Gallinago gallinago | UAE National Red List of Birds

Taxa
Gallinago gallinago | (Linnaeus, 1758)
Publication
UAE National Red List of Birds
Location
Countries in Assessment
United Arab Emirates
Country ISO code(s)
ARE
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Off
Scope (Assessment)
National
Taxon
Taxonomic Group
Vertebrates
Taxonomic Group Level 2
Birds
Assessed taxon level
Species
Taxonomic Notes
Gallinago gallinago and G. delicata (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) were previously lumped as G. gallinago following Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993).
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
This species is common in the UAE between late August and April, when wintering birds and migrant individuals on passage to and from the breeding grounds occur at wetlands throughout the country (Pedersen et al. 2017).
Habitats and Ecology
Ecological system type
Terrestrial system
No
Freshwater system
No
Marine system
No
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This species inhabits freshwater wetlands, including wet or flooded grasslands, marshes, pond edges, ditches and water treatment plants overgrown with vegetation (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011). There is no information available about its diet in the UAE; elsewhere the diet includes insects, earthworms, small crustaceans, small gastropods and spiders, but also plant fibres and seeds in smaller quantities. The species forages in small groups by vertical and rhythmic probing in substrate, often without removing the bill from the soil. The species is migratory and breeds between April and June throughout Eurasia.
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Assessed status
Asessment status in full
Near Threatened
Assessment status abreviation
NT
Assessment status criteria
D1
Assessment rationale/justification
This species has a restricted non-breeding population in the UAE, which qualifies it for listing as Vulnerable. However, the population is increasing within the country, therefore, the species's has undergone a regional adjustment down to Near Threatened (D1) at the national level.
About the assessment
Assessment year
2019
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Affliation of assessor(s)/contributors/reviewers listed on assessment
Government
IGO
Assessor affiliation specific
Government|IGO
Criteria system
Criteria system specifics
IUCN v3.1 + Regional Guidelines v4.0
Criteria system used
IUCN
Criteria Citation
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Endemism
Endemic to region
Not_assigned
Endemism Notes
Is an endemic?: Not_assigned
Conservation
Threats listed in assessment
The most relevant threats within the UAE are changes in land-use and the possibility of oil pollution, but the severity of these threats towards this species is unknown. Individuals that visit the UAE will also be impacted by a range of threats that occur outside of the country:Declines noted in breeding populations of Europe are probably chiefly due to habitat changes, especially drainage (BirdLife International 2015). Low water levels shorten the period of food availability in pastures, due to the lower penetrability of soil, and thereby strongly influence the length of the breeding season (BirdLife International 2015). Changes in habitat structure and food abundance, which already negatively affect this (and many other) species might also lead to increased predation risks for nestlings (BirdLife International 2015). Estimated 1,500,000 birds are hunted annually in Europe (Van Gils;et al. 2015).
Conservation Measures

Conservation measures:
Conservation measures notes:
Required conservation measures:

Further information
History
Populations would have been smaller in 1996, qualifying as Endangered, adjusted down to VU after rescue effect from the large global population. These increases are likely due to increased availability of artifical water sources.
Scientific Name Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus
Gallinago gallinago Animalia Chordata Aves Charadriiformes Scolopacidae Gallinago