Great Inagua (19819)
Bahamas, Caribbean
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: B1, D1a
Year of last assessment: 2009
National site name: Great Inagua
Central coordinates: Latitude: 21.0795, Longitude: -73.3505
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 5
Area of KBA (km2): 1781.39203
Protected area coverage (%): 43.30
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Lake Rosa is a permanent shallow brackish lake, up to 1.5m deep with small islands scattered through out and a fringe of brackish marshes, there are dense mangrove swamps on the northern and eastern borders and the lake is surrounded by a broad belt of open scrub with seasonal marshes. This is a RAMSAR site.
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: This IBA has the largest known concentration of Greater Flamingo in The Bahamas estimated to be in excess of 50,000 birds. Also, home to a race of the Bahama Parrot. There is also a wide variety and large numbers of shorebirds, herons, egrets and waterfowl. Many species of land birds, resident and migratory have been recorded in and around the Inagua National Park. Non-bird biodiversity: The endemic Inagua Freshwater Turtle - (Chrysemys malonei)
Habitats
Summary of habitats in KBA: Brackish to saline marshes, mangrove swamps with (Avicennia germinans) and (Conocarpus erectus), open scrub with seasonal marshes and some broadleafed coppice on higher ground.Portions of the Inagua National Park is subjected to game hunting .
Land use: agriculture | tourism/recreation | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 43 | |
| Marine Intertidal | 5 | |
| Forest | 5 | |
| Marine Neritic | 5 | |
| Shrubland | 43 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Wild Pigs, (Sus scrofa) and Donkeys, (Equus asinus) constitute a threat to the natural vegetation and nest trampling. Unauthorized hunting can cause trauma, injury and death to the birds and also cause nest abandonment.
Additional information
References: White, A.W. 1998b. A Birder's Guide to the Bahama Islands (Including Turks and Caicos). American Birding Association. Colorado Springs, CO. 302pp. Bainton, Aileen M. and Anthony W. White. 2006. A Bibliography of Birds, Ornitogy and Birding in The Bahamas and Turks & Caicos Islands. Media Enterprises Ltd. Nassau, Bahamas. 96pp.