A team of Kuwaiti and international observers managed to spot rare species of ocean birds during a successful sea voyage in Kuwaiti waters, including the Short-tailed Shearwater, which is considered one of the rare ocean birds in the region.
The monitoring team consisted of Mohammed Al-Hadina, a member of the bird monitoring and protection team of the Kuwait Environment Protection Society, and monitors Abdulrahman Al-Sarhan, Omar Al-Shaheen, and Hamoud Al-Shayji, in addition to European monitors Peter Alfrey from England, and Vincent Legrand and Julien Hainot from Belgium.
Mohammed Al-Hadheena, a member of the bird monitoring and protection team at the Environment Society, said, “This is the fourth sighting of this bird in Kuwait. The first sighting was recorded in 2014, the second in 2021, and the third was during the two weeks prior to this trip.” He added, “The short-tailed shearwater is characterized by its wide distribution from the Arctic to the Antarctic across the Pacific Ocean, and seeing it outside its natural range is rare.”.
He noted, “It is about the size of a common gull, and is known for its unique hunting style, as it floats on the surface of the water with its head down, searching for small fish. When it sees its prey, it runs over the water to swoop down on it, and flies at a low altitude where its wings almost touch the surface of the sea.”.
He added, “The Parasitic Jaeger, which appears in small numbers during its migration seasons, was also observed. This bird is one of the most agile and fastest birds in flight, and it is characterized by great acceleration that gives it an appearance similar to predators.”.
Mohammed Al-Hadina described the bird as “opportunistic in its feeding behavior, as it follows other birds after they have hunted, then attacks them until they drop their prey so that it can seize it. It can also be seen perched on the surface of the water waiting for any possible prey, in addition to its ability to catch fish directly from the sea. The Arctic gull is larger than the common gull, and can be distinguished from afar while it is chasing gulls and terns.”.
Al-Hadina concluded, “These rare observations confirm the importance of Kuwait as an ecological stopover on seabird migration routes, and reflect the ongoing efforts of observers in documenting the biodiversity of the local marine environment.”.
