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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2009 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:

Species	Red List	Season (year/s of estimate)	Size	IBA criteria
Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis	LC	non-breeding (2003)	75,000 birds	A4i
American Avocet Recurvirostra americana	LC	passage (2003)	50,000 birds	A4i
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus	LC	resident (2003)	35,000 birds	A4i
Snowy Plover Charadrius nivosus	NT	breeding (2003)	200 pairs	A4i
Marbled Godwit Limosa fedoa	VU	passage (2003)	10,000 birds	A4i
Western Sandpiper Calidris mauri	LC	passage (2003)	75,000 birds	A4i
Short-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus griseus	VU	passage (2003)	5,000 birds	A4i
Long-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus scolopaceus	NT	passage (2003)	60,000 birds	A4i
Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis	LC	non-breeding (2003)	500,000 birds	A4i
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	non-breeding (-)	100,000-499,999 birds	A4iii

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2009. The most recent assessment (2014) is shown below.

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Climate change and severe weather	happe­ning now	whole of popul­ation/area (>90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	very high
Pollution	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happe­ning now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Most of area (50–90%) covered (including the most critical parts for important bird species)	A management plan exists, but it is out of date or not compre­hensive	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented, but these are not compre­hensive and are limited by resources and capacity	medium

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
-	Sonny Bono Salton Sea	National Wildlife Refuge (IV)	20

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Salton Sea (USA). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/salton-sea-iba-usa on 22/12/2024.