Nubian Ibex Research Articles

Coagulation parameters of captive mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella Pallas, 1766; Bovidae: Antilopinae) and Nubian ibex (Capra ibex nubiana Cuvier, 1825; Bovidae: Caprinae)

The coagulation profiles of 36 mountain gazelles (Gazella gazella) aged 2–6 years, and 17 Nubian ibexes (Capra ibex nubiana), aged 1–4 years, were evaluated and compared. The following parameters were determined in both species: prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), fibrinogen concentration (FIB), and clotting factors VII, VIII:C, IX, X, and XI. Thrombin clotting time (TCT) was also determined in mountain gazelles. The results indicated significant interspecies differences in most parameters, with lower PT, aPTT, and factors VII, IX, and XI and higher factor XIII:C activities in the Nubian ibex than the mountain gazelle. Gender seemed to have a limited influence on these parameters within each species. Both species had higher plasma FIB and factor VIII:C activity relative to humans. This study is the first record of coagulation variables in these two species of wild Arabian desert ruminants.

Are elevated δ15N values in herbivores in hot and arid environments caused by diet or animal physiology?

Summary 1. Mammalian species from hot and arid environments often have elevated nitrogen isotope values compared to animals from similar trophic levels in more temperate climates. This pattern has most often been explained as the result of a physiological response by animals to heat and water stress. However, a positive correlation between rainfall and the δ15N values of plants and herbivorous mammalian species suggests that diet may be responsible. 2. This study uses the horn keratin of desert‐adapted bovids (Dorcas gazelle and Nubian ibex) to test whether the δ15N values of herbivore body tissues are determined by heat and water stress or by the isotopic composition of their diet. The δ15N values of horn keratin are compared against several climatic factors that affect heat and water stress to determine if a relationship exists. In addition, the range of δ15N values measured in desert vegetation is used to evaluate the contribution of the diet to the isotopic values of bovid body tissue. 3. The δ15N values of desert bovid horn keratin were correlated against individual climatic factors that induce water stress and were not found to be significant. When climatic factors were combined, a significant positive correlation was found between the δ15N values of Dorcas gazelles and temperature, humidity, and rainfall. This observation contradicts the physiological stress hypothesis that predicts a negative correlation between rainfall and humidity and δ15N values. Instead, this correlation is likely attributable to denitrification processes in the soil that directly affect the isotopic values of the plants. Values for δ15N of horn keratin fall within the range predicted by discrimination between diet and consumer (Δ = 4·1‰) which supports the diet hypothesis. 4. The results suggest that the isotopic composition of the diet is the dominant factor determining the δ15N values of herbivore body tissue.

Habitat Choices of Nubian Ibex (Capra Nubiana) Evaluated with A habitat Suitability Modeling and Isodar Analysis

The value of a habitat for a forager may be affected by habitat characteristics related to food availability, energetic costs of foraging, predation costs, and the foraging opportunities available in other habitats. Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) are stout, sure-footed social wild goats that inhabit arid landscapes with steep terrain. We investigated their habitat selection behavior using indicators to (1) develop a habitat suitability index (HSI) model that would account for the variation in the activity densities of Nubian ibex across habitat types and seasons, (2) apply the isodar technique to look for density-dependent habitat selection behavior in Nubian ibex, and (3) investigate the proximate environmental factors that correlate to relative activity densities of Nubian ibex. We determined relative densities of the ibex by recording sightings of animals along standard walking transects. We incorporated the habitat variables that had greatest influence on the densities of Nubian ibex into habitat suitability index models for both spring and summer seasons.The HSI models revealed that Nubian ibex most preferred open cliff face habitat offering safety during the spring season, but their habitat preference shifted towards an area with watered gardens ("grave area habitat") during the summer season. Significant isodars were only obtained for the summer season comparisons between grave area versus cliff face, and between grave area versus plateau habitats. The slopes of the isodars suggest that the grave area habitat is 10.5 and 7.6 times more productive than the plateau and the cliff face habitats, respectively. Our results suggest that the relative abundances and habitat preferences of Nubian ibex varied with the seasonal availability of habitat resources, extent of predation risks, and human nuisance disturbances across the landscape. We recommend that wildlife managers dealing with the conservation and protection of the endangered Nubian ibex should focus on the various ecological and anthropogenic factors governing the habitat selection and preferences.

