| AREA |
PHYSICAL CHARACTER |
MAIN FEATURES |
Harrat al-Harrah
First national Park |
Stony desert in north |
8-10 larks breed here, large Sand Grouse numbers; Golden Eagle; Long-Legged Buzzard; Merlin; Cream-coloured Courser; little owl. Arabia's last ostriches lived here, last seen 1930. Houbara Bustard breeds here and over-winters. Sakers Falcon is passage migrant. |
At-Tubayq
Nature Reserve |
Raised sandstone platform. Very rough ground |
Nubian ibex live here. One of last sites for Arabian Ostrich. Golden Eagle; courser; Long-legged Buzzard |
| Jabal al-Jawz |
Near Tabuk. Mountains over 2,000 metres. Includes Jabal Fayhan, tallest mt. in northern Arabia. |
Only site for the Chukar. Egyptian Vulture |
Jabal Aja and
northern Hail
Managed and protected area |
Granitic mountains, sandstone hills, and semi-desert area. Remarkably green with flowering plants in spring. Pivot irrigation in some areas. |
An important site for Demoiselle Crane on migration. Egyptian Vultures; Griffon Vultures; Sand Partridge; Yellow-vented Bulbul; many raptors, impressive spring migration swifts, larks, wheatears. |
Gulf Coral Islands
Managed and protected area |
Harqus, Karan, Kurayn, Jana and Jurayd, all are low-lying coral
cays.
Arabian Gulf |
Important for large populations of breeding terns, including Swift; Lesser-crested; Bridled and White-cheeked. Also Socotra Cormorants on Kurayn. Important Gulf nesting beaches for turtles. |
| Abu Ali |
Low-lying islands and causeway forming peninsula north-east of Jubail.
Arabian Gulf
|
Many terns, including Sandwich, Lesser-crested, White-cheeked, and Saunder's Little Tern. Wintering Great Cormorants. Breeding Kentish Plovers. Resting site for migrants. |
| Al-Wajh Bank |
Islands off Al-Wajh and Umm Lajj.
Red Sea
|
Breeding Sooty Falcons, Crab Plovers, Sooty Gulls, White-eyed Gull. Also terns, Ospreys, turtles and dugongs. |
Al Ha'ir
Special Nature Reserve |
Man-made river of treated effluent near Riyadh - in desert and rocky landscape. |
Major bird sanctuary. Important species include Marbled Teal, Imperial Eagle, Lesser Kestrel, Night Heron, Little Egret, Grey Heron, Ferruginous Duck and Black-winged Stilt. |
Hima al-Fiqrah
Traditional protected area |
Accessible mountain west of Al-Madinah. Juniper forest. Lichens and ferns. Bee-keeping area. |
Leopard, wolf and ibex occur here. Impressive wildlife area. Long-legged Buzzard, Bonnelli's Eagle, Pallid Swift and many other species. |
| Madinat Yanbu al-Sinaiyah |
Mangrove-fringed coastline south of Yanbu al-Bahr. |
Typical mangrove fauna. Birds include Little Bittern, Night Heron, Osprey, Terek Sandpiper, Goliath Heron and Crab Plover. |
Hawtat Bani Tamim
Special Nature Reserve - 90,000 hectares. |
Ibex reserve established by NCWCD 200kms south of Riyadh. Part of Tuwaiq escarpment. Camping and wildlife viewing encouraged. |
Houbara Bustard occ. visitor. Griffon Vulture, Sand Partridge, Yellow-vented bulbul, Hypocolius, Upchers warbler, Desert Lesser Whitethroat and others. |
Mahazat as-Sayd
Special Nature Reserve |
Fenced, protected area established by NCWCD 175 km NE of Taif. Dramatic results achieved by keeping out camels, goats, allowing natural vegetation to flourish. |
Sand cat, Rueppell's fox, reintroduced oryx, gazelle, Houbara Bustard. Many breeding desert larks. 115 birds recorded here. Lesser Kestrel, Corncrake, Egyptian Vulture, Griffon Vulture and many other birds. |
| Taif Escarpment |
Stretching for 40 kms and roughly 10 kms wide a steep granitic rock face rising 500 m above the Tihama plain and rising to 2600 m at Jabal Daka and Jabal Barad: the 'Cold Mountain'. |
Includes only place in Arabia where African and Mediterranean junipers overlap. Birds include Philby's Grouse and Tristram's Grackle. |
Wadi Turabah and
Jabal Ibrahim |
150 kms south-east of Taif. Granitic mountain rising 1000 m above surrounding hills. Woodland in places. Junipiper, fig, ziziphus and acacia trees. |
Hamadryas baboons. Bird fauna includes some African species as well as typically SW Arabian forms. |
Umm al-Qamari
Special Nature Reserve |
Fossil coral islands SW of Qunfudah. |
White-eyed Gulls. Cattle Egret, Osprey, pelican and others. |
Raydah Escarpment
Special Nature Reserve |
Approx 15 kms west of Abha. Precipitous rock face and steep slope. Juniperus excelsa forest. Moist and often in clouds. |
Noted in Important Bird Areas in the Middle East (IBAME)as : "Possibly the most compact site in Saudi Arabia for south-west Arabian endemic, and other woodland species." Hamadryas baboon, caracal lynx and wolf. |
Malaki Dam
Jizan |
Artificial lake in SW Saudi Arabia. |
"...one of the highest diversities of breeding birds in Arabia" (IBAME)with various Afro-tropical species." |
| Wadi Jawwah |
Runs through foothills east of Abu Arish. |
"The wadi has one of the highest diversities of breeding species known in the country". (IBAME). |
Farasan Islands
Special Nature Reserve |
Lying approximately 40kms out from Jizan. Group of islands. |
Farasan gazelle. Seabird breeding colonies. Turtles. Fish and shrimp breeding. Mangrove areas. |