Sunday, Jun 22, 2014
The once endangered Arabian oryx in the UAE is now no longer so. Thanks to the untiring efforts of the Al Ain Zoo, the classification of this animal endemic to the region has been changed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List for threatened species from extinct in the wild to near threatened. This is a big triumph for the UAE as, the challenge to stem the tide of extinction of a species in the wild is an onerous one and in undertaking it to such a successful degree, the country has demonstrated its commitment to preserving its flora and fauna. The Arabian oryx has been on the endangered species list for many decades and in the 1970s, when their numbers in the UAE reached alarmingly dismal numbers — there were an estimated five or seven oryx left — the directives of Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, spurred the country to devise vigorous propagation programmes for the oryx. The degree of commitment to this cause today speaks in impressive numbers — 5,000 oryx have been released by the Al Ain Zoo into the wild, an achievement that aligns itself fully with the larger concern of desertification. The latter is linked in more than one way to the decline in flora and fauna and in demonstrating its ability to turn the tide of time back in its favour, the UAE has shown that it is fully cognizant of the multiple challenges inherent in its environmental check list and is ready to meet them.
By Gulf News
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