The influence of landscape characteristics and anthropogenic factors on waterhole use by Vulnerable Nubian ibex Capra nubiana

Waterholes are a limited resource vital to the conservation of biodiversity in arid ecosystems. Given the rarity of natural waterholes in deserts and their presumed importance to Vulnerable Nubian ibex Capra nubiana, we examined the influence of landscape characteristics and anthropogenic factors on ibex presence at waterholes. Our results suggest that anthropogenic factors play a larger role in waterhole use than landscape characteristics. Ibex used waterholes regardless of maximum waterhole diameter, maximum water depth or width of the valley in which the waterhole was located. However, ibex were significantly more likely to use waterholes that were far from human dwellings and that had not been visited recently by feral donkeys. Waterhole and ibex conservation will require working with local communities to protect, and ensure sustainable use of, this vital resource.

The Walia ibex is a valuable and distinct conservation unit

In addition to the usual suite of human-related threats to persistence (habitat destruction and fragmentation, competition and exotic diseases from livestock, poaching), the conservation of endangered wild sheep and goats (Ovis and Capra spp.) is hampered by a limited knowledge of their taxonomy. Taxonomic knowledge is important because it allows the preservation of local adaptations, avoidance of hybridization and, for reintroductions, the re-establishment of the right species in the right places. The taxonomy of wild sheep and goats, especially in Africa and Asia, is complicated by intergradation and hybridization of taxa, limited data owing to poor accessibility to much of their remote mountainous habitat, and contrasting results of molecular and morphological studies. Of all wild goats, the least known and the most endangered is the Walia ibex Capra walie, restricted since historic times to the Simen Mountains of Ethiopia, where a current population of about 450 uses 95 km of rugged high-elevation habitat. Although these ibex look very different from Nubian ibex Capra nubiana found in deserts around the Red Sea, they are likely related to them, and their status as a distinct species has been questioned. Gebremedhin et al. (2009) used DNA extracted from fecal samples and information on the physical and climatic characteristics of habitat used by both Walia and Nubian ibex to conclude that there are considerable genetic and substantial ecological differences between these taxa. Those differences justify the treatment of Walia ibex as a separate and valuable conservation and taxonomic unit. In other words, Walia ibex are a ‘good species.’ Unlike the desertadapted Nubian ibex, the Walia ibex lives in a cold, highelevation mountainous environment with substantial precipitation. Even though the two groups probably diverged less than a million year ago, they are now very different. As the authors point out, the estimated time since these two ibex became separated is likely three times as long as the apparent divergence time between polar and brown bears (Ursus maritimus and Ursus arctos). Clearly, morphological differences and ecological adaptations are not necessarily a simple function of time or of genetic divergence: this is an extremely important point for both ecology and conservation. The main key to taxonomic divergence and therefore to speciation is not time, but differences in local selective pressures. Those different selective pressures lead to different adaptations, and preserving local adaptations must be a major goal of conservation. That means that we cannot simply quantify genetic differences along some chunk of DNA and always expect those differences to closely match either ecological specialization or conservation value. Both taxonomy and conservation require a holistic approach, considering genetics, morphology, ecology and, above all, evidence of local adaptation. The key point here is not whether Walia ibex either looks different from Nubian ibex or whether the Fst between the two is large or small – the point is that Walia ibex evolved adaptations to the highlands of Ethiopia and Nubian ibex are adapted to the desert! Pretending that weak genetic differentiation is relevant to conservation in this case is like arguing that polar and brown bears are not different. Importantly, the research by Gebremedhin and colleagues also identifies potential suitable habitat for Walia ibex outside its present range. These areas are possible candidates for introduction or reintroduction. Unfortunately, there is currently no information available about the former distribution of Walia ibex outside the Simen Mountains, and the study also concluded that this species’ decline may have been ongoing for a very long time. Knowledge about potential habitat, however, is very valuable for the conservation of this species, as the establishment of a separate population may serve as an insurance policy against any catastrophe that may affect the Simen population. On the other hand, habitat analyses cannot by themselves identify all threats to a population, and before any introduction or reintroduction is attempted, information is required about competition from livestock, risks of poaching and other possible threats that may be faced by a new population. Those considerations are particularly important for a species that is already at risk because of low numbers, very small distribution and, as Gebremedhin and colleagues report, low genetic variability. Inevitably, any newly established population would have less genetic variability lower than the source. However, because the study found that

