Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
A complex of coastal brackish lakes, in the south of Sicily, separated from the sea by sand-dunes. There are large reedbeds and beds of submerged waterweed (
Potamogeton,
Ceratophyllum). The main land-uses are grazing, water management and nature conservation.
The site is important for migrating waterbirds, especially
Aythya nyroca (also breeds, min. 3 pairs), herons,
Plegadis falcinellus,
Platalea leucorodia, and waders.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The main threats are the infilling of wetlands, the unsuitable water management at Biviere di Gela (`Other' threat), and industrialization and infrastructure development at Piana del Signore.
National Partial
International PartialIBA contains Regional Nature Reserve (Biviere di Gela, area not known). 256 ha of IBA covered by Ramsar Site (Biviere di Gela, 256 ha). Overlaps with SPA.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Biviere and Plain of Gela (Italy). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/biviere-and-plain-of-gela-iba-italy on 23/12/2024.
