Arabian tahr  (Arabitragus jayakari)

The Arabian tahr is currently extremely endangered as a result of intense grazing competition from livestock, illegal hunting and habitat degradation through human development (5). Unfortunately, the species’ dependence upon visiting waterholes leaves it vulnerable to ambush by poachers (3). Human migrations to urban areas have increased in Oman in recent years, resulting in domestic goats being left to become feral, which now forage in areas that were once the realm of the tahr. Additionally, several roads and buildings have been constructed near and within the tahr’s range, which are new potential sources of disturbance, pollution and habitat fragmentation. In particular, plans for mineral extraction in southern parts of the range could result in significant habitat loss (6). Tahr populations in UAE appear to be especially localised and possibly isolated. The concern is that isolation of sub-populations will lead to the diminished genetic variation associated with inbreeding, which in turn results in increased susceptibility to disease and decreased fertility, spelling disaster for the Arabian tahr in UAE (3).

In 1973, efforts were initiated to protect the Arabian tahr and, in 1975, active protection was granted over a wide range of the eastern Hajar Mountains of Oman, with local men recruited as rangers under the Office of the Advisor for Conservation of the Environment (6). Unfortunately, this area still awaits to be awarded official status by a Royal Decree with an approved, funded and implemented management plan (6) (7). However, in 2009, Wadi Wurayah Fujairah, home to the Arbaian tahr and other rare and endangered species, was officially declared as the United Arab Emirates’ first protected mountain area (8).

In 1980, a captive breeding population was also established at the Omani Mammal Breeding Centre as a means of bolstering numbers by reintroducing captive-bred individuals back into the wild (6). There are now a total of three institutions involved in captive breeding of this species, one in Oman, and two in the United Arab Emirates (9). Sadly, many people still seem to be unaware of the grave situation the Arabian tahr is in, so other conservation initiatives have focussed on publicity and educational campaigns to raise the species’ profile (7). Indeed, raising awareness and concern for the plight of this species, the region’s only large, endemic mammal, will be crucial in obtaining cooperation in protecting it (6).