Qeshm Island mangrove forests are a unique community of plants spanning 85,686 hectares and constitute the largest of the kind in the Middle East.
These forests mainly grow in intertidal coasts in tropical and subtropical latitudes in brackish and salt waters, with lots of birds choosing them as their winter habitat.
Qeshm Island is a unique place in terms of diversity and density of bird species, so that the United Nations and many other international entities have identified the island as a biosphere reserve.
In addition to sea turtles, corals, different bird species, fish, dolphins and whales as long as up to 12 meters, different species of mammals, including gazelles and foxes, as well as various insects and reptiles have inhabited the island, creating a unique landscape.
Over 300 species of birds have been registered in the Persian Gulf regions, from which 120 species can be seen in Qeshm Island and surrounding areas.
Some the species choose the island as an interim resting place in the middle of their migration from South and East Africa to Eurasia and Siberia during springs and autumns.
Some other indigenous species, including sternidaes, spoonbills, crab-plovers, herons and shorebird species, live in the intertidal areas, coral coasts, coastal rocks, mudflats and among mangrove trees all through the year.
Egyptian vulture can often be sighted on the sky of Qeshm Island’s central deserts.
Studies show that near 20 percent of bird species in Iran live in Qeshm Island in different seasons of the year. 19 indigenous species and 76 migrant species as well as three species of slender-billed curlew, sociable lapwing and dalmatian pelican which have been registered in IUCN Red List live permanently or specific seasons in the island.
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