Taxon name
Numenius phaeopus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Numenius phaeopus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Birds
Species authority
(Linnaeus, 1758)
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 a restricted non-breeding population in the UAE, which qualifies it for listing as Vulnerable. The population is increasing within the country, and the species is assessed as Least Concern globally, although some declines are recorded. Therefore, the species's status is tentatively adjusted down to Near Threatened (D1) 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
The majority of occurrences of this species within the UAE are likely to be of migrant individuals on passage to and from the breeding grounds. The species is very common particularly between August and September (Pedersen et al. 2017). It is less common in winter, when it is found mainly close to the coast (Richardson 1990, Pedersen et al. 2017). A few non-breeding individuals remain in the country over summer (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 occurs along the coastline, where it frequents estuaries, sandy or rocky beaches, mangrove swamps, tidal ponds and creeks, mudflats or coral reefs (Richardson 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1996, Richardson and Aspinall 1998, Aspinall and Porter 2011). Especially during migration, it is also found further inland at freshwater sites like pools, sewage treatment plants or damp grassland (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011). There is no information available about its diet in the UAE or Arabia; elsewhere, when inland on migration, its diet consists of adult and larval insects, spiders, earthworms, molluscs and plant material (Johnsgard 1981, del Hoyo et al. 1996). On the coast during the winter, the species takes crustaceans, molluscs, large polychaete worms and occasionally fish, reptiles or young birds (del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species is migratory (del Hoyo et al. 1996, Snow and Perrins 1998). It breeds from May to August in the tundra of the Eurasian Arctic (Hayman et al. 1986, del Hoyo et al. 1996).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
The most relevant threats within UAE are changes in coastal land-use and the possibility of oil pollution, but the severity of these threats towards this species is unknown. The species is susceptible to avian influenza, so may be threatened by future outbreaks of the virus (Melville and Shortridge 2006), and climate change is a potential future threat.
History
The species is also thought to qualify as Vulnerable (D1) in 1996, downlisted to NT.
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
