Fauna of Saudi Arabia Lecture 1 2021 PDF

Fauna of Saudi Arabia Lecture 1 Dr. Daniyah Gary Bay Dr. Rana khayat 2021  Fauna Fauna is The animals of a particular region, habitat or geological period. Region of Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia has a varied biodiversity because of its location betwe...

Fauna of Saudi Arabia Lecture 1 Dr. Daniyah Gary Bay Dr. Rana khayat 2021  Fauna Fauna is The animals of a particular region, habitat or geological period. Region of Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia has a varied biodiversity because of its location between Africa and Eurasia, which allows elements of both regions to intermingle. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is at the centre of the Eremian zone (or Saharo-Sindian) desert region which is the vast desert belt extending from Morocco to western China. The kingdom lies at the crossroads of three of the world’s major zoogeographical realms: Palaearctic zone, Afro-tropical zone and Indo-Malayan zone.  Habitats The type of natural environment in which a particular species of organism lives Habitat types: Aquatic habitats: Marine water and fresh water Desert habitats: Hot and dry land habitats Forest habitats: Deciduous forests, coniferous forests and tropical rain forests Grassland habitats: Temperate Grassland has hot summer and cold winter Savanna has long dry periods followed by heavy rainfall seasons Tundra habitats: Frozen lands most of the year but little warmer in spring and summer Others: Mountains, polar ice and Mediterranean habitats.  Which types of these habitats are here in Saudi Arabia? Coniferous forest Mountain Deciduous forest Temperate Grassland Savanna Polar ice Mediterranean Tropical rain forest Tundra Desert  Aquatic habitats in Saudi Arabia Marine water: Red Sea Arabian Gulf Fresh water: Wadi al-Rumma river (longest is SA, about 600 km, extended from Iraq and Kuwait to Al- Qassim) Al Asfar Lake (largest in SA, about 20,000 ha, located in Al Hassa)  Other Habitats in Saudi Arabia Mountains: Sarawat mountains Sawda mountain >>> Asir mountains Deserts: Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert >>> Nefud desert Dahna desert Grasslands: Tihama Al-hassa >>>  Geological periods Saudi Arabia is located in the Arabian peninsula which has gone through some geological periods that affected its wildlife: Credits: Ray Troll’s art Palaeocene period: 70 millions years ago, forests spread all over the coastal areas, and there were land connections between Africa, Arabian region and Asia. This is supported by historical studies on the palaeofauna, which indicate periods of faunal movement into the area from Africa and elsewhere. Climatic cooling drove vegetation bands southwards, and caused an influx of species from Eurasia to the Arabian peninsula. Eocene period: Global climatic changes caused the the formation of the Red Sea and the Arabian peninsula started to become isolated from the continent of Africa. This prevented further exchange of genes between African and Arabian animal species.  Migration and Emigration/immigration Migration: The regular/seasonal movement of all or part of Migration an animal population to and return from an area. Examples of migrating animals: birds, hoofed animals, bats, whales, seals, and fishes (such as salmon). Emigration / immigration: Emigrate from prefix is “e” in the Latin language that means “out of” prefix is “im” in the Latin language that means “not” Movement that involves a change in location and NOT return. Immigrate to  Animal types in a habitat Native: Animal species that live and reproduce naturally in an area without any human intervention. Endemic: Animal species that are special and unique to an area (can NOT be found anywhere else in the world). Introduced: Animal species that do NOT naturally live in the area but (on purpose or accidentally) were brought in by human. They may cause serious changes to the ecosystem.  Endemic Animals Animal species that exist only in one geographical Pandemic region. A species can be endemic to :  small geographical area, such as a single island  larger geographical area, such as a continent If it is found elsewhere, then, endemic is not the word to describe that distribution >>> Usually an area that contains endemic species is isolated in some way, so that species have difficulty spreading to other areas, or it has unusual environmental characteristics to which endemic species are uniquely adapted. Endemic, epidemic and pandemic are also used in Epidemic Endemic medicine to describe the spread of a disease.  