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ustard Chlamydotis [undulata] macqueenii; sand gazelle Gazella subguttorosa, and mountain gazelle Gazella gazella. A recent history of wildlife conservation in Saudi Arabia “There is not an animal on the earth, nor any being that wings its flight, but it is a people like unto you.” Qur’an 6: 38 “He it is Who has made you stewards of the earth…” Qur’an 6: 165 Islamic law (Shari’ah) firmly establishes the principles of human stewardship over shared natural resources; acknowledges the direct and indirect benefits provided by wildlife, and grants rights to all living creatures (Bagader et al. 1994). Such principles were subsumed within early tribal land management systems, at least as far back as the time of the Prophet Muhammad (Llewellyn 1998), in which provisions were made for the protection and conservation of plant resources through the creation of fallow lands and specified use areas (hima) (Grainger and Llewellyn 1994). Despite the breakdown of tribal grazing lands in the 1950s, a few himas in south-western Saudi Arabia continue to be respected locally, and are maintained under five types: no grazing; grazing and cutting permitted; year-round grazing; beekeeping; forest protection (Draz 1969). Within modern Saudi Arabia responsibility for wildlife conservation has fallen within the remit of a number of government agencies, primary among these have been the Ministry of Agriculture and Water (MAW), the Meteorological and Environmental Protection Administration (MEPA), and the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development (NCWCD). The role of each is considered below. The MAW was the principle agency responsible for management, improvement, conservation and monitoring of forests, rangelands and wildlife within Saudi Arabia before the establishment of NCWCD in 1986, and the later involvement of MEPA (Al- Hakamy 1989). The MAW has been active in the area of legislation governing the conservation of natural vegetation, and the establishment of water-harvesting areas and reseeding programmes for improvement of rangelands (Iskander 1996), although MAW activities have largely concentrated on the development of agricultural self-sufficiency (Facey et al. 1993). A separate Department of National Parks was created in 1983 with the mandate to establish national parks aimed at the conservation of wildlife, but with 27
the effective emphasis on the provision of public recreation facilities(Abdelbagi and Bodi 1996). Established in 1980, the MEPA has responsibility for marine conservation environmental protection, and for the collection and compilation of data from over 30 meteorological stations throughout Saudi Arabia. In recent years MEPA has begun an ambitious project to survey, map and better manage the Kingdom’s grazing resources in support of pastoral nomadism (ESON 1994, 1996a & b; Al-Gain 1996). Responsibility for the identification of protected areas formally passed to NCWCD by 1991 (see box for this and other wildlife-related legislation). The NCWCD was created by Royal Decree in 1986 to: "Develop and implement plans to preserve wildlife in its natural ecology and to propose the establishment of proper protected areas and reserves for wildlife in the Kingdom.." (Article 3(4) of Royal Decree No. M/22). The term wildlife covers all indigenous wild plants and animals and their habitats under natural or semi-natural conditions on land and in the sea (Child and Grainger 1990). By necessity some of the NCWCD's first major projects focused on the protection and restoration of high profile animal species such as the houbara bustard and the Arabian oryx. This species-centered approach served to raise conservation awareness within Saudi Arabia. By initiating projects for the captive-breeding and reintroduction of "flagship" quarry species with the potential for future sustainable use the NCWCD has sought gradually to gain popular support for other, less spectacular but equally fundamental conservation programmes. From the beginning the NCWCD recognised that the conservation of representative portions of the Kingdom's major habitats would be essential for the protection of not only key species, but entire communities of plants and animals (Buttiker and Grainger 1989). The foundation of the NCWCD approach has been the creation of a large network of protected areas and the management of these areas in such a way as to fulfil the NCWCD mandate to preserve, conserve, but also to develop the nation's wildlife (Abuzinada et al. 1992). The NCWCD's System Plan for Protected Areas attempts to draws on the cultural precedents of the traditional hema system (Grainger and Llewellyn 1994), and compiles information from earlier surveys by other government agencies to list a total of 103 candidate protected areas, covering a total of over 170,000 km2 , or 8.1% of the Kingdom (Child and Grainger 1990). It was initially planned that up to 10 new sites 28
Page 1 and 2: The Unfenced Desert
Page 3 and 4: Institute of Earth Studies Universi
Page 5 and 6: 4 SUMMARY The Unfenced Desert Towar
Page 7 and 8: from human use in order to conserve
Page 9 and 10: Chapter two reviews global changes
Page 11 and 12: Chapter seven sets out the framewor
