Current view: Text account
Site description (2008 baseline):
Site location and context
Navassa Island IBA is situated 53 km west of Haiti, 136 km
east of Jamaica and 152 km south of Cuba. The IBA includes
the 500-ha island and marine areas up to 22 km from it, thus
covering 147,600 ha of open ocean. Navassa is a small, pearshaped
island plateau that rises abruptly from deep water. It is
surrounded by a series of submarine coralline terraces. The
karst dolomite terrain slopes from the lower north-western edge
towards the south-eastern side and supports upland evergreen
woodland and sparse shrubby vegetation. The island is
surrounded by a submerged coral reef ecosystem and open sea.
This IBA is globally significant for its breeding colony of Redfooted
Booby
Sula sula, a large majority of which are
immature, which is concentrated along the sheltered (leeward)
north-western to southern perimeter of the island. The
breeding population, conservatively estimated at 175
individuals, of Magnificent Frigatebird
Fregata magnificensis is regionally important, and small numbers of Brown Booby
Sula leucogaster also breed on the island. Hundreds of Near
Threatened White-crowned Pigeon
Patagioenas leucocephala
occur, and the Vulnerable White-necked Crow
Corvus
leucognaphalus has been recorded on the island, but is
probably a transient visitor.
Non-bird biodiversity: The Critically Endangered hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys
imbricata occurs. Four endemic reptiles are abundant on the
island, namely Navassa anole Anolis longiceps, Navassa gecko
Aristelliger cochranae, Navassa dwarf gecko Sphaerodactylus
becki and the Navassa galliwasp Celestus badius.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
This IBA is federally owned, and is the only oceanic and coral
reef national wildlife refuge in the western Atlantic. However,
it lacks on-the-ground management due to its remoteness and
lack of resident personnel. There is a history of foreign
nationals, primarily Haitians, entering the refuge and
harvesting protected species. These illegal activities are a
challenge: the island’s disputed sovereignty means any move
to prosecute could result in a diplomatic incident between the
USA and Haiti. Socio-cultural assessments carried out by
Fondation pour la Protection de la Biodiversité Marine have
shown that Navassa’s fisheries are critical for sustaining the
fishing community on the south-western tip of Haiti. A multiagency
task force has been created to target management
issues and reduce the threats to species and habitats, and
USFWS will continue to monitor the island’s seabird colonies
and document its use by resident and migratory birds.
Author: Joseph Schwagerl (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and Verónica Anadón-Irizarry (BirdLife International)
The authors would like to thank Susan Silander, Claudia Lombard
(USFWS), Jean W. Wiener (Fondation pour la Protection de la
Biodiversité Marine) and John Curnutt (USDA Forest Service Eastern
Region) for contributing to this chapter.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Navassa (United States Minor Outlying Islands (to USA)). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/navassa-iba-united-states-minor-outlying-islands-(to-usa) on 22/12/2024.
