*Research within the BIRDIE project led by Sol Plaatje University has resulted in an additional index, the Waterbird Conservation Value (WCV) index. This index sums the ratio of each species’ abundance to its published 1% threshold across all species to give an overall measure of the 'value' of the waterbirds at a wetland. Large values indicate that large proportions of the total populations of waterbird species are present at the wetland.
Waterbird Conservation Value Index categories
Index | Range | Description |
---|---|---|
Low | 0-10 | Site may support threshold populations for a few species; conservation value is low |
Medium | 11-24 | Site supports important threshold populations for some species; conservation value is medium |
High | 25-49 | Site supports important threshold populations for numerous species; conservation value is high |
Very high | 50+ | Site supports significant threshold populations for numerous species; conservation value is significant |