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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 1999 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
Blue Swallow Hirundo atrocaerulea	EN	non-breeding (-)	present	A1

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 1999. The most recent assessment (2023) is shown below.

State (condition of the key species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Forest	moderate (70–90%)	moderate (70–90%)	unfavourable
Grassland	moderate (70–90%)	moderate (70–90%)	unfavourable

Pressure (threats to the key species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Natural system modifications	happen­ing now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	rapid deteri­oration (>30% over 3 gener­ations)	very high
Residential and commercial development	likely in short term (within 4 years)	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	high
Biological resource use	happen­ing now	few individ­uals/small area (<10%)	rapid deteri­oration (>30% over 3 gener­ations)	low
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happen­ing now	few individ­uals/small area (<10%)	moderate deteri­oration (10–30% in 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the key species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	No manage­ment plan exists, but the manage­ment planning process has begun	Some limited conservation initiatives are in place	low

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
1983	Ruma	National Park (II)	100

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Forest	-	Woodland - mixed
Grassland	-	Grassland - edaphic, dry
Savanna	-	Bushland & thicket - evergreen; Wooded grassland

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Ruma National Park (Kenya). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/ruma-national-park-iba-kenya on 09/01/2025.