Current view: Text account
Site description (2008 baseline):
Site location and context
Lake Güija is divided by the border between Guatemala and El Salvador. The IBA includes about 25% of the lake and surrounding terrestrial habitat.
Lake Güija has global importance for biome-restricted species of the Pacific Arid Slope, according to a rapid assessment (Tenez 2006). Although the site does not meet thresholds of global importance for waterbird populations, it supports thousands of migration waterbird species (Herrera & Ibarra 2005, Eisermann 2006, Sigüenza 2007).
Wetlands cover 33% of the IBA, 36% are used for agriculture (corn fields, cattle farming) (MAGA 2006). Fisheries are apparently intensive (MARN 2001).
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The terrestrial part is threatened by an advancing agricultural border. The lake is threatened by overharvest of fish and eutrophication by surrounding agricultural activities and settlements (Eisermann 2006).
Currently no part of this IBA has a status of legal protection (CONAP 2007). The IBA has been limited according to the proposed protected area (A. Flores/CONAP, pers. comm.).
The Museum of Natural History Jorge Ibarra, hosted a workshop in Guatemala City in June 2006. This first assessment of IBAs in Guatemala was conducted by Sociedad Guatemalteca de Ornitología and BirdLife International in the Americas.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lake Güija (Guatemala). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lake-güija-iba-guatemala on 13/01/2025.
