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The site was identified as important in 1998 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 List1	Season	Year(s)	Size	IBA criteria
White-winged Flufftail Sarothrura ayresi	CR	non-breeding	1998	40-75 individuals	A1, A4i
Corncrake Crex crex	LC	winter	-	present	A1
Wattled Crane Bugeranus carunculatus	VU	resident	-	1 breeding pairs	A1

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (1998) may differ.

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 1998. The most recent assessment (2013) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Reference	Actual	Units	% remaining	Result
Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum	4	10	breeding pairs	100	favourable
Wattled Crane Bugeranus carunculatus	8	6	breeding pairs	75	near favourable

State (condition of the trigger species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Wetlands (inland)	poor (40-69%)	poor (40-69%)	very unfavourable
Grassland	poor (40-69%)	poor (40-69%)	very unfavourable

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	high
Energy production and mining	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	whole area/population (>90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Natural system modifications	happening now	whole area/population (>90%)	slow but significant deterioration	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Climate change and severe weather	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	whole area/population (>90%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Residential and commercial development	happening now	small area/few individuals (<10%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	low
Biological resource use	happening now	small area/few individuals (<10%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	low
Pollution	happening now	small area/few individuals (<10%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	low
Transportation and service corridors	past (and unlikely to return) and no longer limiting	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other action	Result
Little/none of site covered (<10%)	No management planning has taken place	Some limited conservation initiatives are in place	negligible

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Shrubland		70
Artificial/Terrestrial		14
Forest		14
Grassland		-
Wetlands (inland)		-

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	100
forestry	1
agriculture	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Franklin Vlei (South Africa). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/franklin-vlei-iba-south-africa on 22/11/2024.