Ramsar sites are protected under by the Ramsar Convention for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural, scientific, and recreational value. The convention establishes that "wetlands should be selected for the list on account of their international significance in terms of ecology, botany, zoology, limnology or hydrology." Over the years, the Conference of the Contracting Parties has adopted more specific criteria interpreting the convention text.^[1]

The Ramsar List organizes the Ramsar sites according to the contracting party that designated each to the list. Contracting parties are grouped into six "regions": Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin American and the Caribbean, North America, and Oceania.^[2] As of November 2023^[update], 171 states have acceded to the convention and designated 2,500 sites to the list, covering 257,106,360 hectares (635,323,700 acres); two other states have acceded to the convention but have yet to designate any sites. The complete list of the wetlands is accessible on the Ramsar Sites Information Service website.^[3]