Sabaki River Mouth (03094008) | |
|---|---|
Kenya | |
| CWAC status | REGISTERED-COUNTED REGULARLY |
| Authority | |
| Management status | LOCAL MUNICIPALITY |
| Conservation status | UNPROTECTED |
| IBA information | |
| Ramsar information | |
| Heritage information | |
| View Cards | |
Information |
|---|
| Date_registered |
| 2016-08-25 |
| Brief_description |
| Sabaki River Mouth is where the Athi-Galana-Sabaki river system empties into the Indian Ocean some 5 km north of Malindi. Due to the combined action of ocean currents and freshwater flow from the highlands bringing high levels of silt, a diverse array of habitats have been formed. These include open sandy beach, sandbanks, mudflats, salt marsh, vegetated and bare sand dunes, seasonal and permanent fresh water pools, mangroves, grassland and coastal scrub. Since the mid-1970s a high level of silt deposition has taken place that has extended the river mouth into the ocean and created the wide, open mud and sand flats which are the key attraction for large numbers of waders. Until c. 2000 there was only some degraded patches of mangrove forest slightly upstream. With the siltation, however, conditions became ideal for mangroves to become established and an area of over 12 ha of mangrove forest has grown on the northern banks of the river mouth. Seasonal wetlands form during seasons of good rain on the extension of low sand dunes between the beach and the old, high sand dunes and provide breeding habitat for some birds such as Black-winged Stilts. The sandflats and beach are regularly used as a roost for often large numbers of gulls and terns which forage out at sea and come to the relative safety of the river mouth to rest. |
| Physical_features |
| A series of high (up to c. 25 m) wind-blown sand dunes extend about five km north and three km south of the river. These dunes form an important aquifer and as a result among the dunes are pools and wells of fresh water filtered by the sand and separ |
| Hydrological_features |
| "Sabaki" is the name of the final few kilometres of the river that starts in the Ngong Hills west of Nairobi as the Athi River and is known as the Galana River through Ukambani and Tsavo East National Park. At its mouth it is c. 150 m wide broadening |
| Spp | Common name | Taxonomic name | Min | Avg | Max | IBA | Subregional IBA | RAMSAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 273 | Dromas ardeola | 1 | 36.05 | 191 | ||||
| 255 | Calidris alba | 1 | 36.22 | 389 | ||||
| 256 | Calidris pugnax | 1 | 208.90 | 2039 | ||||
| 269 | Avocet, Pied | Recurvirostra avosetta | 1 | 30.12 | 110 | |||
| 66 | Bittern, Dwarf | Ixobrychus sturmii | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 50 | Cormorant, Reed | Microcarbo africanus | 1 | 1.60 | 2 | |||
| 203 | Crake, Black | Zapornia flavirostra | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 267 | Curlew, Eurasian | Numenius arquata | 1 | 3.88 | 16 | |||
| 101 | Duck, Fulvous Whistling | Dendrocygna bicolor | 1 | 34.80 | 110 | |||
| 91 | Duck, Knob-billed | Sarkidiornis melanotos | 1 | 8.71 | 47 | |||
| 100 | Duck, White-faced Whistling | Dendrocygna viduata | 1 | 97.69 | 462 | |||
| 149 | Eagle, African Fish | Haliaeetus vocifer | 1 | 1.29 | 4 | |||
| 2188 | Egret, Dimorphic | Egretta dimorpha | 1 | 8.19 | 31 | |||
