The Lake Hawdon System Important Bird Area comprises an area of 374km2 covering a series of five coastal lakes in the Limestone Coast of South Australia. They are the most important of a string of regional lakes occupying swale corridors between modern and historical sand dunes.[1]
The Important Bird Area (IBA) lies between the towns of Robe and Beachport. It includes the following lakes listed in order from north to south - Hawdon, Robe, Eliza, St Clair and George, and the area extending for a distance of 1km (01miles) inland from each in order to include habitat used by critically endangered orange-bellied parrots. Characteristics of the lakes are:[1]
The wetland system was identified by BirdLife International as an IBA because it regularly supports over 1% of the world populations of red-necked stint, and often of sharp-tailed sandpipers, double-banded plovers and banded stilts. It also provides habitat for orange-bellied parrots, Australasian bitterns, rufous bristlebirds and striated fieldwrens.[1] The adjacent beaches and offshore islets, from Cowrtie Island to Baudin Rocks, sometimes support breeding fairy terns.[1]
While the IBA has no statutory status, it does overlap the following protected areas declared by the South Australian government: Beachport Conservation Park, Lake Robe Game Reserve, Lake St Clair Conservation Park and Little Dip Conservation Park.[1]