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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2011 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
Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris	NT	breeding (2009)	1–4 pairs	B2, C2, C6
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina	LC	winter (2009)	1,401–9,450 birds	A4i, B1i, C3
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	LC	winter (2009)	1,128–10,985 birds	A4i, B1i, C3
Balearic Shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus	CR	winter (1999–2007)	max 615 birds	A1, A4ii, B1ii, C1, C2
Common Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus	LC	breeding (2009)	82–108 pairs	B1i, B2, C2, C6
Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax	LC	breeding (2009)	117–156 pairs	B2, C2, C6
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	LC	breeding (2009)	137–208 pairs	B1i, B2, C2, C6
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis	LC	resident (2009)	1,556–3,540 pairs	A4i, B1i, C3
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea	LC	breeding (2009)	18–51 pairs	B1i, B2, C2, C6
Little Egret Egretta garzetta	LC	resident (2009)	1,286–2,215 pairs	A4i, B1i, C2, C6
Little Egret Egretta garzetta	LC	winter (2009)	2,917–5,448 birds	A4i, B1i, C2, C6
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo	LC	winter (2009)	2,681–4,280 birds	B1i, C3
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus	LC	breeding (2009)	390–695 pairs	A4i, B1i, C2, C6
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus	LC	resident (2009)	60–74 pairs	B2
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	NT	winter (2009)	81–168 birds	A1, C1
Slender-billed Gull Larus genei	LC	breeding (2006–2009)	72–224 pairs	C2, C6
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	LC	resident (2009)	530–1,081 pairs	B1i, C3
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	LC	winter (2009)	20,902–43,877 birds	A4i, B1i, C3
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii	VU	passage (1997)	100–400 birds	A1, C1, C6
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii	VU	winter (2009)	11–24 birds	C6
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii	VU	resident (2008–2009)	140–275 pairs	A1, A4i, B1i, C1, C2, C6
Little Tern Sternula albifrons	LC	breeding (2007–2009)	177–223 pairs	B1i, B2, C2, C6
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	LC	breeding (2007–2009)	2,290–2,292 pairs	B1i, C2, C6
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	LC	non-breeding (1999–2007)	62–6,267 birds	B1i, C2, C6
Common Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica	LC	breeding (2009)	634–1,031 pairs	A4i, B1i, B2, C2, C6
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	LC	winter (2009)	120–279 birds	C6
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	LC	resident (2007–2009)	2,000–2,583 pairs	A4i, B1i, B2, C2, C6
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	breeding (1996)	4,900–6,900 pairs	A4iii, C4
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	winter (1997)	14,000–100,000 birds	A4iii, C4

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2011. The most recent assessment (2016) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Actual vs Reference (units)	% remaining	Result
Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris	1 / 4 (pairs)	25	very poor
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina	37 / 41 (adults)	91	good
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina	1,705 / 9,450 (birds)	19	very poor
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	4,828 / 10,985 (birds)	44	poor
Ixobrychus minutus	50 / 108 (pairs)	47	poor
Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax	49 / 156 (pairs)	32	very poor
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	434 / 208 (pairs)	100	good
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis	872 / 2,312 (birds)	38	very poor
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis	1,083 / 3,540 (adults)	31	very poor
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea	76 / 51 (pairs)	100	good
Egretta garzetta	909 / 2,215 (adults)	42	poor
Egretta garzetta	5,244 / 5,448 (birds)	97	good
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo	772 / 4,280 (birds)	19	very poor
Himantopus himantopus	548 / 695 (pairs)	79	moderate
Charadrius alexandrinus	39 / 74 (birds)	53	poor
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	273 / 168 (birds)	100	good
Dunlin Calidris alpina	223 / 470 (birds)	48	poor
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola	45 / 131 (pairs)	35	very poor
Slender-billed Gull Larus genei	14 / 224 (pairs)	7	very poor
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	936 / 1,081 (adults)	87	moderate
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	27,827 / 43,877 (birds)	64	poor
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii	0 / 275 (adults)	0	very poor
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii	4 / 24 (birds)	17	very poor
Little Tern Sternula albifrons	56 / 223 (pairs)	26	very poor
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	403 / 2,292 (pairs)	18	very poor
Sterna nilotica	469 / 1,031 (pairs)	46	poor
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	54 / 279 (birds)	20	very poor
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	857 / 2,583 (adults)	34	very poor
Western Marsh-harrier Circus aeruginosus	140 / 161 (birds)	87	moderate

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	whole of popul­ation/area (>90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	very high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	rapid decline (>30% over 3 gener­ations)	very high
Biological resource use	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Transportation and service corridors	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	low
Natural system modifications	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	low
Residential and commercial development	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Whole area (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A management plan exists, but it is out of date or not compre­hensive	The conservation measures needed for the site are being compre­hensively and effectively implemented	high

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
1986	Albufera de Valencia	Nature Park (V)	58
1993	L`Albufera	Parque Natural (II)	57

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Artificial/Terrestrial	73	Arable land
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	major (>10)
Forest	-
Marine Intertidal	-

Land use	% of IBA
agriculture	72
hunting	60
nature conservation and research	25
fisheries/aquaculture	10

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Albufera de Valencia marshes (Spain). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/albufera-de-valencia-marshes-iba-spain on 14/12/2024.