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Recordings
Scientific Name
Gymnoris xanthocollis
Arabic Name
العصفور أصفر الحنجرة
Kuwaiti name
زرزور
Length
13.5 cm
Information
Uncommon passage migrant; scarce summer visitor; breeds in Kuwait. An Asian specialty with a limited distribution in the Western Palearctic. The status of this bird in Kuwait has probably been overlooked. It was first found breeding in 2000 and it currently nests sporadically at various sites.
Where in Kuwait
This species is tree-loving although it is sometimes seen on wires and on the ground, where it has a hopping gait. It has been recorded in the Jahra and Doha areas, SAANR and Al-Abraq.
In the world
It has an extremely large range and a population that is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats. It is found from Turkey into Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and as a vagrant in Sri Lanka. It is a species that breeds in tree hollows, often making use of the holes made by primary hole-nesting birds such as barbets and woodpeckers. They may also make use of hollows on buildings. This species is said to have introduced Salim Ali (1896–1987) to ornithology. As a young boy he shot a sparrow that looked different, and it was identified for him by W. S. Millard, then secretary of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), who also introduced him to the literature and collections at the museum there. As a result, Salim Ali ultimatey took up ornithology as a profession. In 2003 the BNHS published a tribute to him entitled Petronia.
Local threats
Habitat loss and degradation.