Wildlife in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia is located within the dry to semi-dry geographical areas and enjoys a biological diversity, which includes wildlife species that have adapted over time to severe ecological conditions in winter and summer and became Endemic to Saudi Arabia. Over time, Human population growth has impacted wildlife habitats and some species have become endangered and some species have become extinct. Four species became extinct within the last 500 years. The last Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) are known to have been killed in the late 1800’s. Similarly, the last surviving Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus) in the Kingdom was killed in the early 1950’s in an area in the north between the Jordanian and Iraqi borders. The Saudi gazelle (Ifri) Gazella saudiya is believed to have vanished from the country in the early 1980s. The last record of the onager (Equus hemionus hemippus) in the Kingdom was recorded in the early 1900’s.  HUNTING AND FALCONRY Traditional hunting using falcons is an integral part of the Arab culture and constitutes an important component of the cultural heritage of the people of Saudi Arabia and many other countries of the region. >>> Hunting in Saudi Arabia is regulated through implementation of the “Wild Animals and Birds Hunting Act”. Excessive hunting, especially since the widespread use of four- wheel drive vehicles made previously inaccessible vast areas easily accessible, seriously affected the populations of larger animals such as Arabian oryx and Sand gazelles, resulting in their extirpation from many areas of their range. Apart from the impacts of unregulated hunting with falcons on the prey species, the capture of wild hawks, especially the Saker falcon, may pose a threat to the species as numbers of falconers increase with growth of the human population.  STATUS OF PROTECTED AREAS IN SAUDI ARABIA The National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development (NCWCD) and the Ministry of Agriculture are the organisations having the primary responsibility for establishing and managing conservation areas. The area under management for the sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity in Saudi Arabia accounts for almost 10% of the land surface of the Kingdom. In addition, coastal and marine protected areas have been identified and a number in the Red Sea and the Gulf have been proclaimed. NCWCD developed a comprehensive Protected Area System Plan in which 103 areas that are significant for conserving various elements of biodiversity are identified on the basis of rigorously applied, scientifically based, criteria. To date, 15 protected areas, covering almost 4% of the country’s surface, conserve all the major physiographic regions and protect viable populations of endemic, endangered and key plant and animal species.  Areas managed by NCWCD The following table presents key features of the areas administered by the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development. Name Area Km2 Date declared ____________________________________________________________ Harrat al Harrah 13,775 1987 Al Khunfah 20,450 1987 At Tubayq 12,200 1989 Mahazat as Sayd 2,141 1988 Ibex Reserve 2,369 1988 Uruq Bani Ma’arid 5,500 1994 Majami al Hab 3,400 1993 Raydah Escarpment 9 1989 Al Jubail Marine Wildlife 4,262 1995 Umm al Qamari Island 1,600 1987 Farasan Islands 600 1989 Saja/Um ar Rimth 5,500 1995 Nafud al Urayq 1,900 1995 At Taysiyah 2,855 1995 Al Jandaliyah 1,160 1995  Areas managed by the Ministry of Agriculture Asir National Park >>> Rangeland fenced areas: There are 37 such areas distributed widely throughout the Kingdom. Forest fenced areas: A total of 23 such areas are maintained in Asir, Al Baha, Ar Riyadh, Bisha and At Taif. The old Bi’r Hima: Historic rock art heritage and wild life >>> Shaib Huraymila Hima Al Gatha at Unaiza Hima Saysad Hima Bani Saar  References https://www.dkfindout.com/us/animals-and-nature/habitats-and-ecosystems/land-habitats/ “Introduction of the fauna of Saudi Arabia” ‫كتاب للدكتور عدنان حجي‬ “First Saudi Arabian National Report on the Convention on Biological Diversity” By The National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development http://www.saudiwildlife.com/site/ http://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/art-and-culture/2018/11/29/IN-PICTURES-After-rains-Wadi-al- Rummah-in-Saudi-s-Qassim-comes-back-to-life.html https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.1989.tb00408.x GEOLOGY OF THE ARABIAN PENINSULA Sedimentary Geology of Saudi Arabia” Review By R. W. POWERS, L. F. RAMIREZ, C. D. REDMOND, and E. L. ELBERG, JR. U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 560-D https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/endemic https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/endemic-species https://www.nznatureguy.com/2019/01/30/native-endemic-and-introduced-species-in-new-zealand/