Taxon name
Calidris alba
(Pallas, 1764)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Calidris alba
(Pallas, 1764)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Birds
Species authority
(Pallas, 1764)
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 (D1). The population is stable within the country. The global population is stable, therefore, the species's status has undergone a regional adjustment down by one category to Near Threatened 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 (Pedersen et al. 2017). Numbers peak between April and May and in September. While the species is scarcer in winter, it has been recorded during the entire year (Pedersen et al. 2017). The species occurs mainly along the coastline, but during passage it may also occur at wetlands further inland (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011), and it is also found on near-shore and some offshore islands. Recorded from 50+ sites across the UAE (EAD unpublished data).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
During the non-breeding season, this species inhabits sandy beaches and mudflats along the coast (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011). During migration, it is also found further inland along shallow muddy creeks and pools (Richardson 1990). There is no information available about its diet in the UAE; elsewhere during winter, its diet consists of small molluscs, crustaceans, polychaete worms and adult, larval and pupal insects, as well as occasionally fish and carrion (del Hoyo et al. 1996). It forages in small flocks (Richardson 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species is a long-distance migrant (del Hoyo et al. 1996). It breeds between June and July in the high Arctic on barren, stony tundra (Johnsgard 1981, del Hoyo et al. 1996). During migration, it travels in small flocks mainly via offshore and coastal routes to the wintering grounds along the coastlines of all southern continents (Johnsgard 1981, Richardson 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1996).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
The species is sensitive to disturbance on beaches (del Hoyo et al. 1996) (e.g. from recreational activities and free-running dogs; Thomas et al. 2003), and is susceptible to avian influenza so may be threatened by future outbreaks of the virus (Melville and Shortridge 2006). Changes in coastal land-use and the possibility of oil pollution could affect this species in UAE, but the severity of these threats towards this species is unknown. Climate change is likely to have an effect on this species in the future.
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
