Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

Ornithological information Woolly-necked Stork and Comb Duck were also reported.

Site description The IBA is located in the north-western part of the Tonle Sap floodplain, and comprises a substantial area of seasonally inundated grassland and scrub. This includes, in the south-east of the IBA, an area reportedly dominated by Wild Rice Oryza rufipogon, in mosaic with tall scrub and flooded forest, similar to that found at Veal Srongae IBA (KH020). In recent years, these habitats have been increasingly converted to deepwater and recession rice, reducing and fragmenting the key habitats at the IBA. The IBA is an important dry season breeding area for Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis, which occurs in areas of seasonally inundated grassland throughout. In addition, several other globally threatened and near-threatened species have been seasonally recorded at the IBA in small numbers, including Sarus Crane Grus antigone, Black-necked Stork Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus and Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Protected areas

Protected area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Tonle Sap Biosphere	Multiple Use Management Area	322,270	protected area overlaps with site	4,000

Habitats

Land use

Management considerations Hunting of water birds and Bengal Florican, chiefly by poisoning and trapping, is an ongoing threat; much of this is for sale in local markets. In the wet season, local people also apparently catch large waterbirds by using fish-hooks. A more recent threat which is of major concern is the extensive conversion of grasslands to deepwater rice in southeastern Banteay Meanchey and western Siem Reap Provinces. This is rapidly reducing available breeding habitat for Bengal Florican. Associated disturbance from agricultural activities (e.g. ploughing) and grazing of large herds of domestic livestock probably further reduces Bengal Florican breeding success. Children use catapults to scare or kill birds when they are in the fields with their cattle.

Protection status Tonle Sap Multiple Use Area overlaps the site by approximately 4000ha.

Conservation response Recommendations:- Law enforcement and community awareness activities should be initiated based on the successful model at Stung Sen / Santuk / Baray (IBA #21). These should focus on controlling the hunting and trade of key species, particularly Bengal Floricans and large waterbirds and the potential benefits to local communities. - Further research should be carried out on the relative ecological roles of the seasonally flooded grasslands and deep water rice areas, particularly to the conservation of Bengal Florican.- Any further agricultural development, particularly deep water rice expansion, should not be undertaken without a full environmental impact assessment and a proper understanding, based on the above, of the potential effects of conversion of the semi-natural ecosystems (upon which the floricans may be reliant) to agriculture.

Further web sources of information 

Site account from Directory of Important Bird Areas in Cambodia: key sites for conservation (Seng Kim Hout 2003)

References Pech Bunnat et al. (2002). Field survey of eastern Tonle Sap in Siem Reap and Banteay Meanchey Provinces. Unpublished report, Wildlife Conservation Society, Cambodia.