The richness and abundance of waterbird species were compared in active and abandoned saltpans in southeastern Spain. The effects of traditional methods of salt extraction in Mediterranean wetlands on the avian community were evaluated, as well as the effects of the abandonment of coastal salinas in Europe due to their present low profitability. Major changes in the waterbird community were found in disused saltpans, which were mainly due to environmental changes after salt production ceased. The diversity of bird species and the abundance of the diving species increased following abandonment, but the number of Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) and some shorebirds declined. Management measures required to improve the ornithological diversity in abandoned saltpans are proposed.