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NRLD - 329840 | Oryx leucoryx

Assessment ID
329840
Taxon name
Oryx leucoryx
(Pallas, 1777)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Oryx leucoryx
(Pallas, 1777)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Mammals
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
chordata
Class
mammalia
Order
cetartiodactyla
Family
bovidae
Genus
Oryx
Species
leucoryx
Species authority
(Pallas, 1777)
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Country ISO code(s)
ARE
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Vulnerable
Abbreviated status
VU
Qualifying criteria (if given)
D1
Criteria system used
IUCN

(see Assessment details)

Assessment rationale/justification
The Arabian Oryx was reportedly once common in parts of western UAE, but declined due to uncontrolled hunting and it became Extinct in the Wild in the UAE sometime in the 1960s or early 1970s. The species has recovered as a result of intensive conservation efforts. There are now currently an estimated 1,480-1,630 mature individuals in the UAE at the four main reintroduction sites. The lower estimate would qualify listing the species as Near Threatened under criterion D1. However, these estimates may be high as a result of supplementary feeding. Assuming conservatively that 20% of the oryx would survive for ten years if the feeding ceased (as required by the Red List Guidelines) the number of mature individuals surviving would be around 300-360 (the number surviving might be higher but would probably be less than 1,000 mature individuals); therefore the Arabian Oryx is assessed as Vulnerable under criterion D1. There is no rescue effect because the nearest subpopulation in Saudi Arabia is small (c.100) and the international border is now completely fenced.
Assessment details
Year assessed
2018
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
The Arabian Oryx was reportedly common in the Manasir area of western UAE, ranging into the Rub Al Khali (Philby 1933) but declined due to uncontrolled hunting and it became Extinct in the Wild in the UAE sometime in the 1960s or early 1970s. It has since been reintroduced to several sites: the Arabian Oryx Protected Area at Umm al Zumoul in southeast Abu Dhabi; Qasr Al Sarab Protected Area, which lies adjacent to the AOPA to the west; Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve (DDCR), and Al Marmoom Conservation Area and adjacent desert in Dubai. Oryx are also present in government and private collections, some of which are extensive, and managed under a range of different conditions. The Arabian Oryx formerly occurred through most of the Arabian Peninsula, north to Kuwait and Iraq. The species' range had already contracted by the early years of the 20th century and the decline accelerated thereafter. Before 1920, oryx distribution was separated into areas over 1,000 km apart: a northern subpopulation in and around the Nafud (Saudi Arabia), and a larger southern subpopulation in the Rub Al Khali and the plains of central-southern Oman. Oryx disappeared from the north in the 1950s. In the south, their range steadily decreased due to hunting, and by the 1960s Oryx were restricted to parts of central and southern Oman. The last wild individuals were probably shot in 1972 on the Jiddat al Harasis, Oman. Arabian Oryx have been reintroduced to several sites across the Arabian Peninsula in addition to the sites in the United Arab Emirates. There is an introduced subpopulation on Hawar Island, Bahrain and large semi-managed subpopulations at several sites in Qatar, UAE and Saudi Arabia (Harrison and Bates 1991, IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group 2017c).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Terrestrial
Not_assigned
Freshwater
Not_assigned
Marine
Not_assigned
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
The species inhabits sand and gravel deserts and avoids mountains. Arabian Oryx feed at night during the summer months, resting under shady trees during the heat of the day, while in winter they feed during the daytime, sheltering from cool desert winds at night (Aspinall et al. 2005). In high ambient temperatures, their body temperature increases, excess heat being lost later by radiation during the cooler night hours. Oryx meet almost all their water needs by eating plants with high water content and by feeding at a time when water from fog and dew is at its maximum. Oryx rarely run but can walk long distances at a steady pace, covering up to 50 km in a night (Aspinall et al. 2005).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Uncontrolled hunting from motor vehicles is believed to be the principal cause of the disappearance of the oryx from the wild. Released populations and those in private collections are now safe from this threat, but the security of animals outside these sites cannot be guaranteed. Drought and overgrazing have reduced habitat quality in places and limited the choice of potential release sites. Fenced sites are also subject to the risk of density-dependent mortality especially in cases of prolonged drought: e.g. 560 oryx died in such conditions in Mahazat as Sayd reserve in west-central Saudi Arabia over the period 1999-2008 (Islam et al. 2010).
History
Hornby (1996) assessed the species Extinct in the Wild and this status is used as the backcasted assessment for the species in 1996.
Publication
Mallon, D., Hilton-Taylor, C., Allen, D., & Harding, K. (2019). UAE National Red List of Mammals: Marine and Terrestrial. A report to the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, United Arab Emirates (p. 41). IUCN Global Species Programme. https://bit.ly/2RdZCQR