Maritime Alps (2716)
Italy, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2002
National site name: Alpi Marittime
Central coordinates: Latitude: 44.3000, Longitude: 7.1667
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 650 to 3841
Area of KBA (km2): 1097.64081
Protected area coverage (%): 74.91
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: A large tract of the south-west Italian Alps, from Punta Marguaréis to Monviso. The area is divided into three sites: (1) Alta Valle Pesio e Tanaro (Nature Park), (2) Alpi Marittime (Nature Park) including Media e Alta Valle Stura and Alta Valle Gesso, and (3) Alta Valle Varaita. The main habitats are coniferous and broadleaved woodlands, glaciers and rocky areas, and alpine grasslands. Cattle-breeding and tourism are the main economic activities for local people.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that was identified using previously established criteria and thresholds for the identification of Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and for which available data indicate that it does not meet global KBA criteria and thresholds set out in the Global Standard.
Additional biodiversity: The site supports good breeding numbers of some raptors and gamebirds, as well as five of the ten species of the Eurasian high-montane biome. The locality `Media e Alta Valle Stura' is an important `bottleneck' for migrating raptors (2,900-3,200 per autumn), mainly Pernis apivorus (2,000-3,000). Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria: Aquila clanga (max. 1, passage).
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (10%) | forestry (10%) | hunting (10%) | nature conservation and research (30%) | tourism/recreation (10%) | urban/industrial/transport (2%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Forest | 26 | |
| Other | 19 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 3 | |
| Rocky Areas(e.g., inland cliffs, mountain peaks) | 13 | |
| Shrubland | 39 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Major threats are posed by a project to build a highway to France, and by the large and ongoing loss of traditionally cultivated areas and of alpine grasslands. Projects in the Parco Naturale delle Alpi Marittime include the ongoing reintroduction of Gypaetus barbatus (and in the nearby Parc National du Mercantour in France), management of ungulates and fish, and studies on migratory birds, on breeding raptors, on Nucifraga caryocatactes and on Aegolius funereus.