In 1968, he launched a successful conservation programme and ordered the capture of the remaining 4 animals in the wild to start a captive breeding programme in Al Ain Zoo. [24] Arabian oryx were hunted to extinction in the wild by 1972. The Arabian oryx, hunted to near extinction some 50 years ago and classified as ‘endangered’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List since 1989, has now been upgraded to ‘vulnerable’ thanks to a captive breeding programme started by Sheikh Zayed and continued by the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD). The Arabian Oryx is the smallest of the four species in the genus Oryx. Arabian oryx were hunted to extinction in the wild by 1972. SHEIKH ZAYED BIN SULTAN AL NAHYAN ON 2 NOVEMBER 2004, HIS HIGHNESS SHEIKH ZAYED BIN SULTAN AL NAHYAN, President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, died. Where they're found today: Mainly roaming around Abu Dhabi’s Qasr Al Sarab Protected Area and the Arabian Oryx Protected Area. Abu Dhabi’s efforts : After the Arabian Oryx was declared extinct in the 1970s, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the UAE, launched a successful conservation programme which is now applauded globally. >Regulations zone, where isitors can learn more about Sheikh Zayed's efforts that began in 1966 to protect the environment and biodiversity, including the regulation of hunting. He was in his late eighties and had been Ruler of Abu Dhabi since 1966, and UAE Sheikh Zayed Efforts to Conserve Arabian Oryx November 26, 2014 August 25, 2019 The Desert, with its living resources, was given a special interest and care by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. The importance of the Arabian Oryx has once again been brought into sharp focus, as a new website was launched to help protect the species. In 1968, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of the UAE, out of concern for the land's wildlife, particularly ungulates such as the oryx, founded Al Ain Zoo to conserve them. ABU DHABI // It was a film on the efforts of Sheikh Zayed to save the Arabian oryx from extinction that inspired Peter Scarlet to give the environment a prominent role in this year's MEIFF. How you can help save Arabian sand cats, turtles and oryx | Community, Things To Do, Culture, Area Guides As efforts to protect the Arabian sand cat get under way in Al Ain, Kelly Crane takes a look at what animal experts across the UAE do towards the conservation of … Sheikh Zayed was also notably a firm opponent of harsh dogmas and intolerance. In the past, the figures of the Arabian Oryx started reducing and in it was the apparition of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who started maintenance and protection efforts in the region. DUBAI: More than four decades ago, the Arabian oryx was extinct in the wild. uae Arabian oryx formerly occurred in the deserts of the western UAE. The World Wildlife Fund recognized his great contribution with the prestigious Gold Panda award. Hamdi Tammam, in his book Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan: The Leader and the March, wrote that the former president devoted much of his time making enquiries about the topography of the region. In 1968, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of the UAE, out of concern for the land's wildlife, particularly ungulates such as the oryx, founded Al Ain Zoo to conserve them. He was one of the first conservationists to notice the alarming decrease in the numbers of Arabian Oryx. Because of these conservation efforts, today, the UAE today home to the largest population of Arabian Oryx in the world. ... newly-created Coordination Committee f or the Conservation of the Arabian Oryx in recognition of late Zayed’s protection efforts. The General Secretariat for the Conservation of the Arabian Oryx, has created the website, www.arabianoryx.org to allow members of the General Secretariat and the public to have a platform to connect on all matters related to the animal. These include the International Fund for the Conservation of Houbara, the Sheikh Zayed Falcon Release Program and the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital.Additionally, UAE conservation efforts extend to marine turtles and dugongs. The late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan set the example for wildlife conservation and development with his genuine interest in the causes of wildlife. Aside from the Arabian oryx, the UAE’s conservation programs target a variety of threatened species saving them from extinction.