Estuaire et embouchure de la Seine (2266)
France, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: D1a
Year of last assessment: 2000
National site name: Estuaire et embouchure de la Seine
Central coordinates: Latitude: 49.4333, Longitude: 0.3000
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 5
Area of KBA (km2): 219.83895
Protected area coverage (%): 86.00
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: An estuary with mudflats, saltmarshes, sand and shingle-beaches, reedbeds (Phragmites), wet meadows, urban and industrial areas. The area includes the port of Le Havre.
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: The site holds 20,000 or more waterbirds on passage and in winter, on a regular basis (including Podiceps cristatus 4,706 (wintering); Melanitta nigra 4,006 (wintering); Haematopus ostralegus 4,950 (wintering)). Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria: Acrocephalus paludicola (passage).
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (10%) | fisheries/aquaculture | hunting (40%) | tourism/recreation | urban/industrial/transport (15%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Intertidal | 22 | |
| Marine Neritic | 22 | |
| Grassland | 15 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 20 | |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 22 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The expansion of the harbour is the major threat to the site. Other threats include sand and gravel extraction and considerable hunting pressure at night.
| Threat level 1 | Threat level 2 | Threat level 3 | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture & aquaculture | Annual & perennial non-timber crops | Agro-industry farming | Ongoing |
| Biological resource use | Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals | Intentional use (species being assessed is the target) | Ongoing |
| Pollution | Industrial & military effluents | Type Unknown/Unrecorded | Ongoing |
| Residential & commercial development | Commercial & industrial areas | Only in the future |