Uniting ecological and genetic data for the conservation of wild ibex

There are few taxa more endangered than the Ethiopian Walia ibex. This wild mountain goat inhabits the Simen Mountains of Ethiopia and is known for its enormous backwards curving horns that exceed a meter in length on some males. Historically, hunting and habitat degradation endangered this ibex’s persistence. Now this national symbol of Ethiopia is threatened by the small population dynamics of living in a very restricted patch of remaining habitat. In order to develop the best conservation plans and justify current conservation measures it is important to understand if the Walia ibex is a valid species or if it is better considered a subspecies or ecotype of Capra ibex or Capra nubiana. Often molecular genetic tools alone are used for this type of assessment, but in this issue of Animal Conservation Gebremedhin et al. (2009) combine bioclimatic niche modeling and phylogenetic analysis to assess the species and conservation status of the Walia ibex. Frequently the first step in providing protection for a species is determining that the taxonomic unit that we are interested in conserving is significantly unique from more common taxa. Under the US Endangered Species Act this falls under the task of evaluating if a species represents a ‘Distinct Population Segment.’ One key to being considered a Distinct Population Segment is in the evaluation of the ‘discreteness’ of the population segment in relation to the remainder of the species to which it belongs. This according to Federal policy can occur if the taxon is markedly separated from other populations as a ‘consequence of physical, physiological, ecological or behavioral factors.’ The US policy further goes on to state: ‘Quantitative measures of genetic or morphological discontinuity may provide evidence of this separation.’ Partially due to this type of legal language, and partially due to the boom in new technologies, there has been an avalanche of cases where the distinctness of a taxon has been debated based solely on molecular genetics. Many have criticized the over-dependence of assessing taxa discreteness based on molecular data alone (e.g. Crandall et al., 2000; Pearman, 2001). In this study, Gebremedhin and colleagues heed this admonishment and evaluate conservation status not only with a suite of molecular markers, but with the added approach of bioclimatic niche modeling. Using mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence data Gebremedhin et al. (2009) found that there is support for a Walia ibex Capra walie and Nubian ibex C. nubiana clade separate from other ibex clades. This joint clade deviated from the Capra sibirica group, which now inhabits the central Asian deserts, c. 6 million years ago. The authors also present data that the divergence between the Walia and Nubian ibex occurred around 0.8 million years ago, but given that this date is based on an unsupported node, more sequence data should be collected before value is placed on this claim. With the genetic data alone we might be left debating whether the Walia ibex should be lumped with the Nubian ibex (see Fig. 1). Fortunately, Gebremedhin et al. (2009) also examine the geographic range of Walia and Nubian ibex in light of six bioclimatic variables and two topographic variables. Using a boosted regression tree approach they show that altitude, mean temperature of the coldest month, and precipitation of the warmest quarter were best correlated with the species distributions demonstrating the strong niche separation between the two species. Walia ibex select high altitudes in relatively wet environments with extreme temperatures; while Nubian ibex select low altitudes. Thus, the combination of phylogenetic data and bioclimatic data show the different niches that these ibex select for and support their discreteness. What we can hope for now is for someone to fundGebremedhin and colleagues to further their studies to find the genes under selection that drive these habitat preferences and further evaluate the founding of additional populations to help ensure Walia ibex persistence. While showing their discreteness will be helpful for the conservation of the Walia ibex, other data presented in this study does not foretell good news for this flagship species. The authors use microsatellite data on Walia ibex to make demographic inferences. They showed a strong past decline

Combining genetic and ecological data to assess the conservation status of the endangered Ethiopian walia ibex

