The Qatari peninsula is a unique country, where the arid desert of the 11,581-km2-mainland phases into a 563-km-coastline washed by the waters of the Arabian Gulf, on a bathymetric scale ranging from 0 m to about a depth of 60 m.
Seawaters, in shallow depths, can be very hot (>50 °C) and very salty (>250 ppt) when compared to seas in temperate climates, making the Arabian Gulf the hottest and saltiest open sea in the world.
These extreme conditions work hand in hand to create diverse types of ecosystems that paint the waters from bright turquoise to deep blue, and the coast from brown to green. A myriad of living organisms are hosted there, both resident and migratory, including Dugongs and Whale Sharks, Flamingos and Cormorants, crabs, seagrasses and microbial marine mats. These have in common a set of behavioral and physiological adaptations to life in the ever-changing coastal and marine environment.
On a bathymetric transect, usually, sabkha salt flats and sandy and rocky beaches line the coast, followed by the intertidal and subtidal zones, mangroves, seagrass beds, coral reefs and finally the off-shore open Gulf.
Of course, the boundaries of these ecosystems are not squarely delineated, and thus, often one ecosystem engulfs the other or patches of an ecosystem are found within another.
© A. D. Chatziefthimiou
Sources:
Basson PW et al, 1977
Batanouny KH, 1981
Barth J-H and Böer B, 2002
Sale P et al, 2011
Sheppard C et al, 2009
Phalacrocorax carbo
Porzana parva
Marmaronetta angustirostris
Nettapus coromandelianus
Alopochen aegyptiaca
Larus barabensis
Aythya ferina
Netta rufina
Tadorna tadorna
Anas clypeata
Calidris alpina
Phoenicopterus roseus
Podiceps nigricollis
Larus cachinnas
Chroicocephalus genei
Ardea goliath
Halcyon smyrensis
Vanellus gregarius
Haematopus ostralegus
Pelecanus onocrotalus
Charadrius mongolus
Tringa totanus
Tringa ochropus
Stercorarius longicaudus
Cygnus cygnus
Anas crecca
Phaethon aethereus
Numenius arquata
Tachybaptus ruficollis
Larus heuglini
Alcedo atthis
Pluvialis fulva
Calidris ferruginea
Tringa stagnatilis
Stercorarius pomarinus
Calidris minuta
Hydroprogne caspia
Anas querquedula
Podiceps cristatus
Chroicocephalus ridibundus
Larus hemprichii
Nycticorax nycticorax
Ceryle rudis
Vanellus spinosus
Calidris temminckii
Sterna bergii
Botaurus stellaris
Larus armenicus
Vanellus indicus
Dromas ardeola
Calidris alba
Xenus cinereus
Arenaria interpres
Ixobrychus minutus
Calidris tenuirostris
Vanellus vanellus
Charadrius hiaticula
Pluvialis apricaria
Tringa glareola
Tringa nebularia
Vanellus leucurus
Rallus aquaticus
Tringa erythropus
Charadrius morinellus
Egrets and Heronsta garzetta
Philomachus pugnax
Stercorarius parasiticus
Ardea cinerea
Charadrius asiaticus
Charadrius leschenaultii
Actitis hypoleucos
Platalea leucorodia
Butorides striata
Pluvialis squatarola
Charadrius dubius
Ardeola ralloides
Charadrius alexandrinus
Limicola falcinellus
Limosa lapponica
Anser albifrons
Ardea purpurea
Egrets and Heronsta gularis
Numenius phaeopus
Sterna sandvicensis
Fulica atra
Sterna hirundo
Anas acuta
Anas penelope
Hydrophasianus chirurgus
Limosa limosa
