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Protected Area At-Tubayq
Administrative features
Category : At-Tubaiq is intended to have zones designated Special
Natural Reserve, Resource Use Reserve, and Biological Reserve, but this zonation
has not been defined clearly (see below).
Date of creation : Declared 1989 (BOG); ratified 1991 (Council of
Ministers)
Reasons for designation : At-Tubaiq was selected for protection because the area
contained Saudi Arabia's most northerly resident breeding population of ibex (Capra
ibex), and is representative of the Saudi Arabian Northern Plain biotope (Child and
Grainger 1990).
At-Tubaiq was also recognised as within the historical range of Arabian oryx
Oryx leucoryx, cheetah Acinonyx jabatus, ostrich Struthio camelus syriacus, and
possibly Arabian leopard Panthera pardus nimr (Child and Grainger 1990). The area
may have once held both reem Gazella subgutturosa and idmi Gazella gazella
gazelle, and functioned as part of the extended northern grazing grounds for these
species before the area was effectively divided by major highways.
Responsible agency : NCWCD
Size and sectors : At-Tubaiq officially covers an area of 12,200 km 2. and is
not divided into sectors. At-Tubaiq is currently designated as a multiple use site
incorporating zones of Special Natural Reserve (~3,000km 2 ), Biological Reserve and
Resource Use Reserve (Child and Grainger 1990). This designation allows the
provision of tracts of relatively undisturbed land for the conservation of wildlife and for
scientific research with access for visitors to the area, as well as assigning zones
within which regulated grazing by camels is permitted. These designations is
consistent with the management objectives for the reserve, but the different zones
need to be more clearly defined. Because low ranger numbers, and the presence of
domestic livestock, principally camels, at certain times of the year, the area currently
functions as a Resource Use Reserve.
Emirate(s) : The reserve is situated in the northern Al Jouf and Al
Qurayyat Emirates in the north west of Saudi Arabia, adjacent to north eat
international boundary with Jordan
Central co-ordinates : 23 o 30'N, 37 o 00'E
Existing maps : The reserve is covered by the following maps:
• US Geological Survey (USGS) 1:500,000 Miscellaneous Geologic
Investigations Map 1-200 A Wadi As Sirhan Quadrangle.
• Landsat USGS images: 1:500,000 USGS-TR-93-7 GM-2100 Wadi As Sirhan.
• NCWCD map: 1:100,000, Ministry of Defence and Aviation, (1993).
Management plans : The only existing, and still current, management plan
for the area is Seddon and Khan (1996).
Tourism strategy : There are no visitor facilities in At-Tubayq, nor are there
any regular visits by school, public groups or NCWCD head office staff. The area’s
designation allows for regulated public access, and the management plan sets out a
policy for educational and recreational visits.
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