evidence: The Khuriya Muriya Islands are a cluster of five islands in the Arabian Sea, 40 kilometers off Oman’s southeast coast. Several early writers referenced the islands, including Ptolemy, who listed them as seven small islands in Khuriya Muriya Bay, near the entrance to the "Persian Gulf" (most likely the modern Gulf of Aden). BirdLife International has classified the island group as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports seabird breeding colonies of red-billed tropicbirds, tropical shearwaters, masked boobies, Socotra cormorants, sooty gulls, and bridled and greater crested terns. Other noteworthy birds include Jouanin’s petrels that travel through and resident mourning wheatears.