AbstractKnowledge about the phylogenetic history, genetic variation and ecological requirements of a species is important for its conservation and management. Unfortunately, for many species this information is lacking. Here we use multiple approaches (phylogenetics, population genetics and ecological modelling) to evaluate the evolutionary history and conservation status of Capra walie, an endangered flagship species of wild goat endemic to Ethiopia. The analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome b and Y‐chromosome DNA sequences suggests that C. walie forms a monophyletic clade with Capra nubiana, but potentially has been isolated for up to 0.8 million years from this closely related species. Microsatellite DNA analyses show that C. walie has very low genetic variation (mean heterozygosity=0.35) compared with other endangered mammals. This reduced variation likely derives from a prolonged demographic decline and small effective population size. Ecological niche modelling using the bioclimatic features of habitats occupied by C. walie, suggests ecological differences between C. walie and C. nubiana, and identifies the areas most suitable for future reintroductions of C. walie. The genetic and bioclimatic data suggest that C. walie is distinct and requires immediate conservation actions including genetic monitoring and reintroductions to establish independent populations. This study illustrates how combining noninvasive sampling along with genetic and ecological (bioclimatic) approaches can help assess conservation status of poorly known species.

Arabian Leopard, Panthera pardus nimr, status and habitat assessment in northwest Dhofar, Oman

The Arabian Leopard Panthera pardus nimr is considered Critically Endangered by the IUCN and published information about this subspecies is scarce. We assessed the status of the species on the border of one of the most important remnants of its current range, the Dhofar mountain range. In this border area, the relative abundance of leopards (0.067 scats per kilometre) was found to be seven times lower than that reported from prime habitat areas in Dhofar. This result suggests that the leopard occurs in this border area in low numbers or uses it only intermittently. This is compatible with expected sub-optimal conditions found along the borders of the species’ ranges. Furthermore, herders have reported that leopards used to be encountered more frequently in earlier times, which is also supportive evidence of higher vulnerability of this big cat along the edge of its distribution area. However, the habitat of the study area was found to be in relatively good condition, harbouring the leopard’s main prey species and a number of regionally threatened large mammalian fauna, including the Nubian Ibex Capra nubiana, Arabian Gazelle Gazella gazella, Rock Hyrax Procavia capensis, Striped Hyaena Hyaena hyaena sultana, Caracal Caracal caracal schmitzi and Arabian Wolf Canis lupus arabs. Causes of the leopard decline in the area remain unclear, but given the availability of prey it is possible that human interference may have led to the retraction of the leopard’s range.

Fecal testosterone is elevated in high ranking female ibexes (Capra nubiana) and associated with increased aggression and a preponderance of male offspring

We monitored fecal testosterone and progesterone levels in 26 adult ibexes (17 males, 9 females) in a captive herd Nubian ibex held on 250 ha tract to test if testosterone is associated with dominance. The ibexes were observed over a 20-month period, and including two mating seasons, during which time we collected fecal samples twice during early gestation and postpartum intervals and once during lactation and pre-rut season intervals. The social hierarchy was linear with age in adult males and nearly linear in adult females. High ranking males were in solitude, but females were aggregated with the kids in the presence of a dominant female. The testosterone concentration in the males in the pre-rut (211+/-12 ng/g; N=13; dominant male 296 ng/g) was significant higher than other seasons (P<0.05). High testosterone in dominant male at pre-rut was associated with a decrease in confrontations. The individuals with the highest average testosterone concentrations were the dominant male and female (166+/-82 ng/g; 130+/-32 ng/g, N=6, respectively). In females, testosterone was highest in during the post-partum interval and was associated with an increase in aggression. The three highest fertile ranking females had higher testosterone (119+/-14 ng/g vs. 92+/-18 ng/g, P<0.05) than the four subordinate females. The sex ratio of the offspring was 8M/3F for the three older females and 5M/7F for the younger females. In early gestation period, females with only male fetuses had higher testosterone than other gravidities (119+/-14 ng/g, N=6 vs. 91+/-18 ng/g, N=7, P<0.01). Progesterone was significantly higher in the eight multiparous pregnancies than in those with the five singletons (210+/-19 ng/g vs. 186+/-12 ng/g, P<0.02). We conclude that high testosterone in females is associated with an increase in aggressive confrontations in early- and mid-lactation. In contrast, increased testosterone during pre-rut in males is associated with fewer confrontations. In addition, the data support the hypothesis that higher ranking, older dimorphic female ungulates have higher testosterone concentrations and have more male births than subordinate females.

