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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2001 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
Fulvous Whistling-duck Dendrocygna bicolor	LC	non-breeding (1999)	61,029 individuals	A4i
Garganey Spatula querquedula	LC	winter (1986)	45,000 individuals	A4i
Northern Pintail Anas acuta	LC	winter (1986)	58,500 individuals	A4i
African Collared-dove Streptopelia roseogrisea	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
Arabian Bustard Ardeotis arabs	NT	resident (1997)	present	A3
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus	LC	non-breeding (1999)	1,375 individuals	A4i
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	LC	non-breeding (1986)	1,335 individuals	A4i
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	NT	winter (1986)	7,000 individuals	A4i
Ruff Calidris pugnax	LC	winter (1986)	20,000 individuals	A4i
Grey-headed Gull Larus cirrocephalus	LC	non-breeding (1986)	1,400 individuals	A4i
Yellow-breasted Barbet Trachyphonus margaritatus	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
Sahelian Woodpecker Dendropicos elachus	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
Cricket Warbler Spiloptila clamans	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
River Prinia Prinia fluviatilis	LC	resident (1997)	present	A1, A3
Chestnut-bellied Starling Lamprotornis pulcher	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
Black Scrub-robin Cercotrichas podobe	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
Sudan Golden Sparrow Passer luteus	LC	resident (1997)	present	A3
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	non-breeding (1986–1999)	100,000-499,999 individuals	A4iii

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2001. The most recent assessment (2001) is shown below.

Pressure (threats to the key species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Biological resource use	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	rapid deteri­oration (>30% over 3 gener­ations)	very high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happen­ing now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	high

Response (conservation actions taken for the key species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Not assessed	Not assessed	Not assessed	not assessed

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Grassland	38
Artificial/Terrestrial	26
Shrubland	18
Wetlands (inland)	10
Rocky areas (eg. inland cliffs, mountain peaks)	2
Desert	1
Forest	1

Land use	% of IBA
agriculture	-
fisheries/aquaculture	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lake Chad (Chad). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lake-chad-iba-chad on 26/01/2025.