1- KORC Rarity Adjudication
KORC meets quarterly each year to review and adjudicate submitted Rarity Forms for species that are considered Accidental, Vagrant, Rare and Scarce, as well as other specified species that have low and infrequent abundance.
The completed Rarity Forms are reviewed, discussed and either accepted or not by the core KORC members (MP, SIR, PF) who are all based in Kuwait. Consensus must be reached for a decision, but if a decision cannot be reached, then the external adjudicators (OC, PK) are asked for their opinion for a final decision, which requires a majority vote. The current Committee is as follows:Mike Pope – Kuwait (Chairman, voting member)
Abdulrahman Al-Sirhan – Kuwait (Secretary, voting member)
Pekka Fagel – Kuwait (voting member)
Oscar Campbell – Dubai (External Adjudicator, voting member)
Peter Kennerley – England (External Adjudicator, voting member)
Brian Foster– England (honorary member)
2- Accepted Records by Species for Category A and C
Four (4) new species (1st) were recorded in Kuwait in 2012 with the Long-tailed Ducks being the most unexpected; the Exclamatory Paradise Flycatcher was accepted as a Cat-E Species and all are highlighted in the table below:
| SPECIES | SCIENTIFIC NAME | SIGHTING # | DATE | # Birds | LOCATION | OBSERVER(S) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin’s Gull | Larus pipixcan | 1 | 5-Jun-12 | 1 | Jahra East Outfall (JEO) | R Al Hajji |
| Paddyfield Warbler | Acrocephalus agricola | 1 | 26-Aug-12 | 1 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | R Al Hajji |
| Mesopotamian Crow | Corvus c. capellanus | 1 | 23-Oct-12 | 1 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | K Al Ghanem |
| Exclamatory Paradise Whydah | Vidua interjecta | 1 (Cat E) | 23-Oct-12 | 1 | Al-Abraq | M.Pope |
| Long-tailed Duck | Clangula hyemalis | 1 | 7-Nov-12 | 4 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | Ouda Al-Bathali |
One more sighting of Dead Sea Sparrow in 2013 will mean that a Rarity Form is no longer required for this species.
Many other rarities were recorded during the year and these are reflected in the table below:
| SPECIES | SCIENTIFIC NAME | SIGHTING # | DATE | # Birds | LOCATION | OBSERVER(S) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mediterranean Gull | Larus melanocephalus | 6 | 2-Feb-12 | 1 | Green Island | P Fagel, R Swan |
| Lesser Flamingo | Phoeniconaias minor | 3 | 6-Feb-12 | 1 | West of Kuwait University | Swiss Group |
| Masked Wagtail | Motacilla a. personata | 2 | 10-Feb-12 | 1 | Wafra Farm | Swiss Group |
| Dead Sea Sparrow | Passer moabiticus | 13 | 16-Feb-12 | 4 | Al-Abraq | P Fagel |
| Eurasian Golden Plover | Pluvialis apricaria | 11 | 26-Feb-12 | 1 | Pivot Fields | K Al Ghanem |
| Radde’s Accentor | Prunella ocularis | 2 | 15-Mar-12 | 1 | SAANR | R Al-Hajji |
| Yellowhammer | Emberiza citrinella | 2 | 16-Mar-12 | 1 | SAANR | K Al Ghanem |
| Desert Finch | Rhodospiza obsoleta | 9 | 17-Mar-12 | 1 | Khiran Area | R Al Hajji |
| Radde’s Accentor | Prunella ocularis | 3 | 6-Apr-12 | 1 | Al-Shallal’s Farm | Todd Pepper |
| Dalmatian Pelican | Pelecanus crispus | 7 | 1-May-12 | 2 | Boubyan Island | K Al Nasrallah |
| Black Stork | Ciconia nigra | 16 | 5-May-12 | 1 | Sulaibikhat Bay | M. Pope |
| Amur Falcon | Falco amurensis | 2 | 13-May-12 | 1 | Jahra East Outfall (JEO) | R Al-Hajji |
| Booted Warbler | Hippolais caligata | 2 | 27-Aug-12 | 1 | Jahra East Outfall (JEO) | R Al Hajji |
| Booted Warbler | Hippolais caligata | 3 | 28-Aug-12 | 1 | SAANR | R Al Hajji |
| Eastern Bonelli’s Warbler | Phylloscopus orientalis | 2 | 31-Aug-12 | 1 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | R Al Hajji |
| Blyth’s Reed Warbler | Acrocephalus dumetorum | 3 | 15-Sep-12 | 1 | SAANR | R Al Hajji |
| Demoiselle Crane | Anthropoides virgo | 8 | 6-Oct-12 | 3 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | H Al Shaygi |
| Ferruginous Duck | Aythya nyroca | 9 | 7-Nov-12 | 1 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | M Pope |
| Spur-winged Lapwing | Vanellus spinosus | 11 | 8-Nov-12 | 1 | Jahra East Outfall (JEO) | R Al Hajji |
| Dead Sea Sparrow | Passer moabiticus | 14 | 14-Nov-12 | 3 | Jahra Pools Reserve (JPR) | R Al Hajji |
| Hooded Wheatear | Oenanthe monacha | 8 | 22-Nov-12 | 1 | Jahra East Outfall (JEO) | R Al Hajji |
3- Not Proven Records
| SPECIES | SCIENTIFIC NAME | DATE | LOCATION | Not PROVEN REASON |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Pond Heron | Ardeola grayii | 16 Sep 12 | SAANR | Inconclusive id features (agreed by all KORC Members) |
4- Other Records of Interest
Other interesting observations in 2012 were:
- 15 MacQueens Bustards at SAANR in January
- A single Afghan Babbler at Jahra Pools in January
- Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse at Abdaly Farms in January
- 131 Pied Avocet in Sulaibikhat Bay in January
- Buff-bellied Pipit at Al Abraq in February
- 3 Red-tailed Wheatears at Khiran in February
- A juvenile Hypcolius photographed at Jahra Farms in August
- 40+ Black-tailed Godwits at Jahra Pools Reserve in September
- 2000+ migrating Steppe Buzzards at Khuwaisat over a few days in September
- 2 Black Storks soaring above Jahra Pools in September
- Black-winged Kite in Jahra area in September
- 2 Levant Sparrowhawks at Al Abraq in October
- 30+ Hypocolius seen early in the morning at Green Island in November
- A single Great Crested Grebe at Jahra Pools in November
- A Great Bittern near Jahra East Outfall in November
- A single Great Crested Grebe at Sabah Al Ahmad Sea City in the south of Kuwait seen swimming in the newly created lagoons in December
- 2 Socotra Cormorants (appear to have overwintered) seen off-shore in November and December
- 2 Eurasian Siskin and possible Siberian Chiffchaff at Al Abraq in December
- A single White Stork and Eastern Imperial Eagle seen at the Pivot Fields in December
- A White Pelican was observed in Sulaibikhat Bay in December
5- A few of the other interesting species images below:
Hi Jenny, Yes, I do remember when I guided you. I will be doing bird watching tour in Saudi Arabia…
Hi, when I stayed in Kuwait about 7 years ago, you took my husband and I into the desert for…
Beautiful collection
Thanks, Paul, Abdulrahman