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• Text account
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• Reference and further resources

The site was identified as important 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 List1	Season	Year(s)	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

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (1998) may differ.

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 trigger 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 trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Natural system modifications	happening now	whole area/population (>90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	very high
Climate change and severe weather	likely in long term (beyond 4 years)	whole area/population (>90%)	very rapid to severe deterioration	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	high
Pollution	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	slow but significant deterioration	high
Biological resource use	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Energy production and mining	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium
Transportation and service corridors	happening now	some of area/population (10-49%)	slow but significant deterioration	medium

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other 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

Year	Protected Area	Designation	% overlap with IBA
1991	Orange River Mouth Wetland	Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance	87

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
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	-

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	100
water management	40
tourism/recreation	-

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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 22/11/2024.