email a friend
printable version
AT046
Niedere Tauern
Location Austria, Steiermark
Central coordinates 14o 18.00' East  47o 19.00' North
IBA criteria B2, C6
Area 253,560 ha
Altitude 800 - 2,863m
Year of IBA assessment 2009

BirdLife Austria



Ornithological information An important site for species of alpine grassland, montane and subalpine forest.

Site description A mountainous area of broad glacial valleys. Below 1,900 m most areas are covered by intensively managed forest, with more natural conifer forest limited to steep slopes. The treeline ecotone is dominated by Alnus, Rhododendron, Vaccinium and, locally, Pinus. The highest areas are occupied by alpine pastures, alpine grassland, cliffs and rocky slopes.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species Season Period Population estimate Quality of estimate IBA Criteria IUCN Category
Black Grouse Tetrao tetrix resident  1997-2005  2,050 males only  medium  B2, C6  Least Concern 
Western Capercaillie Tetrao urogallus resident  1997-2005  900 males only  medium  C6  Least Concern 
Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos resident  1997-2005  25 breeding pairs  good  B2, C6  Least Concern 
Eurasian Dotterel Eudromias morinellus breeding  1994  2,000 breeding pairs  -  C6  Least Concern 
Eurasian Pygmy-owl Glaucidium passerinum resident  1997-2005  98-588 breeding pairs  poor  C6  Least Concern 
Boreal Owl Aegolius funereus resident  1997-2005  60-556 breeding pairs  poor  C6  Least Concern 
Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker Picoides tridactylus resident  1997-2005  613-3,330 breeding pairs  poor  B2, C6  Least Concern 

Protected areas

Protected area Designation Area (ha) Relationship with IBA Overlap with IBA (ha)  
Bodensee - Sattenbachtal Nature Reserve 1,300 protected area contained by site 1,400  
Klafferkessel Nature Reserve 1,100 protected area contained by site 1,200  
Krakau--Schoeder Nature Reserve 6,245 protected area contained by site 6,245  
Niedere Tauern Birds Directive 137,742 protected area contained by site 137,742  
Riesachtal in den Schladminger Tauern Nature Reserve 1,300 protected area contained by site 1,337  

Habitats

IUCN habitat Habitat detail Extent (% of site)
Forest Native coniferous woodland; Treeline ecotone  60%
Grassland Alpine, subalpine and boreal grassland; Mesophile grasslands  25%
Rocky areas   15%

Land use

Land-use Extent (% of site)
forestry 60%
agriculture 25%
not utilised 25%

Management considerations Alpine pastures and forests are threatened by more intensive management practices, especially forest roads and afforestation with Picea. Tourist developments are an additional threat.

Protection status National Partial International Partial1,400 ha of IBA covered by Nature Reserve (Bodensee-Sattenbachtal, 1,400 ha). 1,200 ha of IBA covered by Nature Reserve (Klafferkessel, 1,200 ha). 6,245 ha of IBA covered by Nature Reserve (Krakau-Schoeder, 6,245 ha). 1,337 ha of IBA covered by Nature Reserve (Riesachtal, 1,337 ha). 137,742 ha of IBA covered by Special Protection Area (Niedere Tauern, 137,742 ha).

Contribute  Please click here to help BirdLife conserve the world's birds - your data for this IBA and others are vital for helping protect the environment.

Recommended citation  BirdLife International (2013) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Niedere Tauern. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 23/05/2013

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife