Data Zone
Country/territory: Kuwait
IBA criteria met: A4i, B1i, B3 (1994)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 4,845 hectares (48.45 km2)
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2013 | not assessed | low | not assessed |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (1994 baseline)
A shallow, relatively well-sheltered bay, part of the larger Kuwait Bay system, with extensive intertidal mudflats (c.2,250 ha); reportedly the most productive shore in Kuwait, and an economically valuable shrimp nursery. Traditional fishing by fixed traps ('hadra') and recreational fishing occur; the hadra (on the intertidal flats) appear to be in poor repair, and may have been abandoned because of Iraqi mine-laying in the area.
Key biodiversity
See box for key species. The site is important for coastal waterfowl during winter and on passage, especially Ardea cinerea (90, January) and Recurvirostra avosetta (95, January). It is fairly well watched by local standards, and at least 70 bird 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 (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Sulaibikhat Bay (Kuwait). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/sulaibikhat-bay-iba-kuwait on 27/12/2024.