Conserving the grassland Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of southern South America: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil

Abstract

In the southern part of South America, knowledge about bird species distribution is still not used as a tool for land use planning and conservation priority-setting. BirdLife International’s Important Bird Areas (IBA) Program is an appropriate vehicle for analyzing existing information about birds, and to generate new data where necessary. IBA inventories should provide input to urgent regional conservation issues, such as those relating to temperate and subtropical grasslands. There is a rich avifauna of grassland-specialist species in Argentina, of which approximately 25 are threatened or near-threatened at the global level. The grassland biome also serves as wintering grounds for neartic migrants, such as Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), Upland Sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda) and Swainson’s Hawk (Buteo swainsoni). The BirdLife network is represented in the region by the Brazil Program Office, Guyra Paraguay, Aves Uruguay and Aves Argentinas/AOP. These organizations are trying to start an international cooperative project focusing on grassland IBA identification and conservation.

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

Di Giacomo, Adrian S.; Krapovickas, Santiago. 2005. Conserving the grassland Important Bird Areas (IBAs) of southern South America: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil. 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. 1243-1249