| 58 | Egret, Great | Ardea alba | 1 | 2.65 | 5 | |||
| 60 | Egret, Intermediate | Ardea intermedia | 1 | 3.50 | 6 | |||
| 59 | Egret, Little | Egretta garzetta | 1 | 2.67 | 9 | |||
| 61 | Egret, Western Cattle | Bubulcus ibis | 1 | 8.92 | 54 | |||
| 86 | Flamingo, Greater | Phoenicopterus roseus | 1 | 97.21 | 1074 | 625 | 750 | |
| 87 | Flamingo, Lesser | Phoeniconaias minor | 1 | 633.63 | 3200 | 600 | ||
| 266 | Godwit, Bar-tailed | Limosa lapponica | 1 | 2.71 | 7 | |||
| 10004 | Goose, Domestic | Anser anser | 2 | 2.00 | 2 | |||
| 89 | Goose, Egyptian | Alopochen aegyptiaca | 1 | 14.50 | 56 | |||
| 88 | Goose, Spur-winged | Plectropterus gambensis | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 263 | Greenshank, Common | Tringa nebularia | 2 | 25.28 | 83 | |||
| 933 | Gull, Black-headed | Chroicocephalus ridibundus | 1 | 4.40 | 8 | |||
| 2062 | Gull, Great Black-backed | Larus marinus | 2 | 5.00 | 8 | |||
| 288 | Gull, Grey-headed | Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus | 1 | 3.50 | 7 | |||
| 2042 | Gull, Heuglin's | Larus heuglini | 1 | 17.21 | 132 | |||
| 4136 | Gull, Lesser Black-backed | Larus fuscus | 1 | 19.12 | 69 | |||
| 2058 | Gull, Sooty | Ichthyaetus hemprichii | 1 | 274.19 | 2930 | |||
| 10010 | Gull, Unidentified | N/A N/A | 1 | 234.58 | 1155 | |||
| 167 | Harrier, African Marsh | Circus ranivorus | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 166 | Harrier, Western Marsh | Circus aeruginosus | 2 | 2.00 | 2 | |||
| 64 | Heron, Black | Egretta ardesiaca | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 55 | Heron, Black-headed | Ardea melanocephala | 1 | 4.58 | 48 | |||
| 56 | Heron, Goliath | Ardea goliath | 1 | 1.50 | 2 | |||
| 54 | Heron, Grey | Ardea cinerea | 1 | 7.60 | 46 | |||
| 62 | Heron, Squacco | Ardeola ralloides | 1 | 4.33 | 9 | |||
| 63 | Heron, Striated | Butorides striata | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 10011 | Heron, Unidentified | N/A N/A | 1 | 1.38 | 3 | |||
| 81 | Ibis, African Sacred | Threskiornis aethiopicus | 1 | 14.89 | 78 | |||
| 84 | Ibis, Hadada | Bostrychia hagedash | 1 | 3.57 | 10 | |||
| 402 | Kingfisher, Brown-hooded | Halcyon albiventris | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 397 | Kingfisher, Malachite | Corythornis cristatus | 1 | 5.12 | 91 | |||
| 400 | Kingfisher, Mangrove | Halcyon senegaloides | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 394 | Kingfisher, Pied | Ceryle rudis | 1 | 4.38 | 62 | |||
| 1031 | Lapwing, Spur-winged | Vanellus spinosus | 1 | 33.61 | 200 | |||
| 303 | Noddy, Brown | Anous stolidus | 11 | 11.00 | 11 | |||
| 74 | Openbill, African | Anastomus lamelligerus | 1 | 22.93 | 100 | |||
| 172 | Osprey, Western | Pandion haliaetus | 1 | 1.08 | 2 | |||
| 894 | Oystercatcher, Eurasian | Haematopus ostralegus | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 42 | Pelican, Great White | Pelecanus onocrotalus | 1 | 17.67 | 78 | |||
| 41 | Pelican, Pink-backed | Pelecanus rufescens | 1 | 21.77 | 137 | |||
| 271 | Phalarope, Red | Phalaropus fulicarius | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 272 | Phalarope, Red-necked | Phalaropus lobatus | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 240 | Plover, Caspian | Charadrius asiaticus | 1 | 3.14 | 7 | |||
