KW002
Dawhat Kazima


Country/territory: Kuwait
Subnational region(s): Al Jahrah

IBA Justification: B3 (1994)

Area: 1,660 hectares (16.60 km2)

BirdLife Partner(s): Kuwait Environment Protection Society

Conservation status of the Important Bird Area (IBA)
Year of assessment (most recent) State (condition) Pressure (threat) Response (action)
2013 not assessed very high not assessed


Site description (1994 baseline)
A shallow, relatively well-sheltered bay, part of the larger Kuwait Bay system, with extensive intertidal mudflats (c.890 ha). The site is important for economically valuable shrimp nurseries, and supports both recreational and traditional fishing with fixed traps (hadra). A close season operates for shrimp catching.

Key biodiversity
The site is important for coastal waterfowl during winter and on passage, including Ardea cinerea (62, January) and Recurvirostra avosetta (70, January). Mixed-species flocks of several thousand waterfowl occur during migration seasons but accurate counts of species and individuals have not been made. At least 66 species have been recorded.

Non-bird biodiversity: Invertebrates: the crab Cleistostoma kuwaitense (endemic).

Acknowledgements
Data-sheet compiled by Prof. C. W. T. Pilcher.


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Important Bird Area factsheet: Dawhat Kazima (Kuwait). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/dawhat-kazima-iba-kuwait on 13/01/2025.