Dynamic social system in Nubian ibex: can a second mating season develop in response to arid climate?

AbstractWe studied a population of Nubian ibex Capra ibex nubiana in the eastern extreme of its range, the hyper‐arid central desert of the Sultanate of Oman. Long‐term data were collected from January 1983 to December 1997 by direct observation, as well as VHF telemetry on 12 animals (eight from 1987 to 1990; four from 1994 to 1996). We recorded 884 sightings: 40.4% of single animals and 59.6% of groups. Although no significant monthly variation of group size (Jarman's Typical Group Size) was found, there were distinct peaks in March (4.0 ind. group−1) and September (5.1 ind. group−1). Groups of males and females formed especially in March and November, and female–kid groups in February and July–August. Our data may suggest two mating periods: the first one in autumn (similar to the rut of ibex in temperate mountain areas), with kids born in spring/early summer, after winter–spring rainfall, and the second one in spring, with kids born in late summer/autumn, before winter–spring rainfalls. We suggest that the second rutting period may have evolved as a micro‐evolutionary process, with the local population adapting to hyper‐arid environment constraints. The spring mating season may favour only females in prime conditions, who can afford a pregnancy in the local severe summers and will deliver kids when plant greening begins, in the autumn, whereas the autumn (original) mating season may be afforded by any female, but kids will be born in an unfavourable period, before the summer drought.

IBEX-ASSOCIATED MALIGNANT CATARRHAL FEVER IN A BONGO ANTELOPE (TRAGELAPHUS EURYCEROS)

A 4-yr-old male bongo antelope (Tragelaphus euryceros) died after an acute clinical course involving a febrile illness, anorexia, lethargy, minor oculonasal discharge, and diarrhea. Histologic lesions were compatible with malignant catarrhal fever (MCF). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) revealed an amplified region of a herpesviral DNA polymerase gene sequence nearly identical to that of a MCF virus previously identified in Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana). The bongo had been housed across from an exhibit containing Nubian ibex that tested positive for MCF viral antibodies by competitive inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Further testing of the zoo's ibex via PCR also revealed viral DNA sequences nearly identical to those found in the bongo's tissues.

CONTAGIOUS CAPRINE PLEUROPNEUMONIA OUTBREAK IN CAPTIVE WILD UNGULATES AT AL WABRA WILDLIFE PRESERVATION, STATE OF QATAR

Contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (CCPP) caused by Mycoplasma capricolum subsp. capripneumoniae is a highly contagious and serious respiratory disease of domestic goats, characterized by coughing, severe respiratory distress, and high mortality rates. The lesions at necropsy are mainly a fibrinous pleuropneumonia with increased straw-colored pleural fluid. An outbreak of CCPP in wild goat (Capra aegagrus), Nubian ibex (Capra ibex nubiana), Laristan mouflon (Ovis orientalis laristanica), and gerenuk (Litocranius walleri) occurred at Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation in the State of Qatar. The disease was suspected because of the clinical symptoms and the necropsy findings and was confirmed by the isolation and identification of the causative organism. This new finding indicates that CCPP should be considered a potential threat to wildlife and the conservation of endangered ruminant species, especially in the Middle East, where it is enzootic because of its presence in chronic carriers. Susceptible imported animals should be quarantined and vaccinated. The preferred samples for diagnosis are the pleural fluid, which contains high numbers of Mycoplasma, and sections of hepatized lung, preferably at the interface of normal and diseased tissues. Samples must be shipped to diagnostic laboratories rapidly, and appropriate cool conditions must be maintained during shipping.

Can landscape use be among the factors that potentially make some ungulates species more difficult to conserve?

