ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - I had the good fortune of spending a few days with one of Kurdistan’s most experienced bird experts in Baku, Azerbaijan last month. Dr. Korsh Ararat has dedicated the last two decades to studying wild birds in the Kurdistan Region while advocating for their protection and habitat conservation. 

“Our birds are part of our identity,” he said. “They are crucial for a healthy and balanced ecosystem.”

Dr. Ararat was at the UN climate conference (COP29) in Baku to draw attention to the birds and biodiversity of the Kurdistan Region through panel discussions and scientific presentations at the Iraq Pavilion.

“Recognizing our birds should become part of our culture and protecting them and their habitat a government priority,” Dr. Ararat emphasized. He has personally documented five unique bird species in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq and contributed to recording 35 others.

He believes that the older generations had a deeper understanding of the natural world compared to new generations who are disconnected from it.

“People in the past had a better understanding of birds,” Dr. Ararat’s studies have found. “For example, there are two scavenger birds that often appear together and in the past people knew they were two different species and therefore called them the two brothers. They are even seen on some ancient rock carvings here.”

Dr. Ararat delivers a presentation at the Iraqi Pavilion at COP29. Photo: Submitted

Dr. Ararat reports at least 370 species of birds in the Kurdistan Region some of which also live and breed in neighboring countries.

Vultures, eagles and wild geese feature in some Kurdish folklore and Dr. Ararat confirms that these birds, including falcons, have soared over Kurdistan for millennia.

Resident birds include the iconic Kurdish wheatear, starlings, storks and swallows.

Sadly though, at least 14 species of birds in the Kurdistan Region are on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list of endangered species.

The bald ibis, once flying over the mountains of Kurdistan, has gone extinct.

“We must be proud of all of our birds, but the special ones are the chukar partridge, falcons and vultures who have lived here and been part of Kurdistan’s nature for thousands of years.”

Dr. Ararat who is a professor at the University of Sulaimani, is pursuing a PhD that advocates for the creation of protected areas and bird sanctuaries in the Kurdistan Region.

Piramagroon Mountain, Qaradagh, Barzan, Halgurd-Sakran and Darbandikhan are key bird areas and appear on the world map of major bird habitat. They have been recommended to become protected areas.

The little owl (Athene noctua) is photographed near Turkey's Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir (Amed). Photo: Saber Dri

A chukar partridge is photograpphed on Gara Mountain, Duhok. Photo: Saber Dri

To secure the future of birds in the Kurdistan Region, Dr. Arart argues for a stronger connection between the young generation and nature.

“Children and the young these days are generally not familiar with the wild birds of Kurdistan,” said Dr. Ararat, who was inspired by his own father who studied the birds of Kurdistan and called for their protection in the 1970’s. “Yet many wish to have birds as pets and be around them. But the best way is for people to reconnect with nature and see and hear birds in their natural environment.”

Threats to birds in the Kurdistan Region include habitat loss, deforestation, urban expansion, pesticides, decline in water surfaces, climate change itself that affects the birds’ food chain and life cycle, and illegal trafficking.

“One of the major threats to wild birds is illegal trafficking and we have proven that trade in rare bird species leads to the decline in their numbers,” said Dr. Ararat. “Some falcons and eagles are caught as hatchlings and trafficked out of the Kurdistan Region.”

Located on the Africa-Eurasia migration path, the Kurdistan Region sees around 200 bird species visiting during the winter or summer migrations. 

Working with Nature Iraq, IUCN and BirdLife International, Dr. Ararat believes that all efforts “must be unified and synchronized.”