Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

Summary Lachua-Ikbolay is an important site for biome-restricted birds of the Gulf Caribbean Slope and for two globally threatened species, Keel-billed Motmot and Cerulean Warbler. About the half of the IBA is used for growing corn, coffee, and cardamom, and for cattle farming.

Ornithological information More than 320 bird species have been recorded recently in Lachua-Ikbolay (Avendaño 2001, Eisermann 2001, 2005, Cóbar 2003). The site is important for biome-restricted species of the Gulf Caribbean Slope (18 species recorded). This site supports a small population of the globally threatened Keel-billed Motmot (Electron carinatum) (Eisermann 2005). Cerulean Warbler (Dendroica cerulea) has been recorded recently during spring migration in the Laguna Lachua National Park (Welton et al. 2007).

Site description Lachua-Ikbolay is located in the foothills and lowlands of the Atlantic slope of Guatemala. This IBA includes large fragments of humid evergreen broadleaf forest ranging in elevation from 150 to 1000 m.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Protected areas

Protected area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Chajumpec	Private Natural Reserve	979	protected area contained by site	988
Eco-Región Lachuá	Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar)	0	protected area contained by site	0
Entre Ríos	Private Natural Reserve	451	protected area contained by site	490
Laguna Lachuá	National Park	14,500	protected area contained by site	0

Habitats

Land ownership The land is owned by the state (Laguna Lachua National Park), privately and communal owned.

Land use

Management considerations Slash-and-burn agriculture is common in the area, threatening the forest by fires and conversion to agricultural land.

Protection status Currently, about 7% of the IBA are legally protected, including a national park and two private nature reserves (CONAP 2007). The Ecoregión Lachuá has been designated as important wetlands under the Ramsar convention in 2006.

Conservation response Laguna Lachua National Park is managed by INAB (National Forest Institute). Several NGO’s help to establish a sustainable landuse by surrounding communities. Local tourism programs are developed by several communities. Bird populations in a lowland and foothill landscape in the southeast of the Laguna Lachua National Park are monitored since 2001 by PROEVAL RAXMU Bird Monitoring Program.

Acknowledgements PROEVAL RAXMU Bird Monitoring Program provided unpublished ornithological data. Input of unpublished data and suggestions for the delimitation of the IBA was provided during a workshop in Cobán, in August 2006, by representatives of Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas (CONAP) - Las Verapaces, Asociación de Proyectos Evaluados Raxmu (PROEVAL RAXMU), Peace Corps, Cooperativa Sanimtaca, Cooperativa Samac, and Comité Central Menotita. This first assessment of IBAs in Guatemala was conducted by Sociedad Guatemalteca de Ornitología and BirdLife International in the Americas.

References 

Avendaño, C. 2001. Caracterización de la avifauna del Parque Nacional Laguna Lachuá y su zona de influencia, Cobán, Alta Verapaz. Tesis de Licenciatura, Univ. San Carlos, Guatemala.

Cóbar, A. J. 2003. Riqueza y abundancia de aves de sotobosque en dos condiciones de paisaje con diferente grado de fragmentación en la zona de influencia del Parque Nacional Laguna Lachuá. Univ. San Carlos, Guatemala. (Unpublished report)

CONAP. 2007. Lista de áreas protegidas inscritas en el SIGAP. Consejo Nacional de Áreas Protegidas (CONAP), Guatemala. (Database accessed in June 2007)

Eisermann, K. 2001. Reporte de avance: investigaciones de la avifauna de las regiones Ik'bolay, Guaxac y Sacranix, Alta Verapaz. Unpublished report to BIDAS/Proyecto Eco-Quetzal, Cobán. (Unpublished report)

Eisermann, K. 2005. Noteworthy bird observations in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 125: 3-11.

MAGA. 2006. Mapa de cobertura vegetal y uso de la tierra a escala 1:50,000 de la República de Guatemala, Año 2003 (Incluye 5 cultivos perennes actualizados al año 2005). Memoria técnica y descripción de resultados. Ministerio de Agricultura Ganadería y Alimentación –MAGA– / Unidad de Planificación Geográfica y Gestión de Riesgo –UPGGR–, Guatemala Ciudad, Guatemala.

Welton, M. J., D. L. Anderson, G. Colorado, E. S. Pérez & T. Beachy 2007. Migration habitat and stopover ecology of Cerulean Warblers and other Nearctic-Neotropical migrant songbirds in Northern Central America: Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico 2007. (Unpublished report)

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

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