Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
The site consists of Lakes Ambanja, Vasily, Belongo and Manapatanana, located near Ambato-Boeni, and of Lakes Amparihibe, Mangabe, Bekopoly, Ambariasara and Bevoatavo, in the area of Maevatanana. The general area consists of a number of very large depressions, mainly covered (near Ambato-Boeni) by seasonal marshes which have been converted to rice-fields and other cultivation, and (near Maevatanana) by marshes and lakes. The main rivers are the Kamoro river, which flows across the Ambato-Boeni area, and the Betsiboka river, which flows west from Ambato-Boeni then south towards Maevatanana and which feeds the south of this area. The vegetation of the lakes includes beds of
Cyperus, reedbeds of
Phragmites, floating expanses of water-lily
Nymphaea, non-native water-hyacinth
Eichhornia and water-fern
Azolla. On adjacent hills there are bushes of
Zizyphus and
Strychnos.
See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. Thirty-four species are known from the site, of which three are endemic to Madagascar.
Haliaeetus vociferoides is recorded infrequently, and
Aythya innotata has been recorded in the past. Populations of
Ardea humbloti and
Tachybaptus pelzelnii are probably quite high, although nesting colonies of larger waterbirds in particular remain to be identified.
Non-bird biodiversity: Reptile: Erymnochelys madagascariensis (EN).
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Over-exploitation of fish-stocks, poaching, and conversion of lake-edge habitat to rice-fields all threaten the ecological integrity of the site.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Maevatanana - Ambato-Boeny wetlands (Madagascar). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/maevatanana--ambato-boeny-wetlands-iba-madagascar on 23/11/2024.
