Rare caracal sighting: how the fate of the country's most threatened species can be changed

The UAE is home to a number of threatened species but organisations like Environment Agency — Abu Dhabi are working hard to preserve them

The sand dune cat (Felis margarita) is a nocturnal creature that lives in shallow burrows and hunts rodents. Research published in 2005 indicated that only 250 remained in Abu Dhabi emirate. Courtesy, Al Ain Zoo

The Arabian leopard is currently listed as critically endangered. Pawan Singh / The National

This is the first sighting of the rare Rüppell's fox (Vulpes rueppellii) in 13 years. Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi

Whale sharks are known as jinbe zame in Japanese, inspiring their newly discovered residents' name.. Getty Images

Arabian Caracal (Caracal caracal) - IUCN status: least concern - thought to be extinct, the environment agency captured daytime and nighttime footage of the creature for the first time since 1984. Courtesy EAD

Green turtle (Chelonia mydas) - IUCN status: Endangered - The UAE is one of 140 countries where the green turtle is a native species; numbers have fallen worldwide - Two years ago Emirates Wildlife Society – WWF launched Gulf Green Turtle Conservation. Courtesy Paul Velasco/EWS-WWF

Socotra cormorant (Phalacrocorax nigrogularis) - IUCN status: Vulnerable - Found on islands of the coast of several Gulf states, including the UAE - Threatened by development and oil spills, the species has a total population of less than half a million. Courtesy- Rob Gubiani

Emirati leaf-toed gecko (Asaccus caudivolvulus) - IUCN status: Least concern - Only found in mountainous regions of north-eastern UAE and northern Oman - More recent research suggests it actually consists of three species, one of which is unique to the UAE – making it the country's only endemic vertebrate – and threatened by development. Photo Courtesy: Johannes Els.

Sea cow (Dugong dugon) - IUCN status: Vulnerable - Locally, boat strikes and fishing net entanglement is a threat, although there are major conservation efforts - The population in UAE waters is thought to be several thousand

The Crested Porcupine, a rodent thought to be extinct in the UAE, was recorded by camera traps in Abu Dhabi. Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi

Gulf sand gecko (Pseudoceramodactylus khobarensis) - IUCN status: Least concern - Found widely in the Arabian peninsula, especially in the UAE - This species is not endangered but its population is declining, and in the UAE it faces threats from the development of coastal sabkha habitat. Photo courtesy-Salvador Carranza)

Keyserling's wonder gecko (Teratoscincus keyserlingii) - IUCN status: Not yet evaluated - Although this species is also found in Iran, the UAE population is the only one in Arabia - Heavily threatened by development, it could be driven to extinction locally, although the Mohamed bin Zayed Species. Pritpal Soorae / Environment Agency Abu Dhabi

Hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) - IUCN status: Endangered - Widely distributed, but threatened by fishing for its fins and as accidental bycatch - Numbers have plummeted by four-fifths over the last quarter of a century. Image by © Norbert Wu/Science Faction/Corbis

Hawksbill turtles, rated as Critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species, have begun laying their eggs on a beach in Dubai. Antonie Robertson / The National

Arabian tahr (Arabitragus jayakari) - IUCN status: Endangered - Restricted to mountainous regions of north-eastern UAE and northern Oman - Worldwide population is probably below 5,000. ANTONIE ROBERTSON / The National

Indian Ocean humpback dolphin (Sousa plumbea) - IUCN status: Endangered - Often become entangled in fishing nets - A recent census found 701 individuals, so the waters off Abu Dhabi have the world's largest single population. Roland Seitre / Minden

The semaphore gecko is one of several species we have learned a great deal about in recent years. Getty Images

The Houbara bustard is classified as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Courtesy International Fund For Houbara Conservation

Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx) - IUCN status: Vulnerable - Formerly listed as endangered, the UAE's reintroduction programme has helped to increase numbers - The wild population is about 1,200, just over half of which are UAE reintroduced individuals. Mike Young / The National

Egyptian spiny-tailed lizard (Uromastyx aegyptia) - IUCN status: Vulnerable - Found in much of the Middle East in gravelly and stony areas, but numbers have declined - Two sub-species exist in the UAE, where it is threatened by habitat loss

Green sawfish (Pristis zijsron) - IUCN status: Critically endangered - The largest sawfish, it can reach up to seven metres in length - This coastal species has declined across its range and has become extinct from some countries. AP Photo

The Arabian tahr has been categorised as an endangered species, with a global population of less than 5,000. Courtesy TDIC

Blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) - IUCN status: Near threatened - Populations have suffered because of fishing - This species was spotted this year off the UAE's east coast

The rediscovery of the Arabian Caracal in Abu Dhabi, 35 years after it was last seen in the emirate, has given conservationists hope about the species’ future.

