Key Biodiversity Areas

Manu'a Islands Marine (31334)
American Samoa, Oceania

Site overview


KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: B1D1a
Year of last assessment: 2012
National site name: Manu'a Islands Marine
Central coordinates: Latitude: -14.2473, Longitude: -169.4572
System: marine
Area of KBA (km2): 2488.90214
Protected area coverage (%): 1.79
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes

Site details


Site description: The site boundary is based upon a seaward extension of 25 km around National Park of American Samoa - Ta'u to encompass the high use and transit areas of IBA threshold numbers of Tahiti Petrel based upon a 2002 population estimate of 1,000 - 2,499 breeding pairs from O’Connor, P. J. and Rauzon, M. J. (2004). Inventory and monitoring of seabirds in National Park of American Samoa. Final Report. Technical Report 136. University of Hawai’i at Manoa.
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 boundary is based upon a seaward extension of 25 km around National Park of American Samoa - Ta'u to encompass the high use and transit areas of IBA threshold numbers of Tahiti Petrel based upon a 2002 population estimate of 1,000 - 2,499 breeding pairs from O’Connor, P. J. and Rauzon, M. J. (2004). Inventory and monitoring of seabirds in National Park of American Samoa. Final Report. Technical Report 136. University of Hawai’i at Manoa.
Delineation rationale: The site boundary is based upon a seaward extension of 25 km around National Park of American Samoa - Ta'u to encompass the high use and transit areas of IBA threshold numbers of Tahiti Petrel based upon a 2002 population estimate of 1,000 - 2,499 breeding pairs from O’Connor, P. J. and Rauzon, M. J. (2004). Inventory and monitoring of seabirds in National Park of American Samoa. Final Report. Technical Report 136. University of Hawai’i at Manoa.

Habitats


IUCN HabitatCoverage %Habitat detail
Marine Neritic100

Threats


Threat level 1Threat level 2Threat level 3Timing
Biological resource useFishing & harvesting aquatic resourcesUnintentional effects: large scale (species being assessed is not the target) [harvest]Ongoing
PollutionIndustrial & military effluentsOil spillsOngoing
PollutionExcess energyLight pollutionOngoing
Climate change & severe weatherHabitat shifting & alterationOnly in the future