BirdLife International Important Bird Areas Programme
The BirdLife marine IBA model is based on experiences gained in national waters of Spain, Portugal and the Baltic. These methods have been further tested in New Zealand, Mediterranean Europe and Argentina and continue to be refined as the work is applied further across the globe.
A recent example of a completed marine IBA directory can be found here http://lifeibasmarinhas.spea.pt/y-book/STANDALONE/
Which is the results of a 4 year project by SPEA (BirdLife Partner in Portugal) to identify Importnat Bird Areas for seabirds at sea. The methodlogies from this project are been adapted/tested to ensure their applicability on the high seas.
posted on 2009-05-19 13:22 UTC by Mr ben Lascelles, BirdLife International