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Wadi Wurayah UAE’s First Mountain Protected Area

FUJAIRAH — Wadi Wurayah Fujairah has officially been declared the UAE’s first protected mountain area by His Highness Shaikh Hamad bin Mohammad Al Sharqi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Fujairah.

The decree comes after the completion of a successful three-year project launched in 2006 by Emirates Wildlife Society in association with WWF (EWS-WWF) and Fujairah Municipality with the support of HSBC Bank Middle East ltd, to assess the importance of Wadi Wurayah for nature conservation and to establish it as a protected area.

The wadi is a 129sqkm catchment that occupies the northern reaches of Fujairah between the towns of Masafi, Khor Fakkan and Bidiyah.

Permanent Water Resource

Due to its permanent water resource the area has been used by local communities for thousands of years and is home to rare and endangered species such as the Arabian tahr and Arabian leopard which are vital to the UAE’s national heritage.

The wadi is located within the Ecoregion 127 “Arabian Highlands and Shrublands” one of the WWF Global 200 Ecoregions regrouping the richest, rarest and most distinctive of the earth’s natural habitats.

Commenting on the landmark achievement, Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Managing Director EWS-WWF stated, “Wadi Wurayah is of considerable ecological significance allowing among the rarest species found in the UAE, the Arabian Peninsular and the world to survive this harsh climate.

“Over the past three years we have revealed the presence of 12 species of mammals, 73 species of birds, 17 species of reptiles and amphibians.”

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