GR087), while a management scheme for the SPA site of Andros island is currently being established within the framework of a LIFE-Nature project (LIFE10 NAT/GR/000637). In total, 2,913 km2 in 33 marine IBAs are covered by European and national protection status (SPA and SAC designation), equivalent to 29% of the total area of the current marine IBA inventory. On the other hand 42% of the existing marine Natura 2000 Network overlaps with the marine IBAs. The existing SPAs cover 5.8% of the marine IBAs while SACs cover 24.9%. The total area of marine IBAs which does not conincide with the current marine Natura 2000 Network amounts to 7,029 km2. Overall, 21.8% of the marine IBAs overlap with the marine national parks. With the current marine IBA inventory, key marine areas for the conservation of seabirds in Greece have been identified and delineated for the first time. In the light of continuous and increasing pressure brought about by human activities, its production is an urgent contribution and prerequisite step towards the effective conservation of the marine environment. However, legal protection and management of the marine IBAs will only be realised through the extension of the Natura 2000 Network in the marine environment and the production and implementation of management plans for these sites. Since these sites are important not only for seabirds, but also for other marine fauna and BULGARIA F. Y. R . O . M
ALBANIA
flora, including marine mammals, turtles and fish, marine ecosystems as a whole would benefit from appropriate site protection and management. However, the marine IBA identification process in Greece has not been completed yet. Apart from the afore-mentioned gaps in the important pelagic areas for shearwaters, there are also several coastal areas which host significant numbers of waterbirds and which have not been addressed at this stage (Appendix 10.3). As in the case of shearwaters, the largest gaps in our knowledge relate mainly to the distribution of waterbird species at sea, without which delineation of relevant marine IBAs cannot be realised. Apart from the above, among the future tasks of HOS in relation to marine IBA work in Greece, is also the promotion and assistance of the marine IBA identification process in the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Extensive knowledge and experience gained through the production of the current inventory and through the cooperation with other BirdLife partners that have already completed their marine IBA inventories (such as SEO / BirdLife Spain and SPEA / BirdLife Portugal), provides an ideal opportunity to support similar processes in other neighbouring countries. Revision of the existing IBAs is a continuous process which takes place in cooperation with BirdLife International, through the evaluation of up-to-date population data, acquired through regular monitoring of IBA sites. Meanwhile, the conservation status of species is regularly revised by BirdLife International, based on international scientific information, resulting in new trigger species which often influence existing or TURKEY indicate the need for new IBAs. In this aspect, all IBAs, including marine IBAs, are constantly evolving to best reflect and protect bird populations and their distributions worldwide.
Legend Marine IBAs Natura 2000 marine coverage Marine coverage of national parks
0
30
60
90
120 nm
Figure 7.7: Marine IBAs in relation to the existing marine protected areas 72