Current view: Data table and detailed info
The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 1998 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.
Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:
Species |
Red List |
Season (year/s of estimate) |
Size |
IBA criteria |
South African Shelduck Tadorna cana |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
350–854 birds |
A4i |
Cape Shoveler Spatula smithii |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
162–353 birds |
A4i |
Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
344–1,022 birds |
A4i |
Ludwig's Bustard Neotis ludwigii |
EN |
resident (1998) |
present |
A3 |
Cape Cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis |
EN |
resident (-) |
831–5,000 pairs |
A1, A4i |
Cape Cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis |
EN |
non-breeding (-) |
7,500–10,000 birds |
A1, A4i |
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
402–588 birds |
A4i |
Hartlaub's Gull Larus hartlaubii |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
1,152–2,511 birds |
A4i |
Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus |
LC |
breeding (-) |
85–150 pairs |
A4i |
Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus |
LC |
non-breeding (-) |
1,036–1,676 birds |
A4i |
Damara Tern Sternula balaenarum |
LC |
breeding (-) |
common |
A1 |
Common Tern Sterna hirundo |
LC |
winter (-) |
10,000 birds |
A4i |
Cape Long-billed Lark Certhilauda curvirostris |
LC |
resident (1998) |
present |
A3 |
Dune Lark Calendulauda erythrochlamys |
LC |
resident (1998) |
present |
A3 |
Pale-winged Starling Onychognathus nabouroup |
LC |
resident (1998) |
present |
A3 |
Tractrac Chat Emarginata tractrac |
LC |
resident (1998) |
present |
A3 |
A4iii Species group - waterbirds |
n/a |
non-breeding (-) |
20,000-49,999 birds |
A4iii |
Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 1998. The most recent assessment (2014) is shown below.
IBA conservation assessment |
Year of assessment |
State |
Pressure |
Response |
2014 |
very poor |
very high |
low |
Whole site assessed? |
State assessed by |
Accuracy of information |
|
yes |
habitat |
medium |
|
Habitat |
% of IBA |
Habitat detail |
Desert |
- |
Coastal desert |
Marine Coastal/Supratidal |
- |
|
Marine Intertidal |
- |
|
Marine Neritic |
- |
|
Wetlands (inland) |
- |
Rivers & streams; Permanent herbaceous swamps and bogs; Freshwater lakes and pools; Ephemeral pools and wetlands |
Land use |
% of IBA |
nature conservation and research |
100 |
water management |
40 |
tourism/recreation |
- |
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Orange River Mouth Wetlands (South Africa). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/orange-river-mouth-wetlands-iba-south-africa on 23/12/2024.