia
• Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve, Oregon, USA

[edit] See also

• List of Important Bird Areas in the United Kingdom

[edit] External links

• http://www.birdlife.org/action/science/sites/index.html
• http://www.audubon.org/bird/iba/index.html