Key Biodiversity Areas

Santo André and Sancha lagoons (374)
Portugal, Europe

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2002
National site name: Lagoas de Santo André e da Sancha
Central coordinates: Latitude: 38.0667, Longitude: -8.8167
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 48
Area of KBA (km2): 26.71897
Protected area coverage (%): 98.18
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: A complex of two coastal lagoons and a stretch of well-consolidated sand-dunes, on the south-west coast of Portugal, just north of the town of Sines. Both lagoons have extensive reedbeds. This site is an amalgamation of two sites that featured in the previous pan-European IBA inventory (Grimmett and Jones 1989): Santo André Lagoon (former site PT021) and Sancha Lagoon (former site PT022).
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: Important numbers of breeding and wintering waterbirds occur, and the site also harbours large numbers of migrating passerines during autumn migration.

Habitats

Land use: agriculture | fisheries/aquaculture | tourism/recreation | urban/industrial/transport | water management
IUCN HabitatCoverage %Habitat detail
Shrubland17
Marine Intertidal33
Artificial - Terrestrial17
Marine Coastal/Supratidal33

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Hunting, grazing, and fishing with an excessive number of nets are the main causes of disturbance to birds. Tourist development along the northern border is causing habitat loss.
Threat level 1Threat level 2Threat level 3Timing
Transportation & service corridorsUtility & service linesOngoing