Page 13 and 14: In 1987 the report of the World Com
Page 15 and 16: and more succinctly by the Ecotouri
Page 17 and 18: infringements, environmental damage
Page 19: • policies for the development of
Page 22 and 23: “Because of the abundance and exc
Page 24 and 25: Political, economic, social and env
Page 26 and 27: Arabian Standard Oil Company), stru
Page 30 and 31: would be declared annually during t
Page 32 and 33: Al Khunfah Protected Area The over
Page 34 and 35: • Decreased application of strict
Page 36 and 37: the attitudes and awareness of a sa
Page 38 and 39: the Asir the number one summer holi
Page 40 and 41: government tourism body to co-ordin
Page 42 and 43: The next chapter looks in more deta
Page 44 and 45: Chapter 5. Public attitudes to wild
Page 46 and 47: sent copies of the questionnaire fo
Page 48 and 49: animals was chosen by 41% and 39%,
Page 50 and 51: There was little variation in the p
Page 52 and 53: Falcon 6.3% Cheetah 1.5% Camel 1.1%
Page 54 and 55: • not necessarily entail overnigh
Page 56 and 57: median 4. A total of 189 people ans
Page 58 and 59: Overall, 62% of people used private
Page 60 and 61: through the news media and may sugg
Page 62 and 63: accommodation. During vacations tou
Page 64 and 65: Each protected area can them be ass
Page 66 and 67: 3 = basic facilities absent, but re
Page 68 and 69: Summary of Tourism Development Asse
Page 70 and 71: ♦ Farasan Islands Summary Assessm
Page 72 and 73: ♦ Ibex Reserve Summary Assessment
Page 74 and 75: ♦ Mahazat as-Sayd Summary Assessm
Page 76 and 77: ♦ National Wildlife Research Cent
Page 78 and 79:
Ranking 4/12 Category Group 1: High
Page 80 and 81:
♦ `Uruq Bani Ma’arid Summary As
Page 82 and 83:
Area Rank Key Spp. Season Potential
Page 84 and 85:
departments of Planning and Protect
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guides. The NCWCD should additional
Page 88 and 89:
• Tourism revenue should aid the
Page 90 and 91:
Topic 2: Training Questions to be a
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• Universities Suggested structur
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Other linkages: • Private sector
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• It is necessary to ensure that
Page 98 and 99:
APPENDIX Review of NCWCD Wildlife P
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Date of creation = year of creation
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PA Infrastructure Border demarcatio
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Protected Area Al-Khunfah Administr
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permanent concrete structure based
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Protected Area At-Tubayq Administra
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during these period should be minim
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Nearest national sealed road : The
Page 114 and 115:
Protected Area Farasan Islands Admi
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and humid in summer, spring - winte
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Nearest towns (150 km radius) : Far
Page 120 and 121:
Protected Area Harrat al-Harrah Adm
Page 122 and 123:
eastern Cape in southern Africa. It
Page 124 and 125:
Other patrols : The NCWCD Aviation
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Cultural/historical : 3 Facilities
Page 128 and 129:
Cultural Features Traditional uses
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Potential activities : Driven tours
Page 132 and 133:
dorcas, reem and idmi gazelles, and
Page 134 and 135:
Sensitivity / security : Safe for v
Page 136 and 137:
The area’s designation allows for
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Key seasons : Re-established houbar
Page 140 and 141:
Local communities involvement : Som
Page 142 and 143:
Protected Area Majami’ al-Hadb Ad
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Threats to integrity : Unregulated
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Protected Area National Wildlife Re
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Responsibilities : Captive-breeding
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Wildlife : 1 Cultural/historical :
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151 Water : Some permanent water se
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Other Stakeholders Local community
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155
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Cultural Features Traditional uses
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Administrative features Category :
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Ranger chain of command : Day-to-da
Page 164 and 165:
Category Group 1: High priority for
Page 166 and 167:
Child & Grainger 1990; Fisher et al
Page 168 and 169:
167 Al-Dubyani, A. 2000. Kingdom to
Page 170 and 171:
169 Child, G. 1989. Socio-economic
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171 Green, A. A. 1984b. Wildlife re
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173 Richter, L. K. (Eds). Tourism E
Page 176 and 177:
175 Powell, E. A. 1999. Saudi Arabi
Page 178 and 179:
177 Seddon, P. J., Abuzinada, A. H.
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