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VN012
Nghia Hung
Location Vietnam, Nam Dinh
Central coordinates 106o 10.00' East  19o 58.00' North
IBA criteria A1, A4i, A4iii
Area 7,600 ha
Altitude 0 - 2m
Year of IBA assessment 2004

BirdLife Indochina Programme (Country programme)



Ornithological information During April 1994, it was estimated that more than 30,000 shorebirds were in Nghia Hung district. A high tide roost of shorebirds has been located on the southernmost offshore island: three high-tide counts were made on the island and a maximum of 1774 shorebirds were recorded during May 1996.

Site description The Nghia Hung district has 12 km of coastline and is bordered to the west and east by the Day and Ninh Co Rivers. There are three coastal communes in the district; Ngia Trung, Nam Dien and Nghia Phuc.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species Season Period Population estimate Quality of estimate IBA Criteria IUCN Category
Black-faced Spoonbill Platalea minor -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1, A4i  Endangered 
Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Vulnerable 
Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Near Threatened 
Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus unknown  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A4i  Least Concern 
Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus winter  1996  1 unknown  good  A4i  Least Concern 
Spotted Greenshank Tringa guttifer -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Endangered 
Spoon-billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus -  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1  Critically Endangered 
Saunders's Gull Larus saundersi winter  2004  present [units unknown]  -  A1, A4i  Vulnerable 
A4iii Species group - waterbirds unknown  2004  20,000 individuals  unknown  A4iii   

Habitats

IUCN habitat Habitat detail Extent (% of site)
Wetlands (inland) Artificial wetlands; Estuarine waters; Intertidal mud, sand or salt flats; Sand dunes and beaches - riverine  75%
Forest Mangrove  25%

Land use

Land-use Extent (% of site)
fisheries/aquaculture 74%
other 6%
not utilised 20%

Other biodiversity Can also be classified as A4i for containing 2.1% of the world population of Tringa erythropus.

Management considerations The main threats to biodiversity at Nghia Hung are hunting, over-exploitation of marine products and disturbance.

Protection status Nghia Hung was proposed a nature reserve by Birdlife and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI). This idea has the support of Nam Dinh Provincial People's Committee and Forest protection Department (FPD). Nghia Hung is not listed on any official decree related to the Special-use Forest system, however is included on a proposed list of protected areas currently being prepared by FPD and FIPI, as a 7,600 ha nature reserve.

Conservation response Several constraints to management have been identified, including the absence of a coastal zone management plan for the district, lack of technical capacity among the district FPD staff, and lack of awareness of the biological value of mangrove and intertidal mudflats.

Further web sources of information 

Site account from Directory of Important Bird Areas in Vietnam: key sites for conservation (Tordoff 2002)

References BirdLife International and the Forest Inventory and Planning Instutute (2001) Sourcebook of existing and proposed protected areas in Vietnam. Hanoi, Vietnam: BirdLife International Vietnam Programme and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute.BirdLife International (2001) Threatened birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. Cambridge, UK: BirdLife International.Pedersen, A. and Nguyen Huy Thang (1996) The conservation of key coastal wetland sites in the Red River Delta. Hanoi: BirdLife International Vietnam Programme.

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Recommended citation  BirdLife International (2013) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Nghia Hung. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 20/06/2013

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