Al Haza, QS

Wronski, T

LJMU Research Online (Liverpool John Moores University)

Qais S. Al Haza1 & Torsten Wronski2,3Affiliation: 1Saudi Wildlife Commission, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 2King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre, Thumamah, P. O. Box 61681, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 3Zoological Society of London, Conservation Programmes, Regent’s Park, London, NW1 4RY, United Kingdom, t_wronski@gmx.deKeywords: Arabian wolf, Jibal Tuwayq, Saudi Arabia, camera trapping, persistence Introduction: The Arabian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) on the Arabian Peninsula is in decline occupying approximately 75% of its former range, with an estimated total number of 500 and 600 animals on the peninsula (Mech & Boitani 2004). Detailed numbers for Saudi Arabia are not available. Wolves are not protected in Saudi Arabia and are subject to heavy prosecution (Cunningham et al. 2009). Their protection in the Kingdom is difficult since the species is considered the nemesis of Bedouins since time immemorial. Although not yet endangered the survival of wolves is a serious concern and its long-term survival may be only possible in large protected areas with good populations of wildlife (Gasparetti et al. 1985). More recently Cunningham & Wronski (2010a, b) reported that Arabian wolves still occur over vast parts of Saudi Arabia, probably in larger numbers than previously assumed.Arabian wolf in the Jibal Tuwayq: Published reports on the occurrence of wolves in Jibal Tuwayq date back to the year 1947. In 1977 and 1978 two specimens were shot 30 km west of Wadi Hanifa in the Jibel Tuwayq mountain ridge. Another specimen was reported one year later near the same site, followed by a thorough inspection of the area with the help of local Bedouins who assured that numerous animals were still in the district (Nader & Büttiker 1980). In 1979 a wolf was reported killed from Wadi Birk, which represents the southern border of today’s Ibex Reserve (Fig 1)  (Nader & Büttiker 1980). The Ibex Reserve (23°30´N, 46°30´E), also situated in the Jibal Tuwayq Mountains of central Saudi Arabia (Fig 2) was established in 1988 by the Saudi Wildlife authority (SWA) to protect the last Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) in central Saudi Arabia.Until 2005 no further confirmed sighting of wolves, wolf tracks or wolf scats were reported in this part of the Jibal Tuwayq. In 2005, ecologists of King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre (KKWRC) postulated that wolves still occurred in the Ibex Reserve, particularly in Wadi Ghaba, in which the Nubian ibex density is notably higher than in other parts of the reserve. Since 2008, larger canid tracks were routinely observed in Wadi Ghaba and the number of Nubian ibex killed by large canids increased, suggesting the continued presence of wolves in the Ibex Reserve. Wronski & Macasero (2008) reported on the increase of large canid (wolf kills) in Wadi Ghaba and provided genetic evidence of Arabian wolves in the Ibex Reserve. First image of an Arabian wolf from Jibal Tuwayq: Here, we present for the first time an image taken from a wild Arabian wolf encountered in the Ibex Reserve, Jibal Tuwayq in central Saudi Arabia (Fig. 3). The picture shows an adult animal photographed by a camera trap placed at N23 26 15.3 E46 27 35.7 on 18 November 2011. The camera trap (Trail Master TM 35-1) was placed on the plateau of Jibal Tuwayq at a path frequently used by wolves. The image was taken in the early evening at 8:56 pm. Arabian wolves in the Ibex Reserve are reported to move in small packs of two to four animals (Al Haza, pers. obs.). It is further reported that at least two packs inhabit the Ibex Reserve, one in the area where the camera trap photo was taken, i.e. Wadi Hullayyah/Wadi Ghaba, another one further north in the area of the Wadi Aylan system (Al Haza, pers. obs.).ARABIAN WOLVES PERSIST IN THE TUWAYQ MOUNTAINS OF SAUDI ARABIAIn the central parts of Saudi Arabia, namely the Jibal Tuwayq ecosystem, wolves are the only remaining large predators. The Ibex Reserve represents an intact part of the Jibal Tuwayq ecosystem, in which Arabian wolves can still prey on their natural prey species, such as mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella) and Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana). It is of great importance for the Jibal Tuwayq ecosystem in general and for the Ibex Reserve in particular that this large predator species continues to survive. Every effort should be made to raise public awareness of the importance of large predators for the functioning of an intact ecosystem.9.Volume 6  •  Issue 2 and 3  •  March 2012  •  ISSN 1990-8237   Fig. 2. The Arabian Peninsula and the location of the Ibex Reserve in the Jibal Tuwayq in central Saudi Arabia.ReferencesCunningham, P., Wronski, T. and Alageel, K. 2009. Predators persecuted in the Asir Region, western Saudi Arabia. Wildlife Middle East News 4: 6.Cunningham, P. and Wronski, T. 2010a. Distribution update of the Arabian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) from Saudi Arabia. Wildlife Middle East News 5: 4.Cunningham, P. and Wronski, T. 2010b. Arabian wolf distribution update from Saudi Arabia. Canid News 13: 1-6.Gasparetti, J., Harrison, D.L. and Büttiker, W. 1985. The carnivores of Arabia. In: Büttiker, W. and F. Krupp (eds). Fauna of Saudi Arabia 7. Meteorology and Environmental Protection Administration, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 397-461.Mech, L.D. and Boitani, L. 2004. Grey wolf (Canis lupus Linneus, 1758). In: Sillero-Zubiri, C., M. Hoffmann and D.W. McDonald (eds). Canids: Foxes, Wolves, Jackals and dogs. Status, Survey and Action Plan, IUCN/SSC Canid Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland. 124-129.Nader, I.A. and Büttiker, W. 1980. Mammals of Saudi Arabia. Mammalia: Family Canidae. Records of the Arabian wolf, Canis lupus arabs Pocock, 1934, from Saudi Arabia . In: Büttiker, W. and W. Krupp, F. (eds). Fauna of Saudi Arabia 2. Meteorology and Environmental Protection Administration, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 234-236.Wronski, T. and Macasero, W. 2008. Evidence for the persistence of Arabian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) in the Ibex Reserve, Saudi Arabia and its preferred prey species. Zoology in the Middle East 45: 11-18.Fig. 1. Arabian wolf captured near Janadriyah north of Riyadh in central Saudi Arabia.Fig. 3. The first image ever taken from an Arabian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) in the Ibex Reserve. (© Qais S. Al Haza).

Arabian wolves persist in the Tuwayq Mountains of Saudi Arabia

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