Mountain gazelles Gazella gazella have historically been more difficult to protect than Nubian ibex Capra nubiana in the Ibex Reserve, Saudi Arabia. I tested poachers’ claims that mountain gazelles are easier to hunt and experience more anthropogenic disturbances than Nubian ibex because of mountain gazelles’ use of open landscapes. My results show that mountain gazelles occurred in significantly wider valleys that are accessible to off road vehicles and which resulted in spatial overlap with domestic livestock. In contrast, Nubian ibex occurred in narrower valleys that were less accessible to off road vehicles, further away from people, and had no significant spatial overlap with domestic livestock. Mountain gazelles and Nubian ibex occurred in significantly different valley widths in areas protected and unprotected from hunting, suggesting that anthropogenic disturbances may be affecting ungulate spatial use. Use of open landscapes makes mountain gazelles more susceptible to anthropogenic disturbances, hunting from off-road vehicles, and competition from livestock, which could be among the factors that explain why mountain gazelles have been more difficult to protect than Nubian ibex.

Patch use, apprehension, and vigilance behavior of Nubian Ibex under perceived risk of predation

Foraging theory predicts that animals will sacrifice feeding effort in order to reduce predation risk. Once a forager chooses a habitat, it must decide how to allocate its foraging effort. Nubian Ibex are diurnal, social, cliff-dwelling herbivores. Many of their characteristics seem to have evolved as responses to predation risk. In order to assess the effects that perceived risk of predation might have on foraging behavior of free-ranging Nubian Ibex in the Negev Desert, Israel, we measured giving-up densities (GUDs) in artificial food patches and used them to gauge apprehension level. (Apprehension can be defined as a reduction in attention devoted to performing an activity as a consequence of reallocating attention to detecting or responding to predation risk. A forager can also be vigilant. Vigilance is often defined as time spent scanning the surroundings with the head up.) We also quantified time budgeting using focal observation of individual Nubian Ibex. Habitat preferences and patch selectivity as a measure of apprehension were considered. In particular, we tested the effect of distance from refuge on GUDs, the effect of micropatch structure on selectivity, and the effect of distance from the refuge and group size on Nubian Ibex vigilance level and apprehension. Nubian Ibex allocate their foraging effort more toward patches closer to the escape terrain. At the same time, Nubian Ibex are more apprehensive at intermediate distances from the cliff edge than nearer the cliff, and their use of vigilance increases with distance from the cliff edge. These results suggest that Nubian Ibex may switch from apprehension to a more extreme behavior of vigilance at greater distances from the refuge. This study demonstrated the use of antipredatory behaviors, apprehension, and vigilance by a forager. Estimating apprehension and vigilance levels of a forager simultaneously gives a more complete and accurate picture of how the habitat is perceived by them and combined with measurements of GUD allow a more accurate assessment of habitat quality. Key words: apprehension, foraging behavior, giving-up densities, Nubian Ibex, patch use, predation risk, vigilance. [Behav Ecol]

Effects of food quality, diet preference and water on patch use by Nubian ibex

Measuring patch use of a forager can reveal not only its cost and benefits from foraging, but also the importance of environmental factors and the significance of energy, nutrients and predation risk to its fitness. In order to assess the effects of various variables that may affect the foraging behavior of free‐ranging Nubian ibex in the Negev Desert, Israel, giving‐up densities (GUD) in artificial food patches were measured following Kotler et al. In particular, we tested the effects of food quality and water availability on Nubian ibex foraging behavior. To do so, we (1) tested whether the tannic acid content of food affected diet preferences, (2) assayed their diet selection strategy, (3) tested if the foraging decisions of the Nubian ibex were affected by the availability of water and (4) determined the nutritional relationship between food resources and water. Nubian ibex had lower GUDs and used resources patches more intensively where water was available, the food quality was higher and the location was closer to the escape terrain. Nubian ibex showed an expanding specialist diet selection when exploiting resource patches with a mix of items that differ in quality. Overall, food and water were complementary resources for Nubian ibex, and tannins reduced food quality. These factors help to determine patch foraging behavior decisions in Nubian ibex and contribute to habitat quality.

The effects of human visits on the use of a waterhole by endangered ungulates

We report the impacts of human visits at a waterhole used by mountain gazelles, Gazella gazella, and Nubian ibex, Capra ibex nubiana, in the Ibex Reserve of Saudi Arabia. Our hypothesis was that the species that normally used the waterhole during the day, the typical period of human visits, would be negatively affected. The results did not support our hypothesis, as both the diurnal mountain gazelles and partly nocturnal Nubian ibex avoided the waterhole within 6 h after human visits. We found no significant difference of waterhole use by Nubian ibex and mountain gazelles within the period of 6–12 h or 12–24 h after human visits. Given the high conservation concern of these species and the rarity of waterholes, we suggest that human visits continue to be regulated by allowing visits on non-consecutive days to give the ungulates opportunities to drink, especially during the summer and droughts when heat stresses are higher, animals are less tolerant of water deprivation, and there are less alternative waterholes.

