Taxon name
Athene noctua
(Scopoli, 1769)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Athene noctua
(Scopoli, 1769)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Birds
Species authority
(Scopoli, 1769)
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Least Concern
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
The resident population is relatively large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion. The population trend is not known, but the population is not believed to be decreasing and so would not trigger as listing under a threatened category. For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern at the national level.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
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.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
This species is a fairly common resident of northern emirates and the sand deserts of western Abu Dhabi Emirate (Pedersen et al. 2017).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This species is found in rocky country with scattered trees, in open wooded areas, stony wasteland, wadis, semi-desert, sandy desert with rocky outcrops and cultivated areas (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). Its diet includes small vertebrates like rodents, bats, reptiles and birds, but also invertebrates like beetles, locusts, grasshoppers, ants, scorpions, spiders and solifugids (Jennings 2010). The species is monogamous and breeds mainly between March and June, but exceptionally breeding behaviour may be observed already in November (Jennings 2010). It nests in tree holes, preferably of Ghaf trees, caves, rock crevices, animal burrows and holes in abandoned buildings or vehicles (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). No nesting material is used; instead the eggs are laid in a scrape in debris like droppings, feathers and prey remains (Jennings 2010). There is no information available about clutch size in the UAE; elsewhere usually, clutches are three to six eggs (Holt;et al.;2014).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
At a very local level shifting land-use patterns in the desert areas of UAE may have an impact on individuals of this species, but the overall effect is deemed insignificant (Aspinall 1996).
History
It is assessed that in 1996, the national Red List status of this species would have been the same as in this assessment.
Publication
Burfield, I.J., Westrip, J., Sheldon, R.D., Hermes, C., Wheatley, H., Smith, D., Harding, K.A. Allen, D.J. and Alshamsi, O. 2021. UAE National Red List of Birds. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
