Taxon name
Cercotrichas galactotes
(Temminck, 1820)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Cercotrichas galactotes
(Temminck, 1820)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Birds
Species authority
(Temminck, 1820)
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
Near Threatened
Qualifying criteria (if given)
D1
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This species has been rapidly increasing within the UAE as a breeding species. The population size is still thought to fall beneath the threshold for listing as Vulnerable, but a regional adjustment of one category has been applied. Therefore, the species is listed here as Near Threatened.
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 occurs throughout the UAE. The country is an important stop-over site for individuals on migration to and from the breeding grounds, and also holds a breeding population of the species between March and September (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
The species occurs in parks and gardens, cultivations and date groves, as well as semi-desert and scrubland with good vegetation cover (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). During migration, the species also occupies very arid places, but it generally avoids dry habitat during the breeding season, when it favours shaded, leafy areas with water readily available (Jennings 2010). It forages on the ground in leaf litter and under dense vegetation, where it takes mostly invertebrates and, especially during migration, also berries of Salvadora persica trees (Jennings 2010). The breeding season lasts from late spring to mid-summer (Jennings 2010). The nest is a loose flat cup of dry grass stems, twigs and bark, lined with fine fibres, hair and feathers. It is built in dense vegetation, often on the trunk of a date palm, on branches, in vines or in tree holes (Jennings 2010). It is possible that the species is double- or even triple-brooded (Jennings 2010).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Changes to management practices of agricultural land could reduce the available breeding habitat for this species (Aspinall 1996). This involves the removal of overgrown patches at corners and edges of fields as well as the clearance of undergrowth (Aspinall 1996).
History
This species is thought to have increased in line with increases in managed areas such as gardens and plantations. After applying a regional adjustment, the species would have been listed as Vulnerable under criterion D1 in 1996, whereas it is listed as Near Threatened now.
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
