Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
These coastal wetlands are located 50 km south-west of Ampanihy. The site includes Nosy Manitse, located 10 km off Bevoalavo, as well as a large strip of forest (35–40 km long and 130–200 m wide) between Bevoalavo West and Bezavo, Anataiky Bay, Cape Fenambosy and Androkahely Bay. The wetlands are composed of reddish-brown sandbanks extending along the coast. Androkahely Bay comprises a vast sandy area covered by muddy sediments from the River Linta. The wetlands of Cape Fenambosy and Anataiky Bay are brackish. The interior of Anataiky Bay is bordered by a muddy area, partly covered by savanna and partly by mangrove.
See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. Thirty-eight species are known from this site, of which four are endemic to Madagascar. There are many
Sterna bengalensis and
Sterna bergii. In the 1940s, a colony of more than 4,000 pairs of
Sterna dougallii was present on Nosy Manitse. The current status of this colony is not known.
Threskiornis (aethiopicus) bernieri occurs, at the southern limit of its range, as does a significant population of
Charadrius thoracicus.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Hunting of birds and collection of eggs, especially on Nosy Manitse, are the main threats. The colony of
Sterna dougallii may no longer be present, due to the presence of fishermen’s camps on the islands.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Nosy Manitse Future SAPM Marine and surrounding wetlands (Madagascar). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/nosy-manitse-future-sapm-marine-and-surrounding-wetlands-iba-madagascar on 23/12/2024.
