The Baie de Bouéni is a large bay in the south-west of the French island territory of Mayotte, in the Comoro Islands lying at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel between the

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

n country of Mozambique and Madagascar. It is about wide at its mouth, and in length. It was made a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

in 2007.

Important Bird Area

The coastal fringe of the bay holds the largest area of mangroves in the Comoro archipelago. It forms a strip about long and up to wide. It has been identified as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA) by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

because its mangroves and intertidal

mudflat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...

s support populations of Malagasy pond herons,

Mayotte drongo The Mayotte drongo (''Dicrurus waldenii'') is a species of bird in the family Dicruridae. It is endemic to Mayotte. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical mangrove forest, subtropical or t ...

Mayotte white-eye The Mayotte white-eye or chestnut-sided white-eye (''Zosterops mayottensis'') is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is now found only on Mayotte in the Comoro Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, su ...

Mayotte sunbird The Mayotte sunbird (''Cinnyris coquerellii'') is a species of bird in the family Nectariniidae. It is endemic to Mayotte and surrounding islets in the southeastern Comoros. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. R ...

s and red-headed fodies. It is also home to the endangered and endemic

Robert Mertens's day gecko Robert Mertens's day gecko (''Phelsuma robertmertensi'') is diurnal species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is endemic to the Comoros. Etymology The specific name, ''robertmertensi'', is in honour of German herpetologist Robert ...

References

Bodies of water of Mayotte Bays of the Indian Ocean Important Bird Areas of Mayotte Protected areas of Mayotte 2007 establishments in Mayotte {{Mayotte-geo-stub