Dugong Dugong dugon Status vulnerable to extinction
at a
global scale
Dugong
(Dugong dugon)
and its closest living aquatic
relative the manatee are more closely related to elephants than to
whales or
dolphins and belong to the order Sirenia in the mammal family Dugongidae.
Dugong can grow to
over three meters in length and
weigh in
excess of 400 kilos, feeding exclusively on seagrass, cropping the
leaves and
roots, a feeding habit that has earned them the nickname of “sea-cow”.
Dugong do not
reaching sexual maturity until well
over ten years
of age and have a very low
reproductive rate - only one calf every 3 or more years - gestation
period of 12-14 months. Young suckle from the
mother for over
18 months and will remain with her for many years.
Dugongs have a fluked
tail which is used for
swimming, have no dorsal fin, and
use their front flippers for balance and turning. Their heads are round
with
small eyes and a have a large dropping snout or muzzle. Both male and
female
have tusks but these are only well developed in males. They have to
surface to breathe
every five minutes or so since unlike dolphins and whales, they are not
able to
hold their breath for long periods of time.
Between August and
early April each year large herds numbering several
hundred congregate in the water northwest of Hawar and southeast of Bahrain.
This
herding activity peeks in late autumn and involves mostly mothers and
calves. Efforts
to photograph them underwater has been frustrated by relatively poor
visibility
as they stir up the seabed whilst feeding, however local
diver/photographer
Colin Cunningham was able to obtain some
interesting pictures while
diving with
a small herd in 2003 (area 3).
Tony Preen
photographed (included in his report)
from the air 674 Dugong
in two herds less than a km apart, east of Mu’tarid (area 1 on the map)
in
1986, over 250 were photographed by
Ian Bell GBRA in the same area in 2000. Numbers recorded since have
varied from
year to year but generally over five hundred individuals are to be
found in
the area outlined blue on the map with the largest concentrations in
areas 1 and 2 with areas 3 and 4 containing smaller numbers. Given that
as a
species dugong have such a low productivity rate and that all
the herds that continue to be regularly observed around Hawar consist
largely of
mothers with calves, one
has to assume therefore that the makeup the herds, or individuals
present,
changes each year. In 2003 a dead calf thought still borne was found on
the
shore line of Hawar, unfortunately the carcass was lost on the tide
before an attempt
to recover it could be made. Although it
has never been proven conclusively that dugong breed around Hawar there
is however considerable evidence to suggest that the area is a least an
important nursery area. It is fair to state that
something interesting is going on. The herding behavior of Dugong in
the waters of Hawar is a feature of species behavior not recorded
elsewhere in the Arabian Gulf., a fact confirmed recently by the UAE
environmental agency 'ERWDA' who conducted aerial surveys of the UAE
waters in summer 2000 and winter 2001 (al-Ghais & Das 2001) and
report that no
large groups were sighted during the survey a fact that is consistent
with the survey findings of Tony Preen in his 1989 report.
Whereas in Bahrain to see single individuals is unusual not the norm.
The dugong of Hawar are easy
to find - ask the BBC NATURAL HISTORY FILM UNIT - they had a few hours
to
spare while filming the Socotra Cormorant on Hawar, so to add to
their resources they filmed a small
herd
from both the air (helicopter) and on the surface from my boat. Time
spent looking for them other than journey time, about half an hour. We
even snorkeled
with them for fun but water clarity made filming them in
that environment impracticable without specialist equipment however
watch this space. To see
the BBC Hawar footage - Dugong and Socotra Cormorants watch out
for the
new BBC series "Planet Earth" - it airs some time early in 2006.
Preen, A., (1989) “Dugongs
Vol. 1 The
Status
and Conservation of Dugong
in the Arabian Region. MEPA - Ministry
of Defence and Aviation Kingdom of Saudi Arabia - 1986 MEPA survey)
Bell
I., (2001) “A
Preliminary Assessment of The Turtle
And Dugong Populations of Bahrain
and The Hawar
Islands
”.
Setting the
Record Straight
I think it is safe to
state that the existence of large
numbers of Dugong in the waters of Hawar is a scientifically proven
fact ... so you might be surprised to know that when the
Islands of Hawar were nominated by the Kingdom of Bahrain for
inclusion on the World Heritage list of Natural Sites, during the
process of nomination, the IUCN representative who visited
the islands included the following statement in his report ???
IUCN Hawar evaluation
Summary of natural values
-- Up to 200 dugongs have been recorded in the area, 400 to 500
individuals are
said to exist locally in
three to four herds, although this is yet to be
confirmed by systematic research.
I
for one would very much like to
hear from the IUCN as to the justification for the inclusion of the
words
"Up to' 'have been' and 'are said to exist'
in
their report. They had access to the same information, are 674 more
than or less than 200. All the observational data since Preen including
film and photographs provided by the Kingdom of Bahrain was this just
our imagination?
For those elsewhere in the world involved in the WHS nomination process
ask of the
IUCN how many experts they have on their list - then ask them how many
they
actually use in the field evaluation process for World Heritage sites
-- Don't
be surprised if you find out its only a handful and always the same
people
- I ask of the IUCN only that they live up to peoples
expectations of
them as a WORLD BODY. We welcome constructive criticism when
based on fact but the IUCN report on Hawar contained so many errors in
all aspect that I wonder where they got the information from in the
first place.
--- on birds for example (IUCN Hawar evaluation)
-- of the 192 species
of birds
recorded in Bahrain, 132 are
present on the Hawar Islands. Hello
Mr. IUCN have you not heard of checklists - the Bahrain list has been
on the web since 1996 it contains 318 species, --- example (IUCN
Hawar evaluation) Other important species present in the nominated site
are osprey (with 20% of the
world population breeding in the site) I beg to differ Mr. IUCN but 20% of the
world population of Ospey?
example
(IUCN Hawar evaluation) Other important
species present in the nominated site are Lesser Kestrel Wrong
again Mr. IUCN, with only three sighting records for Hawar the species
does not feature on any local priority lists. This is but the tip of
the iceberg, would you trust a report that contained such obvious
errors particularly when documenting such a well published facet of the
Islands wildlife. Well the IUCN did, when they delivered
their opinion in China they quoted directly from the report even though
the erroneous reporting had being pointed out to them and additional
supporting evidence had been supplied. If you work for the IUCN or are involved with
them or like me
actually care about conservation rather than playing politics then read
the
official more diplomatic assessment of their report on Hawar by
clicking here.
I suggest you even research the facts yourself, they are freely
available, no mysteries here.
Can the IUCN explain the herding behavior of the
dugong
about Hawar, answer no can anybody provide an answer no, but it
happens, year in, year out and it happens nowhere else in the Gulf. So
why did they in the IUCN report dismiss the sites significance. ( IUCN Hawar evaluation) However, this population is not
exclusively present in the nominated site as they move along the waters
of the Gulf of Salwa.This is a
statement
of fact Mr. IUCN just how did the assessor arrive at this conclusion. It's about time someone found out if
Hawar is a breeding ground,
possibly even for the entire Gulf population, and found out quickly
before we
loose this site? We managed to get a deferred decision on the Hawar
application
BUT we originally had gone to China
with a rejected site on our hands, a fact that developers here in Bahrain
constantly remind us.
These vultures are waiting in the wings - do you want to see yet
another Palm Island or Map of the world development - it will happen
unless someone acts quickly.
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