Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
The middle course of the Taro river, on the southern Padana plain, a few kilometres west of the town of Parma. The alluvial plain is rich in gravel areas and sandbanks. The area is surrounded by cultivation. The main land-uses are nature conservation, agriculture, tourism, hunting and gravel extraction.
Important numbers of
Burhinus oedicnemus (also many
Merops apiaster and
Riparia riparia) breed on the alluvial plain.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The main threat is of wetland destruction by groundwater extraction, dredging and canalization, and gravel extraction. The increase in industrial activities around the IBA is another important threat. Some or all of the site is covered by a management plan. The University of Parma is carrying out a long-term study of
Riparia riparia.
National Partial
International Partial2,500 ha of IBA covered by Regional Nature Park (Taro, 2,500 ha). 3,144 ha of IBA contains Special Protection Area (Fiume Taro da Fornovo di Taro all'Autostrada del Sole, 3,144 ha).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Taro river (Italy). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/taro-river-iba-italy on 24/12/2024.