Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

Ornithological information Other regionally significant species occur at the site such as Grey Heron, Great Egret, Little Cormorant, Brahminy Kite and Asian Openbill.

Site description The IBA is an area of seasonally inundated grassland, dominated by Wild Rice Oryza rufipogon, located within the inundation zone of Tonle Sap Lake, along the border between Kampong Thom and Kampong Chhnang Provinces. The seasonally inundated grassland is surrounded by dense tall scrub and swamp forest and there are numerous seasonal pools and lakes. The southern part of the IBA is situated within Tonle Sap Multiple Use Area, designated under the 1993 Royal Decree on Protected Areas, and Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve. During the dry season, the IBA supports a breeding population of Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis. Also during the dry season, the IBA is visited by a number of non-breeding large waterbirds, including Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala, Asian Openbill Anastomus oscitans, Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus and Greater Adjutant L. dubius. In addition, White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davisoni has been recorded at the IBA, although the precise status of this species is unclear.

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	2,000

Habitats

Land use

Other biodiversity Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis), Silvered Langur (Semnopithecus cristatus).

Management considerations During the dry season, as the waters of the Tonle Sap recede, large numbers of people move into the IBA from a radius of well over 50 km to fish, collect firewood and graze cattle. These activities cause considerable disturbance to waterbirds and nesting Bengal Floricans. In addition, opportunistic hunting and collection of eggs and chicks represent additional threats.

Protection status IBA overlaps with Tonle Sap Multiple Use Area

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. - The occurrence of White-shouldered Ibis in the area should be further investigated.

Further web sources of information 

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

References Document nameGoes, F. and Davidson, P. (eds.) (2002) Recent Sightings. Cambodia Bird News 9: 47-59.