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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2016 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
Ruff Calidris pugnax	LC	breeding (2011–2015)	3–4 breeding pairs	C6

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2016. The most recent assessment (2017) is shown below.

State (condition of the key species' populations)
Species	Actual vs Reference (units)	% remaining	Result
Ruff Calidris pugnax	3 / 10 (breeding pairs)	30	very unfavourable

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	A compre­hensive and appropriate manage­ment plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the popul­ations of qualify­ing bird species	Unknown	medium

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
-	Van Oordt's Mersken	Nature Reserve (-)	46
2000	Van Oordts Mersken	Natuurbeschermingswet (IV)	100

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Artificial/Terrestrial	96	Highly improved re-seeded landscapes
Wetlands (inland)	-	Rivers and streams

Land use	% of IBA
water management	100
agriculture	90
nature conservation and research	58
hunting	50
urban/industrial/transport	6

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Van Oordt's Mersken (Netherlands). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/van-oordts-mersken-iba-netherlands on 08/01/2025.