The elusive hunting cat is just one of a number of threatened animals in the UAE which are believed to be making a comeback, thanks to conservation efforts by the Environment Agency — Abu Dhabi (EAD).

EAD is based in Abu Dhabi but carries out research across the county. To help preserve the country's animal populations, the authority can suggest legislation and areas for consideration as natural reserves. The authority monitors populations in the wild and carries out inspections to ensure environment laws are not being flouted.

But what are the UAE’s most threatened species? What is being done to protect them? And how does the agency keep track of them?

How many threatened species are there in the UAE?

From the sand to the sea, several species are endangered due to environmental pressures caused by development, fishing, pollution and even climate change. It is not known exactly how many of the country's species are threatened but the EAD takes a particular interest in several species, including the Arabian Sand Cat, Crested Porcupine and Rüppell's Fox. These three are categorised of “least concern” by conservationists generally, but they are very rare in Abu Dhabi. For example, the Crested Porcupine was even believed to be extinct in the emirate before monitoring by EAD proved they still existed in the wild. There have been very few confirmed sightings of the species, with most records from Bedouins in the early 20th century. However, in late 2017, EAD scientists found clues to their presence in footprints and quills at a site in the Al Dhafra region.

How does EAD monitor wildlife?  

By setting up cameras to watch for clues of the animals' presence in the wild. The agency uses more than 35 camera traps to monitor ecologically sensitive habitats and some newly formed protected areas. This was how the footage of the Arabian Caracal was captured in Jebel Hafeet National Park in Al Ain. "Before we started camera monitoring, we only had one or two records of Arabian Sand Cats. But since we started using camera traps, we found 17 locations in the Al Dhafra," said Pritpal Soorae, unit head for terrestrial assessment and monitoring, terrestrial and marine biodiversity at EAD. "Other things are the Rüppell's Fox, we hardly see now. We went into the corner of Saudi Arabia with the UAE, the south western corner. We put camera traps there last year and left them out for nine months. And we found quite a few Rüppell's Fox."

What do they do with this information?

Finding new populations gives conservationists hope for their future. “Once we know there is a population present we can put in more cameras and start studying their population, maybe collect faeces or do genetics [testing],” said Mr Soorae.

What is the value in genetics testing?

It can provide more information about the species and highlight conservation risks. For example, the Emirati leaf-toed gecko, Asaccus caudivolvulus, was classified as of "Least Concern", but a 2016 study involving Professor Salvador Carranza, from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology in Barcelona, found that the populations thought to come from this species actually represented three separate species, one of which was A. caudivolvulus. That species is the UAE's only endemic vertebrate — meaning that it is found here but nowhere else — and is actually thought to exist only in one area, Khor Fakkan, in Sharjah, on the Gulf of Oman coast.

Have any species been declared extinct?

Sadly, yes. The Arabian leopard is believed to be extinct in the wild in the UAE, although a breeding programme is helping to maintain numbers in captivity.

Have there been any success stories in conservation?

One of the most notable successes involved the Arabian Oryx, which was declared extinct in the wild in the early 1970s, after the last one known example was shot in 1972. Thanks to efforts begun by founding president, Sheikh Zayed, the UAE is now home to the largest population of Arabian Oryx in the world, with around 6,000 individuals, the majority of which are in Abu Dhabi. The emirate has also been at the forefront of efforts to restore the houbara bird, which is classed as a vulnerable species. Over the past 40 years, the UAE has been involved in a project to restore populations of the bird in the wild after Sheikh Zayed, the Founder of the UAE, initiated a successful breeding programme. Around 350,000 chicks have been bred since the programme’s inception. And last weekend, 50 endangered houbara birds were released into skies over the Al Ain desert as part of a conservation project to improve their numbers in the wild.