Abu Dhabi Week takes a closer look at some of the animals vital to the UAE
The sun has just broken over the horizon when, far above the heads of the hunters, a falcon cries, signalling she’s spotted a herd of gazelle. With razor-sharp vision, a feathered grey saluki leaps from his master’s saddle where he’s been resting for the day’s hunt.
In the soft light of sunrise, he and two other hounds take off in pursuit of the nimble gazelle.
While other lean dogs will tire after a quick sprint, the saluki – which in Arabic means “noble one” – can run at its top speed of 65km/h for up to five kilometres, faster than any other breed of dog, even the racing greyhound. Chasing down their prey, the salukis’ strong jaws and sharp teeth deliver a mortal wound to the gazelle’s throat. Once again, the faithful salukis have proven their worth to their master.
According to Hamad Al Ghanem, director of the Arabian Saluki Centre (02 575 5330), the saluki differs from other hunting dogs in that he hunts by sight rather than smell. One of the first breeds of dog in the world to be domesticated, says Al Ghanem, salukis were originally trained and bred to be friendly with family but standoffish with strangers.
While many breeds of dog are considered by Muslims to be unclean, the saluki has been given the status of “clean” and is thus allowed inside private living quarters. Intelligent and faithful, they were once used as guard dogs for the women and children of a household while the men were away.
Also called the gazelle hound, and with good reason, the saluki has been bred for centuries to withstand the rigorous life of the desert nomad – its feet are built to withstand the heat of the desert sand, its physique can manage without water for longer than other breeds and it will deliver the death blow of its prey but return the still-living creature to its master for a proper slaughter befitting the standards of Islam.
These days, the saluki is still held in high regard in the UAE, with top dogs selling for AED 35,000 or more, says Al Ghanem. The same is true for other animals traditionally important to this culture. Falconry, for example, has been enormously popular throughout man’s history in this region of the world.
“In former times, the falcon was used for hunting,” says Margaret Muller, director of the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital (02 575 5155).
“These birds were so important to the Bedouin culture that they would become part of the family.”
These days, hunting with falcons is no longer allowed in the UAE, nor is the practice of capturing wild birds, says Muller, but falconry aficionados still train their birds and will travel abroad to hunt with birds that have been bred in captivity. “Once a falcon has been trained, it will stay with its owner for the rest of its life.”
The sport of falconry remains so popular in this region that it’s become big business. Cheaper male birds often sell for AED 3000 to AED 5000, says Muller, while the larger females that are better for hunting sell for as much as AED 70,000, depending on their pedigree.
In recent years, falcon hunting has been restricted in the UAE due to efforts to preserve the houbara bustard, a type of prey commonly hunted by the falcon.
“One main reason why the houbara bustard has been over-hunted is that there are more hunters now than ever before,” says Jacky Judas, Regional Coordinator of Research and Conservation at the National Avian Research Center in Sweihan (03 734 7555).
“Before, houbara bustards were only hunted in the UAE in the winter months when the birds migrated here for the winter, but in the last 50 years it’s become easier for hunters to travel to the places where the houbara bustards breed,” says Judas. “This spread in hunting and a rise in poaching have had a detrimental effect on the bird’s population.”
According to Judas, several steps have been taken to preserve the houbara bustard including protecting their natural habitats, laws that protect them, public awareness campaigns and extensive captive breeding programmes that allow for birds in the wild to flourish.
Like the saluki and falcon, the role of the camel in the UAE has changed dramatically in recent decades, though it’s no less important to Emirati culture.
Once the major mode of transportation in this part of the world, the camel ride for many people may seem to have been relegated to the sort of tourist activity you’d only try at the Al Ain Wildlife Park and Resort or on a desert safari.
Anyone who thinks camels are no longer a vital component of life in the UAE, however, should spend a few early mornings at the Al Wathba camel racing track just outside the capital where dromedaries of different genders, ages and breeds battle it out for bragging rights and huge pay days. Top camels have been known to sell for as much as AED 6,000,000.
Beyond the realm of racing, however, many Bedouins still maintain camel herds numbering 50 animals or more. Raissa Al Mansouri, an Emirati grandmother who lives in Hameem in the Western Region, spends much of her time at her desert camp with her beloved animals. Kissing her camels, she explains that each has a name and a distinctive personality.
“In the early morning, we open the pens and let the camels wander in the desert and then they’ll come back when they’re ready to eat,” says Raissa, making a clucking noise in her throat to call to the camels – and they come, eager for her attention. “They understand me, but they just don’t speak.”
Though the roles of these animals in the UAE continue to evolve, one thing is certain – Emiratis are not likely to ever allow these majestic creatures to fade into the tapestry of this nation’s history.
Laura Fulton
