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Year of most recent IBA criteria assessment: 2001

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species	Current IUCN Red List Category	Season	Year(s) of estimate	Population estimate	IBA Criteria Triggered
Lesser Sandplover Charadrius mongolus	LC	winter	-	1,500 individuals	A4i
Greater Sandplover Charadrius leschenaultii	LC	winter	-	1,250 individuals	A4i
Crab-plover Dromas ardeola	LC	non-breeding	-	800 individuals	A4i
Saunders's Tern Sternula saundersi	LC	non-breeding	-	5,700 individuals	A4i
Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii	LC	breeding	-	1,500 breeding pairs	A4i

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 - small-holder farming	past (and unlikely to return) and no longer limiting	small area/few individuals (<10%)	no or imperceptible deterioration	low
Biological resource use	fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale	past (and unlikely to return) and no longer limiting	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	no or imperceptible deterioration	low
Biological resource use	logging & wood harvesting - intentional use: subsistence/small scale	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	very high
Climate change and severe weather	drought	happening now	whole area/population (>90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	very high
Climate change and severe weather	habitat shifting and alteration	happening now	whole area/population (>90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	very high
Human intrusions and disturbance	recreational activities	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - unspecified species	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Natural system modifications	fire & fire suppression - suppression in fire frequency/intensity	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Pollution	garbage & solid waste	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high

Condition of habitat (state)
Habitat	Habitat Detail	Reference Area (ha)	Actual Area (ha)	% of habitat remaining	% of carrying capacity (overall)	Result
Wetlands (inland)	Mangroves	0	0	-	moderate (70-90%)	very unfavourable

Conservation actions taken at site (response)
Conservation Designation	Management Planning	Conservation Action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A comprehensive and appropriate management plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the populations of qualifying bird species	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented but these are not comprehensive and are limited by resources and capacity	high

For more information about IBA monitoring please click here

Protected Area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Watamu	Marine National Park	1,000	protected area contained by site	1,000
Watamu	Marine National Reserve	3,200	protected area overlaps with site	0
Mallindi	Marine National Park	600	protected area contained by site	630
Malindi-Watamu	Marine National Reserve	24,500	protected area contained by site	24,500
Malindi-Watamu	UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve	19,600	protected area contained by site	19,600
Malindi	Marine National Reserve	21,300	protected area contained by site	0

IUCN Habitat	Habitat detail	Extent (% of site)
Sea	Coral reefs and keys, Open Sea, Shallow marine waters, Sea cliffs & rocky shores	-
Wetlands (inland)	Intertidal mud, sand or salt flats, Mangroves	-
Forest		-

For further information about the habitat classification please click here.

Land-use	Extent (% of site)
fisheries/aquaculture	-
nature conservation and research	-
tourism/recreation	-

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

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2022) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Mida Creek, Whale Island and the Malindi - Watamu coast. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 30/09/2022.