IUCN Red List species

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the world’s most comprehensive inventory of extinction risk. The parks protect critical habitat for species across the threat spectrum — from critically endangered hawksbill turtles and scalloped hammerheads to the vulnerable dugong.

  • 2 Critically Endangered (CR)
  • 2 Endangered (EN)
  • 2 Vulnerable (VU)
  • 1 Least Concern (LC)

Flagship species

EN

Whale shark

Rhincodon typus

The world's largest fish visits Dungonab Bay seasonally to feed in its plankton-rich waters.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

EN

Green turtle

Chelonia mydas

Green turtles graze the seagrass meadows of Dungonab and nest on the sandy shores of both parks.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

LC

Crab plover

Dromas ardeola

Mukkawar Island is an Important Bird Area where crab plovers breed in burrow colonies on the sand.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

CR

Scalloped hammerhead

Sphyrna lewini

Schools of scalloped hammerheads patrol the deep walls of Sanganeb atoll, a signature sight for divers.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

CR

Hawksbill turtle

Eretmochelys imbricata

Hawksbills nest on the beaches of both parks and forage on their coral reefs year-round.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

VU

Reef manta ray

Mobula alfredi

Dungonab Bay hosts spectacular seasonal manta ray aggregations between November and April.

IUCN Red List entry ↗

VU

Dugong

Dugong dugon

Dungonab Bay shelters one of the most important dugong populations in the Red Sea, grazing its globally significant seagrass beds.

IUCN Red List entry ↗