Diversity and Abundance of Bird’s Species at Um Dum Island, Khartoum Province, Sudan

Abstract

This study focuses on bird diversity and abundance as well as their conservation status in Um Dum Island, Khartoum area, Sudan. Um Dum Island hosts distinctive biodiversity, there are a number of bird species that make the island exclusive and valuable for the local ecosystems therefore indicating the importance of Island not only for biodiversity but also for human survival, development and local health environment. The data collection used direct bird count method over six months of the study period, from June to December 2020 except October bird counts and identification surveys were conducted once each month from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Equipment used for data collection are a pair of binoculars (50X50 magnifications), telescope – Swaroviski (660 – 940), digital still camera for documenting, data recording sheets, notebook, and an identification guide to the birds. Birds species that identified compare with field guide of birds of Africa south of the Sahara. In total, about 4343 individuals that belonged to 12 orders, with different abundances were observed in Um Dum Island belonging to 34 families of 53 species, the four most common birds identified were the House Sparrow with 926 individuals counted, followed by African Mourning Dove with 923 individuals followed by Greater blue-eared starling with 424 individuals counted, the Laughing Dove with 275 individuals counted and the Red-billed Fire finch with 210 individuals counted. This result reflects the richness of the avifauna of the Um Dum Island, this richness is probably due to the use of the area for the availability of food, as well as the flora around the island and availability of water. The highest number of birds observed was in June and July, the families observed with the maximum numbers of different species were Sturnidae, Passeridae, Columbidae and Estrildidae. The Um Dum Island eligible to be considered as an important bird’s area, however the Island is still depauperate of the necessary data collection for this purpose, hence the importance of this study. Like any site of birds habitat in Sudan there is areal need for protection from human activities.