Southern mangrove forests hosting 150 migratory bird species

TEHRAN – Some 150 species of migratory birds are wintering in the wetlands and mangrove forests of Southern Qeshm Island, the provincial office of natural environment main Mohammad Hashem Dakhteh, has stated.

The mangrove forests or Hara forests, masking an area of 27,310 hectares, are situated on the southern coast of Iran, notably on and in close proximity to the island of Qeshm in the Persian Gulf.

Dominated by the species Avicennia marina, recognized domestically as the “hara” or “harra” tree, the forests represent an important ecological useful resource. The “Hara Shielded Spot” on Qeshm and the close by mainland is a biosphere reserve in which industrial use is limited to fishing (mainly shrimp), vacationer boat journeys, and constrained mangrove chopping for animal feed.

The region is a big habitat for migratory birds in the cold season, and for reptiles, fish, turtles, and venomous aquatic snakes.The place is a significant habitat for migratory birds in the chilly time, and for reptiles, fish, and varieties of Arthropoda and bivalves. Eco-friendly (or hooked) turtles and venomous aquatic snakes are also indigenous to the forests.

Stunning birds such as Dalmatian pelicans, cormorants, European bee-eater, larks, and flamingos arrived to the Hara Biosphere Reserve and its wetlands, he stated.

Hara Mangrove Biosphere Reserve and its wetlands are a person of the greatest habitats for migratory birds in the state. Each individual yr, in autumn and winter, significant flocks of birds from various parts of the entire world, particularly from the northern hemisphere, migrate to this region, he also stated.

The drying up of some lakes within the country, the air pollution, and the crowds in some wetlands of Iran and the globe have turned Qeshm into a single of the very best habitats for the species’ wintering journey, Dakhteh stated.

Numerous aquatic daily life and seasonal ponds, habitats, peace, remaining much from human arrive at and the acceptable temperature in the winter time are other aspects that entice uncommon migratory birds to this region each yr.

So significantly, a lot more than 250 migratory and native hen species have been recognized in unique habitats of Qeshm Island in four seasons, he mentioned.

Some species, such as the noticed owl, crab plover, and Dalmatian pelican, are also of desire in Iran and West Asia [Middle East] due to their limited amount.

The greatest time for chook watching in the Qeshm worldwide geopark is autumn and wintertime, when ornithologists and domestic and overseas travellers can check out a wide variety of well known birds, together with the desert white-throat, purple sunbird, pied avocet, Shrikes, the cormorant, and herons.

Exceptional birdwatching web pages in Iran

Iran is adorned with amazing wetlands that hold a great share of aquatic and chook species and wildlife. Anzali wetland, Qeshm Island, Urmia Lake, and Miankaleh Peninsula are amid the most critical places for hen seeing in Iran.

Miankaleh Global Wetland in Mazandaran, termed the birdwatching paradise of Iran, stretches to a total area of 68,000 hectares, which is dwelling to at least 130 species of migratory species with a populace of 1.5 million.

Getting an spectacular fowl-seeing spot, the wetland displays a wide range of bird species this kind of as otters, all kinds of fish-eating ducks (widespread goldeneye and Mergus), pelicans, flamingos, cormorants, widespread pheasants, partridges, mute swan, tundra swan, and coots. Ashuradeh was released and registered as a person of the world’s first biosphere zones in 1975.

Gomishan wetland in Golestan province is home to about 20,000 h2o birds, and more than 20 species of birds, which supports a few IUCN Pink List vulnerable species of waterbirds, i.e., Pelecanus Crispus, Aythya nyroca, and Vanellus gregarious, as very well as the vulnerable mammal Phoca (Pusa) caspica it is also an essential staging place for the fish subspecies Rutilus rutilus caspicas.

Found at the foot of the Zagros mountains in north-western Iran, Zarivar is a freshwater wetland hosting more than 74 hen species, which is selected as a Ramsar Website.

The website offers a ideal breeding and resting put for birds and other wetland animals, and owing to the rather intensive reed beds, it is an significant overwintering site for northern migratory birds.

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