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The site was identified as important in 2000 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
Brent Goose Branta bernicla	LC	non-breeding	1994	15,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis	LC	non-breeding	1994	7,700 individuals	A4i, B1i, C2
Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus	LC	non-breeding	1994	10,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Common Eider Somateria mollissima	NT	non-breeding	1994	42,600 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Common Scoter Melanitta nigra	LC	non-breeding	1994	35,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Common Shelduck Tadorna tadorna	LC	non-breeding	1994	31,200 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope	LC	non-breeding	1994	48,700 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Northern Pintail Anas acuta	LC	non-breeding	1994	4,000 individuals	B1i, C3
Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus	NT	non-breeding	1994	31,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta	LC	passage	1994	6,500 individuals	A4i, B1i, C2
Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta	LC	breeding	1991	1,066 breeding pairs	A4i, B1i, B3, C2, C6
Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola	VU	non-breeding	1994	5,500 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Eurasian Golden Plover Pluvialis apricaria	LC	non-breeding	1994	43,600 individuals	A4i, B1i, C2
Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica	NT	non-breeding	1994	35,400 individuals	A4i, B1i, C2
Red Knot Calidris canutus	NT	non-breeding	1994	24,100 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Sanderling Calidris alba	LC	non-breeding	1994	3,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Dunlin Calidris alpina	NT	non-breeding	1994	365,000 individuals	A4i, B1i, C3
Common Redshank Tringa totanus	LC	non-breeding	1994	1,680 individuals	B1i, C3
Common Redshank Tringa totanus	LC	breeding	1991	514 breeding pairs	B2
Little Tern Sternula albifrons	LC	breeding	1991	43 breeding pairs	B2, C6
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	non-breeding	1994	500,000-999,999 individuals	A4iii, C3, C4

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (2000) may differ.

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2000. The most recent assessment (2019) is shown below.

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Human intrusions and disturbance	happening now	whole area/population (>90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	very high
Invasive and other problematic species and genes	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Biological resource use	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high
Pollution	happening now	majority/most of area/population (50-90%)	moderate to rapid deterioration	high

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	No management plan exists but the management planning process has begun	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented but these are not comprehensive and are limited by resources and capacity	not assessed

Year	Protected Area	Designation	% overlap with IBA
1979	Vadehavet	Wildlife Reserve	64
1983	Vadehavet	Special Protection Area (Birds Directive)	100
1983	Rømø	Special Protection Area (Birds Directive)	<1
1983	Fanø	Special Protection Area (Birds Directive)	<1
1983	Mandø	Special Protection Area (Birds Directive)	<1
1985	Vadehavet	Major Conservation Area	63
1987	Vadehavet	Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance	100
1992	Tønder Kommune	§3 beskyttet natur (alle søer, moser, vandløb, heder, enge mv)	1
1992	Esbjerg Kommune	§3 beskyttet natur (alle søer, moser, vandløb, heder, enge mv)	1
1992	Fanø Kommune	§3 beskyttet natur (alle søer, moser, vandløb, heder, enge mv)	<1
1998	Vadehavet med Ribe Å; Tved Å og Varde Å vest for Varde	Site of Community Importance (Habitats Directive)	100
2009	The Wadden Sea	World Heritage Site (natural or mixed)	100
2009	Vadehavet med Ribe Å, Tved Å og Varde Å vest for Varde	Marine Protected Area (OSPAR)	95
2010	Nationalpark Vadehavet	Nationalpark	100

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Marine Neritic		75
Marine Intertidal		25

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
unknown	-

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Vadehavet (Wadden Sea) (Denmark). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/vadehavet-(wadden-sea)-iba-denmark on 22/11/2024.