Iraqis open the book on wildlife conservation
25-01-2007
 Nature Iraq/CIMI/BirdLife
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No publication or broadcast before: 00:01am on Thursday 25th January 2007
Wildlife conservation in Iraq has been given a significant boost with the release of a guide to Iraq’s birds – the first field-guide of its kind for the nation.
BirdLife International and Nature Iraq, a newly-formed conservation non-governmental organisation (NGO) in Iraq, have published ‘Field Guide to the Birds of Iraq’ in Arabic. [1] [2]
Covering the 387 bird species that have been recorded in Iraq, this is the first comprehensive, fully-illustrated field-guide to an Arabic-speaking country. The field-guide was made possible through funding from the Canadian Government via the Canada-Iraq Marshlands Initiative, the World Bank and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Ornithological Society of the Middle East (OSME) and AviFauna.
“For Iraq – a nation that has lost so much of its wildlife in the last twenty years, this book opens the door for the growing conservation movement in this country.” said Dr Ali Douabul of Nature Iraq. “Local language field guides are crucial tools for conservation. They encourage people to realise, appreciate and get involved in bird conservation, which, because birds are good indicators of the environment, has potential benefits for all of our wildlife.”
The book is due to be presented to the Iraqi President, Jalal Talabani, in the next few weeks.
 Nature Iraq/CIMI/BirdLife
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“For Iraq – a nation that has lost so much of its wildlife in the last twenty years, this book opens the door for the growing conservation movement in this country.” —Dr Ali Douabul, Nature Iraq
The release of the ‘Birds of Iraq’ field-guide adds weight to the conservation movement that has started to emerge in the country. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein’s government in 2003, the Mesopotamian Marshes – thought to be the site of the biblical Garden of Eden and home to 28 of Iraq’s Important Bird Areas - have been the focus of a major international programme to help restore their ecological and social-cultural heritage. [3]
Under the regime of the previous government, almost 90% of the Marshes were destroyed through drainage. With reduced numbers of fish and the failing of crops, many people were forced to flee to neighbouring Iran and Jordan. Since this time however some 40% of the land has been re-flooded and wildlife – with it food for Iraq’s people - is returning. [4]
“These are some of the most wildlife-rich sites in the Middle East, but often all we hear about is the conflict.” said Richard Porter, BirdLife International’s Middle-East Advisor and co-author of the guide. Mr Porter has in recent years led a team from BirdLife International that has trained biologists from Nature Iraq in skills to survey and monitor Iraq’s marshes for the wildlife that live there. [5] [6]
 Nature Iraq/CIMI/BirdLife
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“These are some of the most wildlife-rich sites in the Middle East, but often all we hear about is the conflict.” —Richard Porter , coauthor of 'Field Guide to the Birds of Iraq'
“It’s recognised across the world that biodiversity can enhance quality of life in a region. By publishing this field-guide with Nature Iraq, we are improving the ease with which people can become involved in conservation in the region; a positive step which has potential economic benefits for the nation as a whole.” Mr Porter commented.
ENDS
FURTHER INFORMATION:
Press/photos or to arrange an interview: Jules Howard, Communications Officer, BirdLife International. Tel: +44 (0)1223 279809; Mobile: +44 (0)7971069098; email: jules.howard@birdlife.org
Contacts willing to be interviewed:
UK: Richard Porter, BirdLife International: +44 (0) 1263 740322, richardporter@dialstart.net
Iraq: Dr Azzam Alwash (CEO of Nature Iraq): azzam@alwash.net or Dr Ali Douabul, Nature Iraq: adouabul@hotmail.com
Jordan: Sharif Jbour, BirdLife International: sharif.jbour@birdlifemed.org
Canada: Dr Barry Warner, Director, Canada-Iraq Marshlands Initiative. Phone: +1 (519) 885-1211 Ext. 33607. Email: bwarner@uwaterloo.ca
NOTES:
[1] BirdLife International is a global alliance of conservation organisations working in more than 100 countries who, together, are the leading authority on the status of birds, their habitats and the issues and problems affecting them.
[2] Notes on ‘Field Guide to the Birds of Iraq’:
The illustrations and text for the field guide have been taken from ‘Birds of the Middle East’ (in the Helm Field Guide series), which has recently been translated into Arabic. Nature Iraq was responsible for adapting the text for Iraq, especially that on status, distribution and habitats. The publication was designed by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) in Jordan and funded by a number of organisations including the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the World Bank and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Ornithological Society of the Middle East (OSME) and AviFauna.
Copies of ‘Field Guide to the Birds of Iraq’ (price £15.00 including postage) can be obtained in the UK from OSME Sales: e-mail: sales@osme.org
Citation: Birds of Iraq IN ARABIC (2006) by M. Salim, R.F.Porter, S. Christensen, P Schiermaker-Hansen & S Jbour. Published by Nature Iraq & BirdLife International. Amman, Jordan.
[3] The Mesopotamian Marshes are one of the most biodiverse regions in Iraq. These areas form one of the largest wetlands in the Middle East, providing a vital stop-over for thousands of waterbirds on migration and during the winter months. They are also recognised by BirdLife International as an Endemic Bird Area (EBA) based on the fact that the area contains three species that occur nowhere else in the world; Iraq Babbler Turdoides altirostris, Basra Reed Warbler Acrocephalus griseldis and Grey Hypocolius Hypocolius ampelinus.
[4] The area of the Mesopotamian Marshes declined by 85.5% from 8,926 km2 to 1,294 km2 between 1976 and 2000 (UNEP 2001). In April 2003, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced that, of the marshland area that remained in 2000, a further third had been drained up to 2003, thus only c.7% of the original extent remains as of 2003, i.e. 759 km2.
[5] Over the past two years, BirdLife International, funded by the Canadian Government, has been training biologists at Nature Iraq to carry out bird and other wildlife surveys of the internationally important Mesopotamian Marshes. This training has covered recording techniques, plant identification, habitat monitoring techniques and practical skills like measuring water quality.
Biologists at Nature Iraq have just started their fifth survey of the Mesopotamian Marshes region. Initial indications report healthy populations of Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus, African Darter Anhinga rufa, Basra Reed Warbler Acrocephalus griseldis and Marbled Teal Marmaronetta angustirostris. No species of bird has become extinct in the Marshes since the last surveys in the 1970s.
[6] Richard Porter is co-author of the guide, the senior author being Mudafer Salim on behalf of Nature Iraq.