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Year of most recent IBA criteria assessment: 2009

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species	Current IUCN Red List Category	Season	Year(s) of estimate	Population estimate	IBA Criteria Triggered
Hazel Grouse Bonasa bonasia	LC	resident	2000-2009	5-20 breeding pairs	C6
Black Stork Ciconia nigra	LC	breeding	2000-2009	1-2 breeding pairs	C6
Osprey Pandion haliaetus	LC	passage	2000-2009	10-20 individuals	C6
European Honey-buzzard Pernis apivorus	LC	breeding	2000-2009	1-5 breeding pairs	C6
Middle Spotted Woodpecker Leiopicus medius	LC	breeding	2000-2009	5-10 breeding pairs	C6

Note: This table presents the IBA criteria triggered and the species that triggered then at the time of assessment, the current IUCN Red List category may vary from that which was in place at that time.

For more information about the IBA assessment process and criteria please click here

Threats to the site (pressure)
Threat Level 1	Threat Level 2	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Agricultural expansion and intensification	annual & perennial non-timber crops - agro-industry farming	happening now	small area/few individuals (<10%)	slow but significant deterioration	low
Human intrusions and disturbance	recreational activities	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	high
Natural system modifications	other ecosystem modifications	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium

Condition of habitat (state)
Habitat	Habitat Detail	Reference Area (ha)	Actual Area (ha)	% of habitat remaining	% of carrying capacity (overall)	Result
Forest	Broadleaved deciduous woodland	0	0	poor (40-69%)	poor (40-69%)	very unfavourable

Condition of key/trigger populations (state)
Scientific	Common	TargetPop	ActualPop	Units	Remaining	Result
Bonasa bonasia	Hazel Grouse	30	10	breeding pairs	34	very unfavourable
Pandion haliaetus	Osprey	15	15	breeding pairs	100	favourable

Conservation actions taken at site (response)
Conservation Designation	Management Planning	Conservation Action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	No management plan exists but the management planning process has begun	Some limited conservation initiatives are in place	low

For more information about IBA monitoring please click here

Protected Area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Vallée supérieure de la Sûre et affluents de la frontière belge à Esch-sur-Sûre	Special Protection Area (Birds Directive)	3,587	protected area overlaps with site	3,581
Vallée supérieure de la Sûre et affluents de la frontière belge à Esch-sur-Sûre	Zones protégées d'intérêt communautaire - Zones Oiseaux ZPS	3,587	protected area overlaps with site	0
Vallée supérieure de la Sûre / Lac du barrage	Zones protégées d'intérêt communautaire - Zones Habitats ZSC	4,363	protected area overlaps with site	0
Vallée supérieure de la Sûre / Lac du barrage	Site of Community Importance (Habitats Directive)	4,363	protected area overlaps with site	3,297
Vallée de la Haute-Sûre	Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance	16,897	protected area contains site	0
Pont Misère-Barrage de retenue	Humid Zone	280	protected area overlaps with site	280
Parc Naturel de la Haute-Sûre / Naturpark Öewersauer	Parc Naturel	20,264	protected area overlaps with site	0
Lac de la Haute-Sûre / Neunhausen-Ningserboesch	Forest Reserve	901	protected area overlaps with site	450
Lac de la Haute-Sûre / Mecher-Schlaedchen	Forest Reserve	160	protected area overlaps with site	148
Lac de la Haute-Sûre / Insenborn-Buurgknapp	Forest Reserve	111	protected area contained by site	111
Bruch - Pont Misère	Zones protégées d'intérêt national - Réserve naturelle	1,477	protected area overlaps with site	0
Boulaide/Bauschleiden-Paaffels	Humid Zone	212	protected area contained by site	212

IUCN Habitat	Habitat detail	Extent (% of site)
Forest	Broadleaved deciduous woodland, Native coniferous woodland, Alluvial and very wet forest	-
Shrubland	Scrub	-
Grassland	Mesophile grasslands	-
Wetlands (inland)	Standing freshwater, Rivers and streams	-
Artificial/Terrestrial	Arable land, Forestry plantations	-

For further information about the habitat classification please click here.

Land-use	Extent (% of site)
agriculture	-
forestry	-
hunting	-
nature conservation and research	-
rangeland/pastureland	-
water management	-

For further information about the land use classification please click here.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2022) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Upper Valley of the Sure. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 10/08/2022.