Artiodactyls of Syria

Most of the wild ungulates which inhabited the Syrian territories (Syrian Arab Republic) has been exterminated in historical times. At present, the Wild Boar, Sus scrofa, the Roe Deer, Capreolus capreolus, and two or possibly three species of gazelle, Gazella subgutturosa, G. dorcas, and G. gazella, are the only survivors from a rich fauna of ungulates that ranged widely until recent times. The Arabian Oryx, Oryx leucoryx, and the Nubian Ibex, Capra ibex nubiana, do not appear to exist any longer. The latter species was probably exterminated during the second half of the 20th century.

Status and ecology of the Striped Hyaena, Hyaena hyaena, in Jordan

In Jordan, the Striped Hyaena, Hyaena hyaena, occurs throughout the country in all zoogeographic regions, without any special preference for habitat types or altitudes. The habitats for this unloved animal must also include safe refuges. The diet consists mainly of the remains of camels, donkeys and horses, but also includes the remains of cows, dogs, foxes, domestic goats, sheep, Goitred Gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa), and Nubian Ibex (Ibex nubiana). Human interactions and threats affecting the current populations of H. hyaena are also discussed.

Evidence of three new members of malignant catarrhal fever virus group in muskox (Ovibos moschatus), Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana), and gemsbok (Oryx gazella).

Six members of the malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) virus group of ruminant rhadinoviruses have been identified to date. Four of these viruses are clearly associated with clinical disease: alcelaphine herpesvirus 1 (AlHV-1) carried by wildebeest (Connochaetes spp.); ovine herpesvirus 2 (OvHV-2), ubiquitous in domestic sheep; caprine herpesvirus 2 (CpHV-2), endemic in domestic goats; and the virus of unknown origin found causing classic MCF in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; MCFV-WTD). Using serology and polymerase chain reaction with (degenerate primers targeting a portion of the herpesviral DNA polymerase gene, evidence of three previously unrecognized rhadinoviruses in the MCF virus group was found in muskox (Ovibos moschatus), Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana), and gemsbok (South African oryx, Oryx gazella), respectively. Base on sequence alignment, the viral sequence in the muskox is most closely related to MCFV-WTD (81.5% sequence identity) and that in the Nubian ibex is closest to CpHV-2 (89.3% identity). The viral sequence in the gemsbok is most closely related to AlHV-1 (85.1% identity). No evidence of disease association with these viruses has been found.

Characterizing Core and Corridor Use by Nubian Ibex in the Negev Desert, Israel

Abstract: Corridors have become a key element of conservation efforts. To identify and characterize corridors used by Nubian ibex (Capra ibex nubiana), we analyzed sighting data recorded for the past 20 years in the Israel Nature Reserves Authority data banks. We categorized each recorded sighting as belonging to a corridor or a core zone based on the total number of sightings in its vicinity. We identified three main core populations, a natural corridor connecting two of them, and a corridor that was not evident connecting the third population. Ibex inside and outside core zones were sighted on steeper terrain than expected by chance; this was more pronounced inside the core zones than outside them. We hypothesize that because ibex outside core zones must move rapidly and directionally across unfamiliar habitats, they must use more moderate terrain. Although ibex sightings in core zones were mostly in the vicinity of water, we found no relationship between the location of the sightings and proximity to water sources in the corridor. Hence, water does not appear to be an important factor in movement through corridors. It was more common to observe ibex out of the core zones during the summer. Males, which can be twice the size of females, were found traveling alone in corridors more often than in core zones. There was no difference between males and females in the steepness of terrain in which they were sighted outside core zones. Our data show that protecting ibex habitat in core zones and corridors is important to ibex conservation in Israel's arid zones. In addition, protecting this habitat may benefit other rock‐dwelling species in the area.