Onychoprion anaethetus
Crex crex
Phalaropus lobatus
Sterna bengalensis
Chlidonias hybrida
Porphyrio madagscariensis
Sternula (albifrons) saudersi
Aythya fuligula
Sterna albifrons
Himantopous himantopus
Amaurornis phoenicurus
Aythya nyroca
Larus fuscus fuscus
Tadorna ferruginea
Phalacrocorax nigrogularis
Porphyrio porphyrio
Sterna repressa
Orychoprion leucopterus
Larus ichthyaetus
Anas strepera
Gelochelidon nilotica
Porzana porzana
Bolboschoenus maritimus
Suaeda aegyptiaca
Halopeplis perfoliata
Atriplex leucoclada
Arthrocnemum macrostachyum
Salsola drummondii
Limonium axillare
Cyperus conglomeratus
Morus nigra
Cistanche tubulosa
Salicornia europaea
Cornulaca aucheri
Salsola imbricata
Savignya parviflora
Centaurium pulchellum
Lotus garcinii
Cyperus jeminicus
Sporobolus ioclados
Echiochilon jugatum
Suaeda vermiculata
Salsola schweinfurthii
Halocnemum strobilaceum
Cornulaca monacantha
Halophila stipulacea
Halophila ovalis
Diplanthera uninervis
Heliotropium bacciferum
Avicennia marina
Cressa cretica
Cynomorium coccineum
Diadema setosum
Doriopsilla nigrocera
Eurycarcinus orientalis
Grapsus albolineatus
Tubastrea coccinea
Abudefduf vaigiensis
Scomberomorus commerson
Goniobranchus annulatus
Thenus orientalis
Platax teira
Stichopus herrmanni
Pegasus volitans
Euretaster cribrosus
Sabellastarte spectabilis
Pardachirus marmoratus
Upeneus oligospilus
Entacmaea quadricolor
Portunus (Portunus) segnis
Tylosurus crocodilus
Parapercis robinsoni
Hydrophis lapemoides
Platygyra daedalea
Trachyrhamphus bicoarctatus
Conus textile
Peronia peronii
Trachinotus blochii
Clypeaster humilis
Pentaceraster mammillatus
Lutjanus fulviflamma
Torpedo sinuspersici
Paragaleus randalli
Chelonia mydas
Pelamis platura
Terapon jarbua
Lutjanus argentimaculatus
Carpilius convexus
Panulirus versicolor
Taeniura lymma
Lethrinus nebulosus
Amphibalanus amphitrite
Ocypode rotundata
Lethrinus microdon
Stegostoma fasciatum
Acropora arabensis
Murex scolopax
Labroides dimidiatus
Sphyraena putnamae
Ranzania laevis
Macrophthalmus (Mareotis) depressus
Rhina ancyclostoma
Istigobius decoratus
Siganus canaliculatus
Lunella coronata
Hippocampus kuda
Rastrelliger kanagurta
Linckia guildingi
Himantura uarnak
Scomberoides commersonnianus
Leiaster leachi
Scolopsis ghanam
Heniochus acuminatus
Pterois miles
Scarus persicus
Pseudochromis aldabraensis
Gymnothorax undulatus
Holothuria atra
Pomacentrus aquilus
Gnathanodon speciosus
Sardinella gibbosa
Plectorhinchus gaterinus
Rhinecanthus assasi
Gerres filamentosus
Platycephalus indicus
Epinephelus coioides
Plotosus lineatus
Rhincodon typus
Epinephelus coeruleopunctatus
Ecsenius pulcher
Dactyloptena orientalis
Cryptocentrus lutheri
Colletteichthys dussumieri
Choeroichthys brachysoma
Cheilodipterus persicus
Cheilinus lunulatus
Chanos chanos
Chaetodon nigropunctatus
Chaetodon melapterus
Cephalopholis hemistiktos
Carcharhinus melanopterus
Carcharhinus leucas
Asterropteryxsemi punctata
Arothron stellatus
Aphanius dispar
Amphiprion clarkii
Amblygobius albimaculatus
Aetobatus ocellatus
Acanthurus sohal
Acanthopagrus bifasciatus
Zebrasoma xanthurum
Ostorhinchus cyanosoma
Pomacanthus maculosus