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Recordings
Scientific Name
Monticola solitarius
Arabic Name
السمنة الزرقاء
Kuwaiti name
سمنة
Length
21.0 cm
Information
Uncommon passage migrant; scarce winter visitor. A bird of the Mediterranean and the mountains of western Asia. It will frequent rocky terrain and ruins, similar to habitats it breeds in further north.
Where in Kuwait
It is still often associated with areas of bare rock, areas of woody vegetation on rocky slopes and isolated hills but can also be found using urban environments to perch on and is found all over the country from Failaka Island, to Khiran, 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 breeds in southern Europe and northwest Africa, and from central Asia to northern China and Malaysia. The European, north African and southeast Asian birds are mainly resident, apart from altitudinal movements. Other Asian populations are more migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa, India and southeast Asia. The summer male is unmistakable and is so named for the distinctive all blue-grey plumage apart from its darker wings. This species is Malta's national bird.
Local threats
Habitat loss and degradation and indiscriminate shooting