Gauja national park (326)
Latvia, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2004
National site name: Gaujas nacionalais parks
Central coordinates: Latitude: 57.3000, Longitude: 25.0667
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 105 to 120
Area of KBA (km2): 924.03411
Protected area coverage (%): 99.19
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Large and uniquely diverse area situated along a 93.5 km long stretch of the Gauja river valley, interspersed by valleys and ravines of its numerous unregulated tributaries. About half of the area is forested, mixed with patches of cultural and farmed landscape. The largest wetland is Suda bog (2575 ha), a natural open raised bog with numerous lakes and pools. The latter constituted a separate IBA listed since 1994 [4, 5, 1]. With the application of the IBA C criteria, the site is now vastly enlarged to encompass the whole national park area. Fully protected: there is a 99.8% overlap with Gauja national park, a candidate SPA.
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.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (20%) | fisheries/aquaculture | forestry (30%) | hunting | nature conservation and research | tourism/recreation (75%) | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Shrubland | 4 | |
| Grassland | 4 | |
| Forest | 54 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 34 | |
| Wetlands(Inland) | 4 |