Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
The estuaries of the Neidenelva and Munkelva rivers. The Neidenelva river is broad and calm, and the estuary has high terraces and numerous sandbanks. Munkefjorden is a shallow bay (mostly <10 m deep), lying south of the Neiden estuary. Huge intertidal flats are exposed at low tide. Other habitats include coastal meadows, saltmarshes and farms.
Several species of seaduck sometimes occur in large concentrations, e.g.
Clangula hyemalis (max. 4,000 in spring) and
Mergus merganser (max. 2,000 in August). In spring there are high numbers of staging waders, especially
Limosa lapponica (max. 500) and
Calidris canutus (max. 2,500), and about 200
Calidris maritima winter in the area. The area supports one of the largest concentrations of divers in Norway, especially during spring, with up to 100
Gavia stellata and up to 400
Gavia arctica.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Threat status is not known.
National High
International None1,180 ha of IBA covered by Nature Reserve (Neiden and Munkefjord, 1,180 ha).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Neiden- & Munkefjord (Norway). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/neiden-&-munkefjord-iba-norway on 23/12/2024.
