Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs)

Ornithological information See Box and Table 3 for key species. Very large concentrations of resident and migratory waterbirds occur and many species breed in large colonies deep within the swamps. Grus carunculatus is common here all-year-round, and this is the single most important area for the species anywhere, with 3,200 individuals counted in October 1983 (here considered equivalent to more than 1,000 breeding pairs). Among the other species of global conservation concern, Gallinago media occurs in large numbers, Egretta vinaceigula is uncommon, but almost certainly breeds, Circus macrourus visits in good numbers, Falco naumanni is numerous at times and Crex crex is probably common, while Ardeola idae and Glareola nordmanni are rare non-breeding visitors. Lybius chaplini is local, in small numbers. Phoenicopterus minor and Gyps coprotheres are both vagrants to the area. Counts from earlier decades for some of the waterbirds listed in the Box (meeting the A4i criterion) exceed recent counts, for instance >6,000 Pelecanus onocrotalus (Nov 1971), >5,000 Plegadis falcinellus (Dec 1975), >100,000 Plectropterus gambensis (Nov 1972), >29,000 Anas erythrorhyncha (Aug 1971), >5,000  Netta erythrophthalma (Jan 1973), and >50,000 Glareola pratincola (Apr 1972, May 1980). Other waterbirds which are often found in notable numbers include Ciconia abdimii, Fulica cristata and Vanellus armatus. Particularly numerous in the dry season are Eremopterix leucotis, Calandrella cinerea and Oenanthe pileata, when other characteristic species include Neotis denhami and Pterocles gutturalis.

Site description A vast area of swamp, open lagoon and seasonally inundated flood-plain surrounding the Kafue river as it flows from west to east before reaching the Zambezi escarpment. When wet, the alluvial clays render much of the area inaccessible and extensive cracks form on drying. The swamp is dominated by Typha and there are only scattered pockets of Cyperus papyrus. The flats are bordered by termitaria and munga woodland. At its widest point, the area liable to flooding is some 70 km across. Hydroelectric dams have been constructed at either end of the flats, although Itezhi-Tezhi (at the western end) is more important for regulating the flow and Kafue Gorge (at the eastern end) generates most of the power. An initial agreement to simulate the annual inundation has not always been followed, especially when there have been fears of water shortages. However, rainfall permitting, the cycle has been ‘smoothed’; thus the simulated flood is not as high, but lasts longer than it would under natural conditions. Many fishermen live on the numerous small islands in the centre of the swamps and other communities exist around the edges, although some of these are somewhat seasonal depending on the water-level.

