Muizenberg
Pied-billed grebes breed in the IBA
Map showing the location of Muizenberg
Map showing the location of Muizenberg
LocationCuraçao
Nearest cityWillemstad
Coordinates12°09′27″N 68°55′07″W / 12.15750°N 68.91861°W / 12.15750; -68.91861
Area0.65 km2 (0.25 sq mi)[1]
Established2013[1]
Official nameMuizenberg
Designated5 February 2013
Reference no.2118[2]

Muizenberg comprises a 150 ha wetland area, including an intermittent shallow lake (Muizenberg) and a smaller pond (Kaya Fortuna). The site lies within the northern suburbs of Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao, a constituent island nation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Dutch Caribbean. In 1915, Shell Curaçao built the Muizenberg dam to collect water for cooling. The artificial lake which was created started to attract a large population of birds.[2]

It has been identified as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International because it supports American coots. Common moorhens, pied-billed grebes and white-cheeked pintails breed there and American flamingos feed there. The 65 ha[2][1] Muizenberg lake has been recognised as a wetland of international importance by designation as a Ramsar site.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Muizenberg". Protected Planet. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 "Muizenberg". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Muizenberg, Curaçao". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2007. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.