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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 IBA criteria.

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

Species	Red List	Season (year/s of estimate)	Size	IBA criteria
Chestnut Teal Anas castanea	LC	resident (1999–2006)	883–2,159 individuals	A4i
Red-necked Stint Calidris ruficollis	NT	non-breeding (1998–2007)	4,359 individuals	A4i
Pacific Gull Larus pacificus	LC	non-breeding (2003–2007)	148–316 individuals	A4i

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2009. The most recent assessment (2018) is shown below.

State (condition of the key species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	moderate (70–90%)	moderate (70–90%)	unfavourable

Pressure (threats to the key species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Human intrusions and disturbance	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Other	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Natural system modifications	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	high
Climate change and severe weather	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Residential and commercial development	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Pollution	happen­ing now	few individ­uals/small area (<10%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the key species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Most of site (50–90%) covered (including the most critical parts for important bird species)	A manage­ment plan exists, but it is out of date or not compre­hensive	Some limited conservation initiatives are in place	low

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
1994	Altona Meadows N.F.R	Natural Features Reserve (IV)	<1
2002	Point Cooke	Marine Sanctuary (II)	2
2003	Jawbone F.F.R.	Nature Conservation Reserve (Ia)	1
2003	Jawbone	Marine Sanctuary (III)	1

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	major (>10)
Marine Intertidal	major (>10)
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	minor (<10)	Other artificial wetlands; Saltpans
Artificial/Terrestrial	minor (<10)	Urban parks & gardens
Introduced vegetation	minor (<10)

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	major (>10)
tourism/recreation	major (>10)
urban/industrial/transport	minor (<10)
water management	minor (<10)

Victorian State Government managed by Parks Victoria, City of Hobsons Bay, Melbourne Water and the Department of Sustainability and Environment.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Cheetham and Altona (Australia). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/cheetham-and-altona-iba-australia on 23/01/2025.