Grado and Marano lagoon (2745)
Italy, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2002
National site name: Laguna di Grado e Marano
Central coordinates: Latitude: 45.7500, Longitude: 13.3167
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 5
Area of KBA (km2): 293.98476
Protected area coverage (%): 64.07
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: A large, shallow tidal lagoon on the north Adriatic coast, fed by six rivers, 30 km in length and about 5 km in width, with six main connections with the open sea and a number of small islands and sandbars along the coast. The area is rich in tidal mudflats, sand-dunes and large reedbeds. The deeper parts of the lagoon are covered by eel-grass Zostera and sea lettuce Ulva; the mudflats have cord-grass Spartina and Ruppia; permanently exposed banks have Salicornia and the dunes are vegetated by grasses (Agropyron, Ammophila), etc. There are fringing stands of Scirpus, Phragmites and Salix around the freshwater channels and rivers which enter the lagoon. The site also includes the final stretch (and mouth of) the Stella river, a lowland woodland, some agricultural areas, and the sea up to 5 m depth. Fishing, fish-farming, hunting, tourism and agriculture are the main uses of the area.
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: A very important site for waterbirds in winter (more than 100,000) as well as when breeding and on passage, with internationally important numbers of a wide variety of species. Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria: Aythya nyroca (max. 1, winter). A total of 280 species recorded, of which about 100 breed. Winter waterbird counts are from January, from the period 1992-1994 unless otherwise stated.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (2%) | fisheries/aquaculture (80%) | hunting (70%) | nature conservation and research (15%) | tourism/recreation (5%) | urban/industrial/transport (3%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 18 | |
| Forest | 2 | |
| Marine Oceanic | 24 | |
| Marine Neritic | 56 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The main threats are: drainage; increased sedimentation of wetlands by mud from the dredging of channels; disturbance by tourists of breeding birds along sandbars; intensification of fish-farming; the extension of industrial and touristic infrastructure; illegal hunting; and motor-boating. Some or all of the site is covered by a management plan. There has been a regular census of wintering waterbirds and breeding gulls and herons since the 1970s. Since 1987 the Osservatori Faunistici di Gorizia e Udine has monitored breeding species regularly. Cygnus olor and Anser anser have been introduced as breeding species.