Not only FIFA World Cup 2022, Qatar celebrates nature, too
THE Qatar peninsula projects northwards along the western coast of the Arabian mainland into the Arabian Gulf (more commonly known as the Persian Gulf). Its most striking features are the sand dunes of the south, the low-lying coastlines with its extensive salt flats and dramatic leonine formations in Western Qatar brought about by the weathering of limestones and mesas of harder rock that defy wind erosion and leave behind vast mushroom-shaped monuments.
The dunes march relentlessly down to Khor al Udaid, known as the Inland Sea, an irregularly shaped tidal lagoon separating Qatar from Saudi Arabia. The country includes a few islands and its sea has provided Qatar with its sources of livelihood — fish, pearls and more lately, its seabed hydrocarbons. Other features of its coastlines are salty mudflats and more complex sea swamps referred to as “wetlands” forming part of the littoral area and a haven for marine and bird life.
Arabian white oryz
Qatar is known for its Arabian white oryx, famous for its two annulated horns, which gave rise to the legend of the unicorn. Qatar Airways carries the oryx in its modern fleet as a symbol of its national airline.
The Arabian oryx in Qatar has an important and interesting history. There was a time when a large number of A-oryx were found in Qatar but its population dwindled due to poaching and loss of habitat. During the 1960s, it pioneered and had a major role at achieving the goal to save the Arabian white oryx from extinction. A new conservation special section was set up in the country’s Department of Environment which made use of the most practical and up-to-date scientific data and modern methods in the management, husbandry, nutrition, feeding habits and breeding trends of oryx. Thereafter, their number markedly increased when released into their original open ranges. Reintroduction was done in Arab countries, e.g., Saudi Arabia, Oman, United Arab Emirates, by breeding both in captivity and in nature.
Other land mammals in Qatar are foxes, hedgehogs, hares and wild cats. Herds of camels, sheep and goats are common sights, while dolphins and dugong are sometimes seen in Qatari waters.
Besides being home to birds year round, Qatar provides a vital resting location during autumn and winter flights of migratory birds. Coastal birds are known to be attractions in golf courses with wide variety of trees and shrubs for nesting. Although re-introduced from Africa, ostrich is also counted among Qatar’s wildlife.
The osprey, a large fish-eating raptor resembling an eagle, is well represented in Qatar. They frequent coastal communities as well as open coastlines. The Inland Sea attracts large populations of long-legged, pink flamingos.
Qatar has extensive marine life, too. Demersal fish inhabiting the seabed number 150 species, most of them commercially valuable. They include groupers, snappers, barracudas, shrimps, lobsters, squid and cuttlefish. Pelagic species include sharks and mackerel, tuna, herring and sardines.
Marine life
The Gulf waters are among some of the most saline in the world; the water is not clear enough for massive coral growth. However, a number of corals do grow in the Gulf and Qatar has a number of small reefs. Most are found offshore around the islands.
Plant growth is very much affected by high temperature, low rainfall and high salinity of groundwater. Bedouins are known to divide plants into those that grow and flower after rain, and perennial plants and trees that survive the heat of summer.
The most prolifically growing tree is the acacia, a salt-tolerant tree with small leaves to reduce evaporation and sharp thorns as protection against grazing animals.
Qatar is home to mangrove ecosystems with the largest eight mangrove forests located in the east coast of the country. Mangrove trees survive in inter-tidal areas, an interaction zone between land and sea. The oldest and largest mangroves can be found at Al Dhakira and Al-Khor. The last few years of the last century saw Qatar engaged in mangrove replanting around the country.
Among mangrove species able to survive the very high levels of salinity and extreme climatic conditions is the Avicennia marina, which spreads a cable-like network of roots under the soil creating an extensive system that sprouts stilt-like vertical roots out of the mud. Experts say these respiratory roots absorb oxygen during low tide while excess salt is filtered out through lenticels or salt
glands around their surfaces. There are those who express the view that some mangrove types have adapted to extreme environments for any plant by excreting the salt as crystals on their dark green leathery leaves while their aerial roots protrude above the sea-saturated silt to enable the trees to breathe.
Mangroves conservation
By creating a space of green that highly contrasts with the surrounding barren landscapes, mangroves in Qatar are the source of many ecological benefits, among which are: 1) They bring many ecosystem services to human societies by stabilizing and protecting coastlines, acting as strategic greenbelts and buffer areas against diverse environmental threats as well as reducing the negative effects of greenhouse gases; 2) They are shelters and breeding areas for many commercial species; 3) They have many uses for daily life — food, firewood, charcoal, construction or farming. Of late, mangroves as part of the cultural environment have become very important for tourism purposes, recreational activities and spiritual uplift.
Mangroves by the desert of Qatar huddling the shore is an exhilarating experience. A myriad of organisms inhabit these inter-tidal ecosystems. Fish, jellyfish, crabs and shrimps comb the folds and crevices created by its branches, standing roots and falling leaves. In times past, fisherfolk used the branches as roofing material. Smaller boats that navigated the coast were also made of these branches. Leaves were picked, pounded and applied to wounds and swelling, and the roots were ingested for their vaunted aphrodisiac qualities. Camels even use their leaves as an after-dinner digestive. Most important though is how mangroves protect the thin sliver of land that Qatar is from wind and wave erosion. Right now, environmental studies point at mangroves’ role in an integrated approach to disaster risk reduction.
Qatar’s concern and interest in mangroves were at first mainly concentrated in the Al Khor-Al Dhakira area, Wakrah and Um Al Hul. Later, Ras Laffan Industrial City launched its mangrove conservation program with its own nursery producing seedlings planted in designated sites, flourishing despite the harsh, windy conditions of the Qatari winter.
From mangroves awareness campaigns to mangrove trash clean-up operations to mangrove plantation schemes to operation mangrove rehabilitation (conducted by Shell Philippines), Qatar has indeed gone a long way in mangroves conservation. Qatar celebrates Mangroves Day featuring mangroves exploration via Mangroves Nature Kayak Tours, Eid Festival Paddling in Mangroves and Eco-Adventure on Purple Island, among others. Young people from other countries come and enjoy mangroves-related sports activities and, in the process, become aware that mangroves have a role in climate action for disaster risk reduction.
Qatar, a most rapidly developing country, is the richest in the world in terms of gross domestic product. Its high-income economy has enabled the country to make very significant developmental strides over the past few decades. Be that as it may, Qatar takes pride in holding on to the nation’s traditional values while embracing advances in education, science and technology, as well as the wonderful world of sports competition. The fine balance has made Qatar a world leader, a country respected for its modernity while, at the same time, conscious of its role at conservation of natural resources for sustainable development.
A renaissance, indeed, in the Arab world.
During the incumbency of the author as ambassador to Qatar, the Philippine Embassy, through the Filipino community, with the cooperation of the municipalities of Al Khor and Al Dhakira, conducted a coastal cleanup and planting of mangrove saplings activity in the Al Dhakira/Al Khor corniche in February 2002 with Qatargas as sponsor.