Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
A complex of shallow (<4 m) bays with small islets and shallow (<1 m) coastal, relict lakes in the north-western part of Hiiumaa island. There are reedbeds and vast coastal meadows. The main economic activities are intensive fishing, and grazing.
The coastal meadows and lakes comprise an important staging site for migrating
Branta leucopsis, and support a good diversity of breeding waterbirds.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The main threats are posed by human disturbance of birds, tourism, unsustainable hunting, fishing, overgrowth of coastal meadows with reed
Phragmites due to undergrazing, and water pollution by fishery discards and by fuel-oil from boats. About 50% of the IBA is a planned core area of the West Estonian Archipelago Biosphere Reserve, and the IBA is also a potential Ramsar Site. Research involves monitoring of migrating waterbirds.
National None
International High4,999 ha of IBA covered by Biosphere Reserve (West Estonian Archipelago, 1,560,000 ha).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Kõrgessaare-Mudaste coast (Estonia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/kõrgessaare-mudaste-coast-iba-estonia on 23/11/2024.
