Intertidal Macrofauna Biodiversity of Kuwait: An Update Since 2017

Al-Kandari, M., 2024. Intertidal macrofauna biodiversity of Kuwait: An update since 2017. In: Phillips, M.R.; Al-Naemi, S., and Duarte, C.M. (eds.), Coastlines under Global Change: Proceedings from the International Coastal Symposium (ICS) 2024 (Doha, Qatar). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 113, pp. 906-914. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. An intertidal biodiversity survey of the marine macrofauna of Kuwait was conducted at 42 transects, from Khor Al-Subiya in the north to the border with Saudi Arabia in the south, including sites in mainland areas and eight offshore islands. These transects were sampled qualitatively and quantitatively during the late autumn and winter between 2013 and 2016. Preliminary results of this Project in 2017 recorded more than 751 macrofaunal species identified at that time. Additional surveys were conducted at Umm Al-Namel, Auha and Miscan Islands from October 2018 to October 2019. Several newly identified species of 46 taxa were new to Kuwait, including four taxa new to the Arabian Gulf and 15 taxa new to Science in Mollusca, Polychaeta, Decapoda and Isopoda, increasing the intertidal macrofauna diversity in Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf. Here, we present an update on intertidal macrofauna biodiversity collected in Kuwait. Twenty-one papers on Kuwaiti intertidal macrofauna's taxonomy, biology and ecology have been published in international refereed journals. Most of their taxonomic status has been confirmed by molecular data. Identifying the collected intertidal macrofauna is ongoing. However, the data obtained have shown the extreme diversity of the Arabian Gulf intertidal macrofauna with many misidentified taxa and new taxa, most of which still need to be described.