Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
Situated 65 km south-west of Pofadder, this site consists of five farms; Bitterputs (107 and 110) (29,555 ha), Bitterputs 111 (3,224 ha), Bosluis (5,101 ha), Kanaip (6,175 ha) and Oorstoot (1,485 ha). Bitterputs (107 and 110) forms the central portion of the IBA and consist mainly of flat gravel-plains with a red dune system that runs from north to south in the central and western portion of the property. Coarse, pale red sandy soils and red dunes form the southern portion of the fossil Koa river valley. Towards the east, sandy plains comprising perennial desert grassland and granitic gravel-plains occur.
The koppies hold shrubs, e.g.
Adenolobus and
Rhus, especially on the mid-slopes and peaks, while the cobble-strewn bases are often covered with melkboom
Euphorbia. The drainage lines support taller woody vegetation, such as
Euclea,
Ozoroa,
Acacia and
Tamarix shrubs. The gravel-plains are covered with a variety of sparse dwarf shrubs.
See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. This is one of few IBAs holding both the globally threatened
Certhilauda burra (150–250 pairs), which inhabits the red sand-dunes, and the near-threatened
Spizocorys sclateri (up to 100 individuals), which occurs erratically on the barren stony plains. The site also holds many of the Namib–Karoo biome-restricted species, as well as a host of other arid-zone birds. The plains support
Circus maurus,
Ardeotis kori,
Neotis ludwigii,
Eupodotis vigorsii,
Cursorius rufus,
Pterocles namaqua,
Eremalauda starki,
Cercomela tractrac,
C. sinuata,
C. schlegelii,
Eremomela gregalis and
Malcorus pectoralis. During good rains the nomadic
Eremopterix australis,
Serinus alario and
Emberiza impetuani can be superabundant. Low scrubby vegetation holds
Anthoscopus minutus and
Nectarinia fusca. Rocky outcrops hold
Euryptila subcinnamomea and the recently recognized
Certhilauda subcoronata.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
All the farms are privately owned and are not conserved in any manner. Individual properties are too small, by themselves, to maintain viable populations of many of the species occurring there. It is important that these properties are managed as a unit and that the primary management problems are tackled from a holistic perspective. Heavy grazing and trampling by domestic livestock change the vegetation on the red dunes, making it unsuitable for
Certhilauda burra. Globally, only 1,400 km² remain of the 5,625 km² that were once suitable habitat for this species, and this area is estimated to support less than 10,000 birds.
If possible, some, or all of these farms should be purchased by the State or an NGO and incorporated into a nature reserve. Alternatively, a private conservancy may be established. An appropriate conservation action for the entire region would be to eliminate or reduce cattle stocking in the sensitive red-dune areas within this IBA. Protection and management of the remaining suitable habitat is a high priority for the conservation of
Certhilauda burra.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Bitterputs Conservation Area (South Africa). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/bitterputs-conservation-area-iba-south-africa on 23/12/2024.
