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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 IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('key 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 individuals	A4i
Cape Shoveler Spatula smithii	LC	non-breeding (-)	162–353 individuals	A4i
Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis	LC	non-breeding (-)	344–1,022 individuals	A4i
Ludwig's Bustard Neotis ludwigii	EN	resident (1998)	present	A3
Cape Cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis	EN	resident (-)	831–5,000 breeding pairs	A1, A4i
Cape Cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis	EN	non-breeding (-)	7,500–10,000 individuals	A1, A4i
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta	LC	non-breeding (-)	402–588 individuals	A4i
Hartlaub's Gull Larus hartlaubii	LC	non-breeding (-)	1,152–2,511 individuals	A4i
Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus	LC	breeding (-)	85–150 breeding pairs	A4i
Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus	LC	non-breeding (-)	1,036–1,676 individuals	A4i
Damara Tern Sternula balaenarum	LC	breeding (-)	common	A1
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	LC	winter (-)	10,000 individuals	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 individuals	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.

State (condition of the key species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Desert	very poor (<40%)	poor (40–69%)	very unfavourable
Marine Neritic	good (>90%)	moderate (70–90%)	near favourable
Marine Intertidal	good (>90%)	moderate (70–90%)	near favourable

Pressure (threats to the key species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Natural system modifications	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	very high
Climate change and severe weather	happen­ing now	whole popul­ation/area (>90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happen­ing now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happen­ing now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Pollution	happen­ing now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	high
Biological resource use	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Energy production and mining	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Transportation and service corridors	happen­ing now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the key species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Little/none of site covered (<10%)	A manage­ment plan exists, but it is out of date or not compre­hensive	Some limited conservation initiatives are in place	low

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	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) 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 16/01/2025.