Alkaline pusztas of Upper Kiskunság (1394)
Hungary, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1d
Year of last assessment: 2002
National site name: Kiskunsági szikes puszták area
Central coordinates: Latitude: 46.8167, Longitude: 19.2500
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 94 to 124
Area of KBA (km2): 345.0348
Protected area coverage (%): 89.67
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: A flood-plain lying between natural levees and overlain by loess soils, situated adjacent to the River Danube and main Duna-völgyi canal between Kiskunlacháza and Szakmár. Human activities include cattle- and sheep-grazing, arable farming, angling and hunting. This area includes two sites that were treated as separate IBAs in the previous international IBA inventory (Grimmett and Jones 1989): `Kiskunsági szikes-tavak' (former site HU021) and `Harta-Akasztói puszta' (former site HU042).
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs.
Additional biodiversity: An important area for lowland farmland birds and waterbirds. Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria: Phalacrocorax pygmeus and Branta ruficollis (both on passage), Aythya nyroca (6 breeding pairs), and Haliaeetus albicilla (2 breeding pairs and 4 wintering birds).
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (90%) | nature conservation and research (60%) | tourism/recreation (5%) | water management (5%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Grassland | 40 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 55 | |
| Wetlands(Inland) | 5 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The main threats are changes in habitat composition and quality caused both by the abandonment of grazing and by drought. A Perdix perdix recovery project has begun in Apajpuszta, and the National Park Authority is working to increase the breeding success of Otis tarda. MME/BirdLife Hungary provides artificial nesting-sites, and a management plan exists for the area. Wildfowl shooting is banned, and the enlargement of the National Park is in process.