Apavatn-Laugarvatn (493)
Iceland, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2000
National site name: Apavatn-Laugarvatn
Central coordinates: Latitude: 64.1667, Longitude: -20.5667
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 60 to 60
Area of KBA (km2): 55.24671
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Apavatn and Laugarvatn lakes and their surrounding marshes/mires lie about 20 km east of Lake Thingvallavatn, in the north-west part of the southern lowlands of Iceland. Marshes are dominated by sedges (Carex, Eriophorum). There is a wetland with hot-springs at Hjálmstadaengjar. Holiday-homes are present.
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: Notable numbers of Bucephala clangula (some tens) and Mergus merganser (18 in 1988, 46 in 1989) also occur in winter. A wide variety of waterbirds breed, including Histrionicus histrionicus, and hundreds of staging Aythya marila, A. fuligula and Mergus serrator use the area on passage.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture | fisheries/aquaculture | tourism/recreation | urban/industrial/transport
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Wetlands(Inland) | 100 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The area is threatened by drainage, and birds are disturbed by traffic, tourists, owners of holiday-homes, boat-traffic on the lakes, windsurfing on Laugarvatn, and by horses. The area is on the list of sites of conservation interest in the Nature Conservation Register.