Muscat –The Environment Authority (EA), in its efforts to eradicate invasive birds from Oman, has created an integrated plan and hired an expert international.
Sulaiman Nasser al Akhzami is the director general of conservation of nature in EA. He stated that invasive birds such the Indian jungle Crow and the mynah have been increasing in Oman.
The authority set up a team to study the spread of these birds and create a national strategy. Akhzami said that the authority had enlisted an international ornithologist to prepare an integrated plan to combat invasive birds.
The starling family includes the Mynah birds, which are from India, China and Sri Lanka. These birds measure 22-25 cm in length and have wings that extend to 36.5cm when they fly. These birds are medium-sized with a black head, yellow feet and a medium size body.
Mynahs are invasive to the food chain and can attack nests of other birds, killing young birds. In 2000, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature declared the bird one of the 100 Most Invasive Species.
These birds are destructive of crops, eat bees, and transmit parasites, diseases and fleas to both humans and animals.
The Indian jungle crow (Corvus culminus) is a species that can be found in the Indian subcontinent south from the Himalayas.
It is an omnivore who is open to opportunities and a generalist. It softens food by dropping it into water. It has also been observed to eat sand after eating meat from a carcass. These birds can produce a variety of vocalizations, including a range in their cawing. These birds may fly in special flight styles.
Barr al Hikman in Al Wusta is a key stopover for birds in Oman.
Wetlands International’s 2017 team found more than half of a million birds wintering near Barr al Hikman. They also recorded 63 waterbird species during the 2017-2019 period.
