NH Important Bird Areas

The Audubon Society of New Hampshire, NH Fish and Game Department, and UNH Cooperative Extension are working in partnership with the state's Partners in Flight (PIF) Committee, to create an Important Bird Area (IBA) Program. The IBA Program is an international bird and habitat conservation program operating in 103 countries and 40 states. The goal of the program is to identify and conserve areas that are critical to one or more bird species for breeding, feeding, wintering or migration.

All IBAs must meet strict scientific criteria to qualify. The criteria include areas that support:

• threatened or endangered species
• high conservation priority species
• significant concentrations of birds
• representative, rare, threatened, or unique habitats

Despite its small size, New Hampshire hosts a diverse array of habitat types and more than 250 bird species spend time in the state-some are here during the breeding season, others are year-round residents, and others come into New Hampshire only in migration or winter. Habitats range from the 18 miles of coastline including sand dunes and salt marshes to the high mountain peaks with alpine and subalpine habitats.

The NH PIF Committee has developed a Preliminary Nomination Form that people can submit to recommend an area for review and possible identification as an IBA. Potential IBAs may include private or public land and should be based on ecological rather than ownership boundaries. Educational information on the significance of a given area for birds will be shared with landowners that may fall within a potential IBA. This includes guidance on voluntary stewardship and conservation options. The nomination form will be available January 2003.

New Hampshire's PIF Committee includes representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NH Fish and Game Department, NH Natural Heritage Inventory, Audubon Society of New Hampshire, Vermont Institute of Natural Sciences, Dartmouth College, St. Anselm's College, University of New Hampshire, Antioch College, and members of the birding community.

For more information about the NH Important Bird Areas Program contact:

Pam Hunt NH IBA Program Coordinator Audubon Society of New Hampshire 3 Silk Farm Road Concord, NH 03301 (603) 224-9909 x328 phunt@nhaudubon.org

Other Links:

• BirdLife International
• National Audubon Society
• North American Bird Conservation Initiative
• North American Waterfowl Conservation Plan
• U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan

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