Saturday, May 19, 2007
Gulf News
Dubai: Overgrazing by 250,000 camels here has done a lot of damage to the desert ecosystem, according to a researcher.
"Fencing off land to stop the camels is not the best solution," according to David Gallacher, assistant professor at Zayed University who spent three years studying the impact of overgrazing.
He has looked at land on either side of the fence at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve.
Within the reserve, oryx and gazelles roam free while outside camels graze openly.
According to Gallacher's research, annual plants are hardly affected by grazing but almost all year-round species, even those with thorns or chemical defences, suffer.
The more nature reserves the better and earmarking certain areas could be a solution to overgrazing, said Gallacher.
"There are about 250,000 camels in the UAE. Generally they are kept on camel farms, which act as the homestead, the base, but the surrounding area is grazed," he said.
The UAE has the second biggest number of camels in the world after Qatar and 20 times the amount of Saudi Arabia.
The most extreme example of overgrazing is with the arta, a small desert tree found among the dunes.
Gulf News 2007. All rights reserved.