| 233 | Plover, Common Ringed | Charadrius hiaticula | 1 | 270.88 | 2028 | 1500 | 1900 | |
| 239 | Plover, Greater Sand | Charadrius leschenaultii | 2 | 49.78 | 224 | |||
| 241 | Plover, Grey | Pluvialis squatarola | 1 | 27.43 | 112 | |||
| 237 | Plover, Kittlitz's | Charadrius pecuarius | 1 | 8.07 | 59 | |||
| 234 | Plover, Lesser Sand | Charadrius mongolus | 1 | 196.13 | 807 | 250 | 125 | |
| 1039 | Plover, Pacific Golden | Pluvialis fulva | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 238 | Plover, Three-banded | Charadrius tricollaris | 1 | 9.20 | 42 | |||
| 235 | Plover, White-fronted | Charadrius marginatus | 1 | 28.10 | 143 | 125 | ||
| 281 | Pratincole, Collared | Glareola pratincola | 1 | 11.78 | 150 | |||
| 898 | Pratincole, Madagascan | Glareola ocularis | 1 | 162.92 | 887 | |||
| 981 | Sandpiper, Broad-billed | Calidris falcinellus | 1 | 22.14 | 104 | |||
| 258 | Sandpiper, Common | Actitis hypoleucos | 1 | 18.70 | 89 | |||
| 251 | Sandpiper, Curlew | Calidris ferruginea | 1 | 1406.46 | 5690 | 3750 | ||
| 259 | Sandpiper, Green | Tringa ochropus | 1 | 3.17 | 14 | |||
| 262 | Sandpiper, Marsh | Tringa stagnatilis | 1 | 23.48 | 173 | |||
| 257 | Sandpiper, Terek | Xenus cinereus | 1 | 24.36 | 122 | |||
| 264 | Sandpiper, Wood | Tringa glareola | 1 | 6.95 | 46 | |||
| 10012 | Seabird, Unidentified | N/A N/A | 1 | 81.33 | 549 | |||
| 306 | Skimmer, African | Rynchops flavirostris | 1 | 1.33 | 2 | |||
| 250 | Snipe, African | Gallinago nigripennis | 1 | 1.00 | 1 | |||
| 249 | Snipe, Great | Gallinago media | 5 | 5.00 | 5 | |||
| 85 | Spoonbill, African | Platalea alba | 1 | 18.86 | 61 | |||
| 270 | Stilt, Black-winged | Himantopus himantopus | 1 | 6.09 | 35 | |||
| 253 | Stint, Little | Calidris minuta | 1 | 545.67 | 4667 | |||
| 77 | Stork, Woolly-necked | Ciconia episcopus | 1 | 2.72 | 9 | |||
| 76 | Stork, Yellow-billed | Mycteria ibis | 1 | 14.56 | 83 | |||
| 1274 | Teal, Eurasian | Anas crecca | 1 | 2.67 | 4 | |||
| 97 | Teal, Red-billed | Anas erythrorhyncha | 1 | 77.21 | 503 | |||
| 290 | Tern, Caspian | Hydroprogne caspia | 1 | 26.36 | 100 | 68 | 20 | |
| 291 | Tern, Common | Sterna hirundo | 1 | 425.94 | 5300 | 4000 | 1800 | |
| 298 | Tern, Greater Crested | Thalasseus bergii | 1 | 86.54 | 1520 | 500 | 250 | 200 |
| 902 | Tern, Gull-billed | Gelochelidon nilotica | 1 | 34.80 | 200 | |||
| 297 | Tern, Lesser Crested | Thalasseus bengalensis | 1 | 378.19 | 14280 | 250 | 125 | 440 |
| 293 | Tern, Roseate | Sterna dougallii | 1 | 680.43 | 4465 | 400 | 200 | 8 |
| 2070 | Tern, Saunders's | Sternula saundersi | 1 | 844.48 | 25130 | |||
| 295 | Tern, Sooty | Onychoprion fuscatus | 37 | 101.00 | 165 | |||
| 10009 | Tern, Unidentified | N/A N/A | 1 | 3332.38 | 35000 | |||
| 938 | Tern, White-cheeked | Sterna repressa | 2 | 41.00 | 80 | |||
| 304 | Tern, White-winged | Chlidonias leucopterus | 1 | 16.17 | 60 | |||
| 274 | Thick-knee, Water | Burhinus vermiculatus | 1 | 3.04 | 7 | |||
| 232 | Turnstone, Ruddy | Arenaria interpres | 1 | 3.90 | 19 | |||
| 10008 | Wader, Unidentified | N/A N/A | 1 | 886.83 | 6580 | |||
| 268 | Whimbrel, Eurasian | Numenius phaeopus | 1 | 6.64 | 22 |
Thursday 25 April 2024 10:14
FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology
Department
of Biological Sciences - University of Cape Town
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