Populations of IBA trigger species

Species	Season	Period	Population estimate	Quality of estimate	IBA Criteria	IUCN Category
Fulvous Whistling-duck Dendrocygna bicolor	winter	1994	58,384 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Fulvous Whistling-duck Dendrocygna bicolor	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Spur-winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis	winter	1994	4,133 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Spur-winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Comb Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos	winter	1994	20,698 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Comb Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca	winter	-	3,500 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Red-billed Duck Anas erythrorhyncha	winter	1999	10,407 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Red-billed Duck Anas erythrorhyncha	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Hottentot Teal Anas hottentota	winter	2001	3,930 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Hottentot Teal Anas hottentota	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Southern Pochard Netta erythrophthalma	winter	2000	3,068 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Southern Pochard Netta erythrophthalma	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Yellow-billed Stork Mycteria ibis	winter	1998	667 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Yellow-billed Stork Mycteria ibis	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
African Openbill Anastomus lamelligerus	winter	1999	15,000-20,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
African Openbill Anastomus lamelligerus	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus	winter	1999	4,097 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
African Spoonbill Platalea alba	winter	2001	1,595 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
African Spoonbill Platalea alba	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	winter	1997	1,506 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis	winter	1995	14,126 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Great Egret Casmerodius albus	winter	1993	2,223 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Great Egret Casmerodius albus	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Intermediate Egret Mesophoyx intermedia	winter	-	1,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Intermediate Egret Mesophoyx intermedia	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Slaty Egret Egretta vinaceigula	resident	-	present [units unknown]	-	A1	Vulnerable
Black Heron Egretta ardesiaca	winter	2000	2,933 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Black Heron Egretta ardesiaca	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus	resident	-	-	-		Least Concern
Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus	winter	1994	3,086 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Reed Cormorant Phalacrocorax africanus	resident	-	-	-		Least Concern
Reed Cormorant Phalacrocorax africanus	winter	-	10,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni	winter	-	common [units unknown]	-	A1	Least Concern
Dickinson's Kestrel Falco dickinsoni	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus	winter	-	present [units unknown]	-	A1	Near Threatened
Corncrake Crex crex	winter	-	present [units unknown]	-	A1	Least Concern
Wattled Crane Bugeranus carunculatus	winter	1995	1,171 individuals	-	A1, A4i	Vulnerable
Wattled Crane Bugeranus carunculatus	resident	-	1,000 breeding pairs	-	A1, A4i	Vulnerable
Long-toed Lapwing Vanellus crassirostris	winter	2001	1,395 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Long-toed Lapwing Vanellus crassirostris	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Kittlitz's Plover Charadrius pecuarius	winter	2000	5,000-6,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Kittlitz's Plover Charadrius pecuarius	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Caspian Plover Charadrius asiaticus	winter	1995	30,000-35,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Great Snipe Gallinago media	winter	-	300 individuals	-	A1, A4i	Near Threatened
Ruff Philomachus pugnax	winter	2001	71,285 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola	winter	2000	17,070 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
Black-winged Pratincole Glareola nordmanni	winter	-	100 individuals	-	A1, A4i	Near Threatened
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida	winter	1997	1,226 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida	breeding	-	-	-		Least Concern
White-winged Tern Chlidonias leucopterus	winter	-	2,000 individuals	-	A4i	Least Concern
African Skimmer Rynchops flavirostris	winter	2000	520 individuals	-	A1, A4i	Near Threatened
African Skimmer Rynchops flavirostris	breeding	-	-	-		Near Threatened
Coppery-tailed Coucal Centropus cupreicaudus	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Racket-tailed Roller Coracias spatulatus	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Boehm's Bee-eater Merops boehmi	resident	1998	rare [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Miombo Barbet Tricholaema frontata	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Zambian Barbet Lybius chaplini	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A1, A3	Vulnerable
Miombo Wren-warbler Camaroptera undosa	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Angola Babbler Turdoides hartlaubii	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Meves's Glossy-starling Lamprotornis mevesii	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Kurrichane Thrush Turdus libonyanus	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
White-headed Black-chat Myrmecocichla arnoti	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
White-breasted Sunbird Nectarinia talatala	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Brown Firefinch Lagonosticta nitidula	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Twinspot Indigobird Vidua codringtoni	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Broad-tailed Paradise-whydah Vidua obtusa	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
Fuelleborn's Longclaw Macronyx fuellebornii	resident	1998	present [units unknown]	-	A3	Least Concern
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	winter	-	-	unknown	A4iii

Protected areas

Protected area	Designation	Area (ha)	Relationship with IBA	Overlap with IBA (ha)
Blue Lagoon	National Park	45,000	protected area contained by site	45,000
Kafue Flats	Game Management Area	517,500	protected area contained by site	517,500
Kafue Flats: Lochinvar and Blue Lagoon	Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar)	600,500	protected area contained by site	600,500
Lochinvar	National Park	41,000	protected area contained by site	41,000

Habitats

IUCN habitat	Habitat detail	Extent (% of site)
Artificial landscapes (terrestrial)		14%
Shrubland		48%
Grassland		12%
Forest		23%

Land use

Land-use	Extent (% of site)
fisheries/aquaculture	-
forestry	-
hunting	-
nature conservation and research	-
water management	-

Other biodiversity A wide variety of mammals are known to occur, including Tragelaphus spekii (LR/nt) and, most notably, the endemic subspecies Kobus leche kafuensis(the largest protected population of this species anywhere).

Management considerations The site is composed of the Kafue Flats Game Management Area No. 11, together with two National Parks—Lochinvar (41,000 ha) and Blue Lagoon (42,000 ha)—which comprise a designated Ramsar Site. The controlled flooding has altered many aspects of the ecosystem, such as the timing of breeding seasons, a rapid spread of thorny shrubs in place of grassland, and a slight change in the assemblage of bird species present. The possible and observed effects of the artificial flooding regime on the breeding numbers and success of Grus carunculatus are of some concern. As yet, the effects on other birdlife do not seem to be serious. However, good comparative data are lacking.

The proximity of the Kafue flats to Lusaka means that there is a high demand for meat and fish and, as a result, illegal hunting and fishing occur widely. Poaching camps are hidden in many parts of the swamp and may be quite large. In recent years, trees which were known to hold nesting colonies of heron (Ardeidae) and stork (Ciconiidae) species have been felled and further investigation is required to assess the potential threats and disturbance to other colonies within the flats. Within the last decade, water-hyacinth Eichhornia crassipes has covered significant areas of open water on the lower portion of the Kafue flats. This invasive alien weed is difficult to control and spreads rapidly. Its impact on the area’s birdlife has yet to be assessed, but it would seem to be a potential threat to any species that requires open water.

References Bolnick (1995), Clarke and Loe (1974), Douthwaite (1974, 1977, 1978), Dowsett (1966), Howard (1989).

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

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