Costa Viola (2851)
Italy, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1b, A1d, D1a
Year of last assessment: 2015
National site name: Costa Viola
Central coordinates: Latitude: 38.2167, Longitude: 15.7500
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 1304
Area of KBA (km2): 294.72202
Protected area coverage (%): 99.71
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Rocky coast and hills along the Calabrian coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea, on the east side of the Messina Strait.
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 `bottleneck' site for soaring birds on passage, with 10,000-20,000 being counted in total each spring. The most common species include Pernis apivorus (3,138-14,960 per season), Circus aeruginosus and Falco vespertinus. Counts have been made in 1987, 1990, 1993 and 1994, and the maximum total count (all species combined) for one season is 18,160 in spring 1993.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (30%) | hunting (100%) | not utilised (20%) | tourism/recreation (10%) | urban/industrial/transport (20%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 24 | |
| Marine Neritic | 37 | |
| Marine Intertidal | 5 | |
| Shrubland | 4 | |
| Other | 4 | |
| Forest | 26 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: There is massive and intense illegal hunting, which is the main threat to the migrating raptors. Counting of migrating raptors/storks and anti-poaching activities have been carried out by LIPU every year since the mid-1980s.