Checklist of the Birds of the Gaza Strip—Palestine

Abstract

Bird fauna checklists are important tools in ecology, biology, and conservation planning for scientists, stakeholders, and decision-makers. Despite its small area, the Gaza Strip (365 km 2 ) has a relatively large variety of resident and migratory bird fauna. Therefore, the current study aimed to provide an updated checklist of all bird fauna living in or inhabiting the Gaza Strip. Direct field observations using binoculars, continuous visits to zoos, pet stores and biology museums, discussion with bird hunters, follow-up of news and social networking sites, review of scientific publications and photography were the main tools to satisfy the purpose of the study. At least 250 bird species collected from different sources occur in the Gaza Strip and are included in the checklist. This list will not be static, but is inevitably subject to additions and changes in the face of times. The current 250 bird species of the Gaza Strip represent 45.4% of the 551 species of birds living in Palestine. The bird species were found to belong to 21 orders and 61 families. The Passeriformes (passerines) represented the largest order with 96 species of birds (38.4%), followed by the Charadriiformes 54 (21.6%), the Accipitriformes 18 (7.2%), Anseriformes 17 (6.8%) and Pelecaniformes 14 (5.6%), while the other orders represented the remaining percentage (20.4%). With regard to families, the Scolopacidae represented the largest family with 22 species of birds (8.8%), followed by the Anatidae and Accipitridae 17 for each (6.8%), the Muscicapidae 16 (6.4%) and Chariidridae and Fringillidae 11 for each (4.4%), while the other families represented the remaining percentage (62.4%). According to the IUCN regional threat categories, 226 species (90.4%) were Least Concern (LC), 12 (4.8%) were Near Threatened (NT), 6 (2.4%) were Vulnerable (VU), 4 (1.6%) were Endangered (EN) and 2 (0.8%) were Critically Endangered (CR). In conclusion, the study recommends a sustainable control of bird hunting and trafficking in addition to building prestigious centers and museums for studying and documenting birds in the Gaza Strip.