Ubaid Ullah Saima Siddiqui Ghazala Yasmeen Iqbal Saeed Khan M Asif Iqbal Uzma Manzoor Amtyaz Safi Naseem Samreen Uzma Imdad Fozia Tabbassum Sehrish Khan Tahira A Lateef
Keywords: Sindh, Balochistan, migratory birds, mangroves, Indus Delta.
Abstract: The coastal belt of Pakistan supports diverse bird communities across its wetlands, mangroves, tidal creeks, mudflats, beaches, rocky shores, lagoons, estuaries, and nearshore marine habitats. However, information on the coastal birds of Sindh and Balochistan remains scattered across various sources. This review compiles available records to assess bird diversity, distribution, habitat associations, and conservation status along both provincial coasts. Major sites—including the Indus Delta, Karachi’s beaches, mangroves, and creeks, as well as Hingol National Park, Astola Island, Miani Hor, Sonmiani Bay, Jiwani, Gwadar, Ormara, and Pasni—were evaluated. A total of 200 bird species belonging to 17 orders and 54 families were documented. Among these, 144 species (72.0%) were shared by both provinces, while 30 (15.0%) occurred exclusively in Balochistan and 26 (13.0%) only in Sindh. Overall, 174 species were recorded in Balochistan and 170 in Sindh. The review identified 26 species of conservation concern, including 6 Endangered, 7 Vulnerable, and 13 Near Threatened species under the IUCN (2024) categories. The high proportion of shared species highlights the ecological connectivity between the two coasts and underscores the need for coordinated conservation efforts. Protecting interconnected mangroves, mudflats, lagoons, tidal creeks, beaches, and shallow coastal waters is essential for sustaining Pakistan’s coastal avifauna
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