SummaryThis study analyses whether effective conservation of Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa breeding populations in the Netherlands can be achieved through the EU network of Special Protection Areas (SPAs). An internationally important number of pairs of Black-tailed Godwit breeds in the Netherlands but the breeding population is declining steeply and is, in effect, unprotected, as the Netherlands has not designated SPAs for it. To contribute to firmer and more efficient protection of the Black-tailed Godwit, we set out to identify the core areas in the Netherlands where this species is expected to breed in 2020. On the basis of an optimal combination of three main habitat requirements (groundwater level, land-use and openness of the landscape) we identified five core areas in lower-lying (western) Netherlands: Zuidwest Friesland, Waterland, the IJssel delta area, Arkemheen and Eem polders, and Groene Hart. Because these areas are currently not designated for the breeding period of Black-tailed Godwit within the SPA network, the protection of this flagship species of Dutch meadows could be at risk. It seems likely that the Black-tailed Godwit population will continue to decline, with the result that the Netherlands will breach several policy commitments for the conservation of this species.