Bu Tinah

Socotra cormorant

Introduction

The Island is a peaceful roost site for tens of thousands of this vulnerable bird.

Phalacrocorax nigrogularis Ogilvie-Grant & H.O. Forbes, 1899

Socotra Cormorant (Phalacrocorax nigrogularis), locally known as ‘Loh’ is endemic to the Arabian Gulf and the south-east coast of Arabian Peninsula. Compared to the distribution of other cormorant species of the world, P. nigrocularis is restricted to Arabian Gulf and Dhofar, Gulf of Aden and the island of Socotra . It is exclusively marine and breeds on small undisturbed barren islands during winter in large to small colonies.

A highly gregarious species, the Socotra cormorant lives, breeds and often forages in enormous, dense colonies of up to tens of thousands. While this bird is primarily sedentary, large seasonal movements are made within the breeding range, which are thought to be related to fish migrations. Large assemblies of birds roam far in search of huge shoals of fish. Once found, some birds settle on the water’s surface and dive for fish from there, whilst others plunge-dive from the air.

It is wrongly regarded as a pest or a threat by fishermen and so EAD is currently raising more public awareness about this beautiful bird and to garner legal protection for it.

Classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List and listed on Appendix II of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS). It is also listed on Annex II of the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA).