Reserve for Arabian Oryx

Abstract

The wildlife of the Jordanian deserts was shot out in the 1950s. As a first step towards restoring it, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature in Jordan has set up a captive breeding unit at its Shaumari Reserve, eight miles from the great oasis of Azraq. Though the first occupants are likely to be gazelles, by the time this issue appears there may well be four male Arabian oryx also. These, the foundation of what it is hoped will be the first captive herd of Arabian oryx in Arabia deriving from Operation Oryx, have been presented to Jordan by the Trustees of the World Herd of Arabian Oryx, now located at Phoenix and San Diego Zoos in the USA. There are a number of other captive herds of local origin already in the Arabian peninsula, including the well known one in Qatar. © 1977, Fauna and Flora International. All rights reserved.