BS039
Great Inagua


Site description (2006 baseline):

Site location and context
Lake Rosa is a permanent shallow brackish lake, up to 1.5m deep with small islands scattered through out and a fringe of brackish marshes, there are dense mangrove swamps on the northern and eastern borders and the lake is surrounded by a broad belt of open scrub with seasonal marshes. This is a RAMSAR site.

Key biodiversity
This IBA has the largest known concentration of Greater Flamingo in The Bahamas estimated to be in excess of 50,000 birds. Also, home to a race of the Bahama Parrot. There is also a wide variety and large numbers of shorebirds, herons, egrets and waterfowl. Many species of land birds, resident and migratory have been recorded in and around the Inagua National Park.

Non-bird biodiversity: The endemic Inagua Freshwater Turtle - (Chrysemys malonei)



Habitat and land use
Brackish to saline marshes, mangrove swamps with (Avicennia germinans) and (Conocarpus erectus), open scrub with seasonal marshes and some broadleafed coppice on higher ground.Portions of the Inagua National Park is subjected to game hunting .

Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Wild Pigs, (Sus scrofa) and Donkeys, (Equus asinus) constitute a threat to the natural vegetation and nest trampling. Unauthorized hunting can cause trauma, injury and death to the birds and also cause nest abandonment.

Protected areas
Other wetlands in the INP include:Union Creek - a saline lagoon with opening to the sea with extensive salt marshes and scattered mangroves. Palacca Point - stretching southward is a permanent brackish marsh with many scattered pools and some mangroves. Point Lakes - a permanent brackish marsh with dense mangrove swamps is located northwest of southeast point.


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Great Inagua (Bahamas). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/great-inagua-iba-bahamas on 23/12/2024.