The "Birds of Kuwait" Project also affectionately known as BoK was funded by Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) in an effort to increase awareness of Kuwait's outstanding biodiveristy and the need to protect it. The first phase of the project begun in December 2011 when the sponsor granted Biodiversity East a project to compile a comprehensive visual guide illustrated with photographs of all the birds in Kuwait. An experienced international team - the founding members of Biodiversity East and Mike Pope, chairman of the Kuwait Ornithological Rarities Committee (KORC) worked very hard to compile all recent knowledge on birds and gather high quality photoghraphy of each species. 43 photographers contriubuted their work on a volunteer basis - and this was first ever volunteer effort to bring so many spectacular images of wild birds together in any country in the Arabian Peninsula. Biodiversity East and KORC selected the best available images and over 1300 were published in the first edition of "Birds of Kuwait: A Comprehensive Visual Guide" (July 2012). Demand for this 414 page large-format book was high and another printing was ordered almost immediately after publication. Furthermore, the visionaries at KUFPEC organized the funding for a second phase of the project (or BoK II).
Bok II launced in March 2013 worked to produce electronic derivatives of the colourful large-format book so that this information can reach more people and be widely available. The six-month project involved the creation of an e-book version of BoK and smart-phone Apps. Finally the current website functions as a clearing-house mechanism for disseminating these products and for increasing awareness on the wildlife of the state. The current website has several attributes that introduce aspects that are very important for conservation, outdoor recreation and environmental awareness in Kuwait. A newly created listing of Important Areas for Birds provides data on areas that need conservation attention and are outstanding natural heritage sites in the state.
Contributors
- Sponsor: Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC)
- Project Supervisor: Graham Whitehead
- Project Manager: Nancy Papathanasopoulou
- Editors: Mike Pope, Stamatis Zogaris
- Contributors: AbdulRahman Al Sirhan, Graham Whitehead
- Ornithological Review: Kuwait Ornithological Rarities Committee, Paschalis Dougalis, Triantaphyllos Akriotis
- Contributing Photographers: Ali Alhafez, Aurelien Audevard, Mike Barth, Chris Batty, Oscar Campbell, Christine Canzanella, Dave Clark, Devashish Deb, Pekka Fagel, David Fisher, Brian Foster, Theodoros Gaitanakis, Khaled Al-Ghanem, Rashed Al-Hajji, Trevor Hardaker, Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok, Meshal Al-Jirweay, Mohammad Al-Kanderi, Ayman Al-Kanderi, Samera Al-Khalifah, Mohammad Khorshed, Chris Lansdell, Vincent Legrand, Daniel Mauras, Khaled Al-Nasrallah, Daniele Occhiato, Tommy Pedersen, Phil Penlington, Nikos Petrou, Gillian Pope, Jaden Pope, Mike Pope, Simon Price, Huw Roberts, Humoud Al-Shaiji, AbdulRahman Al-Sirhan, Lefteris Stavrakas, Abdulmohsen Al-Suraye, Abhishek Varma, Aris Vidalis, Chris Vlachos, Graham Whitehead, Derek Wilby
- Language editing and quality control: Emily Green, Albert Oliver, Vassiliki Vlami, Nancy Papathanasopoulou, Aris Vidalis, Graham Whitehead.
- Design and production supervision: Aris Vidalis
- Book Printed and bound by Fotolio Typicon S.A. in Athens, Greece
- ebook version produced by Todd Yocum
- apps produced by Science Seals, LLC
- Website produced by Biodiversity East, edited by Mike Pope and Stam Zogaris, designed and developed by Aris Vidalis on the Drupal platform
