Al Wathba


IBA Justification

The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2017 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('key species') at the site:
Species Red List Season (year/s of estimate) Size IBA criteria
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus LC winter (2002–2017) 4,000 individuals B3a
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus LC non-breeding (2002–2017) 50–975 individuals B3a
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus LC winter (2002–2017) 50–1,275 individuals B3a

IBA Conservation

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2017. The most recent assessment (2017) is shown below.

IBA conservation status
Year of assessment State Pressure Response
2017 favourable low medium
Whole site assessed? State assessed by Accuracy of information
yes population medium

State (condition of the key species' populations)
Species Actual vs Reference (units) % remaining Result
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus 4,000 / 2,400 (individuals) 100 favourable
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus 80 / 460 (individuals) 18 not assessed
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus 650 / 500 (individuals) 100 favourable

Pressure (threats to the key species and/or their habitats)
Threat Timing Scope Severity Result
Invasive and other problematic species and genes happen­ing now few individ­uals/small area (<10%) slow deteri­oration (1–10% over 3 gener­ations) low

Response (conservation actions taken for the key species and/or their habitats)
Designation Planning Action Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation No manage­ment plan exists, but the manage­ment planning process has begun Substantive conservation measures are being implemented, but these are not comprehensive and are limited by resources and capacity medium

Habitats

Habitat % of IBA Habitat detail
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine 100 Waste-water treatment areas

Land use

Land use % of IBA
nature conservation and research 100


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Al Wathba (United Arab Emirates). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/al-wathba-iba-united-arab-emirates on 13/01/2025.