Current view: Text account
Site description (1994 baseline):
Site location and context
A huge tidal inlet with associated intertidal mudflats at the head of the Arabian Gulf, c.40 km south-east of Basra. Tidal amplitude is likely to be high (more than 3 m).
2014 updates.
The geology of the area is gravel, sand, silt and alluvium and about 60% of the site was unvegetated but habitats at the site include salt pioneer sward vegetation and Desert shrublands. Sixsub-sites that were surveyed
The site appears never to have been visited by an ornithologist, though it was considered by Scott and Carp (1982) to be possibly of great importance for wintering waterbirds. The khawr was listed as a wetland of international importance by Carp (1980).
Non-bird biodiversity: No information available to BirdLife International.
2014 updates.
Additional Important Bird Observations: During the surveys, 53 bird species were observed in the area. In addition to the species in the table above, Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga(Vulnerable) was recorded in winter but in numbers below IBA threshold criteria. The site also held breeding populations of three Sahara-Sindian Desert biome-restricted species but this did not trigger inclusion under A3 criterion. Khor Al-Zubayr is one of two KBA sites in Iraq that regularly holds Crab Plover Dromas ardeola.
Only fish data were collected for this site from 2005 to 2007, and in 2009. A total of 18 species were recorded at these sites. Significantf reshwater species, according to Coad (2010), were Acanthopagrus cf. arabicus, Carassius auratus, Liza abu, L. klunzingeri, L. subviridis, Tenualosa ilishaandSilurus triostegus.
The following marine fish species observed at the site are not mentioned in Coad (2010):Caranx malabaricus, Chirocentrus dorab,Cynoglossus arel, and Eleutheronema tetradactylum, Epinephelus spp. and Liza spp. Also, the following species seen are mentioned in Coad (2010) but there is little information about them: Brachirus orientalis, Johnius belangerii,Otolithes ruber, Pampusargenteus, and Sillago sihama. In addition, a species of Mudskipper was observed, which could be found everywhere in the soft mud within the tidal areas and is unique to this area of Iraq.
2014 updates.
There are six KBA sub-sites .An unpaved road connects the site to the main road (paved), which in turn connects Umm Qasr seaport with Basra and the express highway. KhorAz-Zubayr Canal is a route for the ships heading to Umm Qasr port, and there is a small island in the canal called Hacham Island. The water in the canal is salty and the plants on Hacham Island are halophytes. Khor Abdullah, which forms the upper part of the Gulf and the border between Iraq and Kuwait, is located to the south of KhorAz-Zubayr. There are a number of shipwrecks either partially submerged or completely under water in the main stream of the canal. Most recently a vessel sank in KhorAz-Zubayr in 2006, and there was still evidence of pollution during the field survey through 2010. No bird hunting was observed, as the site is protected by border forces.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
No conservation measures are known to have been taken. There is no information on current threats. During the Iran-Iraq war, the Shatt Al Basrah canal was constructed as a safer shipping route to Basrah, leading northwards from the Gulf directly through the site to connect with the extreme eastern end of Haur Al Hammar near its discharge into the Shatt Al Arab. This is likely to have led to a major and permanent flooding of the inlet-basin with fresh to brackish water. In addition since December 1992 the 'Third River' canal has been discharging saline water into the Shatt Al Basrah and hence into this site (see site 039); the volume of this discharge may increase substantially in future. It is not known what impact all of these developments have had on the khawr and its wildlife. No conservation measures are known to have been proposed.
2014 updates.
Navigation and the loading/unloading of ships in Umm-Qasr create significant amounts of water pollution and disturbance.The area is also affected by oil pollution (very high threat score) due to pipelines and shipping tankers, causing the perpetual degradation of plant life throughout the area. There is still evidence ofoil pollution from the oil tanker that sank in Khor Az-Zubayr Canal, which was documented in a previous KBA report. Large numbers of fishing boats and passenger ships are based in this area, which also contribute to the disturbance of water quality. Five different kinds of threats ranked high were observed: control of water resources affects the sources that feed the wetland; disturbance caused by the movements of people and ships; overhunting and overfishing; transportation corridors and the development of roads. The planned oil development - construction or pipelines might cause a serious threat in future.
Site access / Land-owner requests
2014 updates.
The site can be reached from Umm-Qasr city close to the northern side of Umm Qasr port by crossing the canal from west to east
Information compiled by D. J. Brooks, reviewed by Dr Khalid Y. Al-Dabbagh and Dr Hanna Y. Siman.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Khor Az-Zubayr (Iraq). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/khor-az-zubayr-iba-iraq on 23/11/2024.
