Zwin (701)
Belgium, Europe
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2000
National site name: Zwin
Central coordinates: Latitude: 51.3333, Longitude: 3.3500
System: marine, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 7
Area of KBA (km2): 19.13561
Protected area coverage (%): 98.98
KBA classification: Regional
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: An area of saltmarshes and mudflats (a remnant of a former estuary) with a dune system and polders with halophile creeks and grasslands, several reedbeds and canals fringes with reed. The dune and saltmarsh area extends across the border into the Netherlands.
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: The site supports internationally important numbers of wintering geese. Significant numbers of gulls, terns and meadow birds also breed and the dunes are an important staging site for migrating passerines.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture (70%) | nature conservation and research (15%) | tourism/recreation (5%)
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | 3 | |
| Marine Intertidal | 3 | |
| Forest | 14 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 80 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Breeding and wintering birds are monitored throughout the site, with the most important areas censused annually. 500 ha of IBA covered by proposed Site of Community Importance (IJzermonding and Zwin, 2,891 ha). 45 ha of IBA covered by proposed Site of Community Importance (Zilte poldergraslanden, 884 ha).