Wildlife Holidays in Kuwait

Despite its generally harsh, desert climate, Kuwait has a variety of habitats – especially wetlands – that provide vital respite for a great range of migratory and wintering birds, including Greater Spotted and Eastern Imperial Eagles, Grey-headed Swamphen, White-throated Kingfisher and Clamorous Reed Warbler, as well as countless exciting shrikes, chats and warblers in drier areas. Along the coast, dozens of scarce Broad-billed and Terek Sandpipers may be interspersed among the throngs of Curlew Sandpipers and Little Stints, along with Slender-billed and Armenian Gulls. The backdrop to the teeming flocks is a constant sea of pink, made up of thousands of Greater Flamingos. Kuwait is also an excellent place to see Crab-plover, a large, strangely proportioned wading bird in a family entirely of its own. Further offshore, pelagic boat trips can be taken in search of breeding Socotra Cormorant, Bridled and White-cheeked Terns.

Away from wetlands, birding in Kuwait tends to be focused on the few patches of green that intersperse the parched interior. Many of these are in and around Kuwait City, which is a particularly good area for wintering Grey Hypocolius, another bird that is the sole member of its biological family. In the far north of the country, close to the Iraqi border, lies Abdaly Farms – a site famous for Afghan Babbler, a species whose main range is practically inaccessible. Further inland, desert oases are magnets for birds, including Basra Reed Warbler, Upcher’s Warbler and Pale Rockfinch; during migration, almost anything can turn up. The hardiest species, truly at home in the desert, include Asian Desert Warbler, Temminck’s, Desert and Bar-tailed Larks.

What’s Special About Its Wildlife?

Few destinations offer such a spectacularly varied birding experience as Kuwait; this is in large part due to its unique location. The Western Palaearctic is the biogeographic realm that encompasses Europe, North Africa, parts of temperate Asia and the northern half of the Arabian Peninsula. Kuwait sits at its south-eastern extreme, and its avifauna is therefore exposed both to western and eastern influences; this makes it a vital location for dedicated birders keen to add unusual species to their regional list. In spring, migrants pass through on their way both to Europe and much of Asia, often in spectacular abundance. Likewise, winter regularly sees the arrival of highly sought-after Asian species, as well as enormous flocks of waders and waterbirds escaping harsh northern climes.

The richness and vibrancy of Kuwait’s habitats, especially its wetlands and oases, is in stark contrast to the unforgiving harshness of the Middle Eastern desert. The country’s network of parks and protected areas therefore acts as an irresistible attraction for millions upon millions of birds, both those migrating on to breeding grounds in Europe and Asia, and seeking winter refuge from the punishing northern cold. Huge flocks of raptors pass overhead in spring, Crab-plovers and Socotra Cormorants breed offshore, and winter often brings regional specialties such as Shikra, Indian Roller and Eversmann’s Redstart. However, Kuwait is about far more than its rarities, and its common birds are equally wonderful, from vast pink seas of Greater Flamingos to Black-winged Stilts, Bluethroats and White-eared Bulbuls.