Important bird areas in the neotropics: the backbone of a coordinated, on-the-ground bird conservation initiative in the western hemisphere

Abstract

The Important Bird Areas (IBA) Program was developed by BirdLife International as an approach to conserving birds and associated biodiversity throughout the world. The IBA program seeks to identify and protect a network of sites, at a biogeographic scale, which are critical for the long-term viability of naturally occurring bird populations for which site-based conservation is appropriate. The IBA program, run by national organizations in each country, consists of four stages: site identification, site designation, advocacy and action, and assessment and monitoring. In the Americas the IBA program was launched in 1997 and since then 24 countries have launched IBA programs, with more than 3,381 IBAs identified across the region. Selected conservation actions are described from Brazil, Panama, Cuba and Argentina. Caribbean, conservation action, Important Bird Areas, Latin America, national inventories, network, partnerships.

Parent Publication

• Bird Conservation Implementation and Integration in the Americas: Proceedings of the Third International Partners in Flight Conference. 2002 March 20-24; Asilomar, California, Volume 1 and 2

Citation

Estrada, Angelica; Davidson, Ian. 2005. Important bird areas in the neotropics: the backbone of a coordinated, on-the-ground bird conservation initiative in the western hemisphere. In: Ralph, C. John; Rich, Terrell D., editors 2005. Bird Conservation Implementation and Integration in the Americas: Proceedings of the Third International Partners in Flight Conference. 2002 March 20-24; Asilomar, California, Volume 2 Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-191. Albany, CA: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station: p. 1237-1242