Poaching Arabian oryx in the Arabia Peninsula has been ongoing for centuries for their plentiful meat, beautiful horns, and unique hides. Oryxes were also captured live and sold to private collections. It is thought that their populations have been declining since the early 1900s.
As motorized vehicles and more advanced hunting methods became popular in the 1940s and 1950s, the Arabian oryx population was under serious threat.
By the 1960s, the incredibly isolated populations of Arabian oryxes that remained had vanished and the only remaining population was in a small region of the Ar-Rub' al-Khali Desert.
The first oryx reintroduction occurred in 1982 in Oman with individuals sent from the breeding program at the San Diego Zoo. They were acclimated to the environment in large pens before their release.
57 Arabian oryx were released into Saudi Arabia in 1986 that were bred at the farm of the previous King of Saudi Arabia, which is now a wildlife research center. New individuals were added through 1996 after which time all new oryx at the center were born there.
Since then, Arabian oryx reintroductions have also occurred in the United Arab Emirates and Jordan and captive breeding efforts continue to occur in several countries.
As oryx populations grew, so did the dangers of poaching. Between 1996 and 1999, the population of Arabian oryx in Oman dropped from 400 to 100 individuals. Nearly 40 oryx were moved into protected enclosures.
Overgrazing by domestic livestock also presents a threat to the Arabian oryx by depleting their already sparse vegetation. As land is degraded by overgrazing, it challenges existing populations and makes land unsuitable for future reintroductions.
Prolonged drought in oryx habitat has challenged populations for decades and made regions that used to be native oryx habitat inhabitable. Between 1999 and 2008, 560 Arabian oryx died as a result of extreme drought.
As of 2011, Arabian oryxes are the first species to be downgraded from extinct in the wild to vulnerable (IUCN)
It is estimated that there are roughly 1,220 Arabian oryx living in the wild, most of which live in protected areas. There are roughly 6,000 captive individuals in institutions all around the world
Legislation protecting the Arabian oryx is in place in all countries where they have been reintroduced with almost all populations living in protected areas
Zoos and other wildlife institutions have helped make saving the Arabian oryx from extinction possible. The best way to support Arabian oryx breeding programs is to support the institutions that are doing the work. You can do that by making a donation or visit that zoo! The non-profit Phoenix Zoo still has an on-going breeding program for Arabian oryxes and is an amazing place to spend the day.
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