Environment Agency Abu Dhabi has completed its mission to relocate 25 scimitar-horned oryxes and 25 addax antelopes to Chad.
It plans to send another 25 oryxes in February and all of the animals will be released into the wild.
The programme is part of one of the world’s largest reintroduction programmes.
Launched in 2014, it is intended to create a self-sustaining herd of more than 500 scimitar-horned oryxes in the Ouadi Rimé-Ouadi Achim Wildlife Reserve, which occupies 77,950 square kilometres.
In 2000, the species was declared extinct in the wild by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
The first ones to be relocated were released into the wild in 2016 and have adapted well to their surroundings.
In 2017, another heard of 75 scimitar-horned oryxes arrived in an operation led by Chad’s Ministry of Environment and Fisheries and the Sahara Conservation Fund.
This year, 60 new calves have been born, bringing the number in the wild to about 400.
This particular breed of oryx can survive for months or even years without drinking water. A grazing animal, it derives most of its daily moisture intake from plants.
The second phase of the programme concerns the critically endangered addax.
This arid-land antelope is very well adapted to living in the Sahara, and rarely needs to drink water to survive. But its impressive horns, meat and hide are attractive to poachers, and the animal’s population has plummeted during the past century.
The first group, of 15 animals, was reintroduced in 2019, followed by 25 in 2020. Fifteen calves were born this year.
“We will always continue the legacy of the late Sheikh Zayed, who pioneered the SHO reintroduction programme, the first of its kind anywhere in the world,” said Dr Shaikha Al Dhaheri, secretary general of Environment Agency Abu Dhabi.
“It is saddening to see species becoming extinct and we at EAD [the agency] will do everything in our capacity to reverse this.”
Environment Agency Abu Dhabi has darted 18 wild scimitar-horned oryxes and fitted them with satellite tracking collars. This has enabled the agency to monitor the species behaviour, including reproduction.
“Next month, we will be releasing both scimitar-horned oryxes and addaxes in Chad in collaboration with our partners, who are truly invested in ensuring the project’s success, and we are on track to establish a herd of 500 of the oryxes in the wild.
“Our efforts will continue next year, and we are expecting the birth of more calves, which will help to increase herd sizes and curb the rapid decline of these species.”
Sheikh Zayed, the Founding Father, first noticed the rapid decline of scimitar-horned oryxes in the wild during the 1960s.
He ordered the creation of a captive breeding programme, to be piloted in the UAE. The animals were housed on Sir Bani Yas Island, where their number eventually exceeded 1,000.
Their conservation is supported by several prominent global partners, including Chad’s Ministry of Environment, the EU, the Sahara Conservation Fund, the Zoological Society of London, the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Marwell Wildlife, Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute and Fossil Rim Wildlife Centre.
Critically endangered species: in pictures
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
Top 10 most polluted cities
- Bhiwadi, India
- Ghaziabad, India
- Hotan, China
- Delhi, India
- Jaunpur, India
- Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Noida, India
- Bahawalpur, Pakistan
- Peshawar, Pakistan
- Bagpat, India
FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
Miguel Cotto world titles:
WBO Light Welterweight champion - 2004-06
WBA Welterweight champion – 2006-08
WBO Welterweight champion – Feb 2009-Nov 2009
WBA Light Middleweight champion – 2010-12
WBC Middleweight champion – 2014-15
WBO Light Middleweight champion – Aug 2017-Dec 2017
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
The biog
Name: Sari Al Zubaidi
Occupation: co-founder of Cafe di Rosati
Age: 42
Marital status: single
Favourite drink: drip coffee V60
Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia
Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
VERSTAPPEN'S FIRSTS
Youngest F1 driver (17 years 3 days Japan 2014)
Youngest driver to start an F1 race (17 years 166 days – Australia 2015)
Youngest F1 driver to score points (17 years 180 days - Malaysia 2015)
Youngest driver to lead an F1 race (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest driver to set an F1 fastest lap (19 years 44 days – Brazil 2016)
Youngest on F1 podium finish (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest F1 winner (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest multiple F1 race winner (Mexico 2017/18)
Youngest F1 driver to win the same race (Mexico 2017/18)
