Birds of the United Arab Emirates

About 500 species of birds live in the United Arab Emirates. The country’s vegetation is sparse, mainly consisting of xeric shrubs and woodlands. But many migratory waterbirds visit the nation yearly, with waders and seabirds being the most common.

The UAE’s national bird is the Peregrine Falcon. Other avian species include the Arabian Bustard, the Greater Flamingo, and the Houbara Bustard.

List of Common Birds Found in the United Arab Emirates

Native Birds

African Collared Dove
African Silverbill
Arabian Babbler
Arabian Bustard
Arabian Partridge
Arabian Warbler
Asian Koel
Barn Swallow
Bar-tailed Lark
Black-crowned Night Heron
Black-headed Gull
Black-winged Kite
Black-winged Plover
Black-winged Stilt
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
Blue Rock Thrush
Booted Eagle
Bridled Tern
Caspian Gull
Cattle Egret
Chaffinch
Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse
Clamorous Reed Warbler
Collared Dove
Common Blackbird
Common Hoopoe
Common House Martin
Common Kestrel
Common Kingfisher
Common Myna
Common Redstart
Common Ringed Plover
Common Stonechat
Common Swift
Common Whitethroat
Crested Barbet
Crested Lark
Desert Lark
Desert Wheatear
Egyptian Vulture
Eurasian Collared Dove
Eurasian Coot
Eurasian Hoopoe
Eurasian Kestrel
Eurasian Moorhen
Eurasian Spoonbill
European Bee-eater
European Goldfinch
European Starling
European Turtle Dove
Golden Oriole
Graceful Prinia
Graceful Prinia
Gray-headed Swamphen
Gray Heron
Gray Plover
Great Egret
Greater Flamingo
Greater Sand Plover
Green Heron
Gull-billed Tern
Hooded Wheatear
Houbara Bustard
House Crow
House Sparrow
Hume’s Wheatear
Indian Cormorant
Indian Pond Heron
Indian Roller
Indian Silverbill
Isabelline Wheatear
Kentish Plover
Lappet-faced Vulture
Laughing Dove
Lesser Crested Tern
Lesser Kestrel
Lesser Whitethroat
Little Egret
Little Green Bee-eater
Little Ringed Plover
Little Tern
Mallard
Montagu’s Harrier
Namaqua Dove
Pale Crag Martin
Pallid Scops Owl
Pallid Swift
Peregrine Falcon
Pied Kingfisher
Pied Wheatear
Plain Leaf Warbler
Purple Heron
Purple Sunbird
Purple Swamphen
Red-rumped Swallow
Red-wattled Lapwing
Rock Sparrow
Rosy Starling
Sandwich Tern
Scaly-breasted Munia
Shikra
Short-toed Snake Eagle
Slender-billed Gull
Socotra Cormorant
Song Thrush
Sooty Falcon
Spanish Sparrow
Spotted Flycatcher
Spotted Sandgrouse
Spur-winged Lapwing
Steppe Buzzard
Steppe Eagle
Swift Tern
Western Marsh Harrier
Western Osprey
Western Reef Heron
Whiskered Tern
White-cheeked Bulbul
White-collared Kingfisher
White-eared Bulbul
White Spectacled Bulbul
White-tailed Eagle
White-tailed Lapwing
White-throated Kingfisher
White Wagtail
White-winged Tern
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Yellow-wattled Lapwing

Non-native Birds

Alexandrine Parakeet
Bank Myna
Barbary Partridge
Black Francolin
Brahminy Starling
Common Myna
Egyptian Goose
Golden-backed Weaver
Gray Francolin
Gray Crowned Crane
Indian Peafowl
Indian Pied Starling
Pin-tailed Sandgrouse
Red-vented Bulbul
Red-whiskered Bulbul
Rose-ringed Parakeet
Scaly-breasted Munia
Shikra
Somali Ostrich
Streaked Weaver
White-eared Bulbul

Some of the best birding sites in the UAE include Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary, Al Wathba Wetland Reserve, and the artificial Al Qudra Lakes. The peak birding season in the United Arab Emirates typically occurs during the winter months, from November to March.