Important Bird Areas

Namibia Kunene River Ruacana
Photo: Claire Spottiswoode

There are 19 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) designated by BirdLife International in Namibia which total 108,400 km2 equivalent to about 13% of the land area. 17 of the sites are important for species of global conservation concern. The IBAs are as follows:

Despite the high incidence of localised and near-endemic species, Namibia holds only a small portion of a single primary Endemic Bird Area, the Western Angola EBA although there are also two secondary EBAs, Namibian escarpment and Namib desert.

Three main biomes occur in Namibia; Zambezian which includes the woodlands along the Angola border; Kalahari-Highveld with arid savanna and Kalahari vegetation types; and the Namib-Karoo biome.

Namibia also has a varied coastline with a string of rocky islands and the following species have the majority of their global populations breeding on the nearshore islands of the cold waters of the Benguela current, much of which is located off Namibia: African Penguin Spheniscus demersus; Cape Gannet Sula capensis; Cape Cormorant Phalacrocorax capensis; Bank Cormorant P. neglectus; Crowned Cormorant P. coronatus; Hartlaub's Gull Larus hartlaubii; and African Black Oystercatcher Haematopus moquini.

Further information on the IBAs and EBAs of Namibia can be found at BirdLife International.