OTHMAN LLEWELLYN'S ARABIA: A GUIDE TO MOUNTAINS OF UNUSUAL BEAUTY (Notes taken by John Ady based on the talk given by Mr. Llewellyn on January 17, 1991)
Those who attended the meeting held in January 1991, on the evening of the outbreak of the
Kuwait war, when the speaker kept nobly to his promise to get to us from Riyadh, will
remember his lyrical descriptions of the beauty of Arabian mountain landscapes. He had seen
these during several years of extensive travel around Saudi Arabia on behalf of the National
Commission for WilcJIife Conservation and Development (NCWCD), helping to select areas to
be designated for protection for the value of their vegetation, wildlife and scenery.
As a reminder for those who may be able to visit them, we include a map marked with the
localities he described (Figure 1). We have added a few further places, all of them mountain
areas of unusual beauty, with brief notes on their character based on his descriptions. This is
neither a guide nor a guarantee of their accessibility. In most cases a four-wheel drive vehicle is
essential to reach them.
1:
Jabal Aja' & Jabal Salma
These are two separate but nearby mountain ranges, each a maze of pinnacles and domes of red,
rose and lavender granite with many perennial and ephemeral springs. They are full of acacia and
palm groves nestling in the heights of the mountains with one of the most wonderful displays of
spring flowers in Arabia when the rains have been good. It holds a few small herds of ibex, also
wolves and ratels, is said to have caracal and may have some of the largest colonies of griffon
vultures in the world. The area is also on the migratory route of demoiselle cranes that pass over
in flocks of hundreds. It is a refuge of Pleistocene life with the greatest biological diversity of
any site in Najd.
• Jabal Aja is located immediately west and southwest and Jabal Salma 70 km southeast of
Hail.
2:
Majami' al Hadb
The Arabic name, "clusters or catchments of domes" is a good description. Hundreds of
smoothly rounded gray to pale rose granite exfoliation domes rise 4-500 m above the plain,
contrasting strongly with the adjacent hulking black volcanic rocks. These are classical examples
of the form. The rainfall is low but running off the domes, collects in runnels that support
surprisingly dense vegetation, creating an island of good habitat surrounded by devastated
countryside. There are even Afrotropical plant species to be found there. It has been badly
overhunted with the result that the ostriches and rich ungulate fauna it once had are lost, the ibex
only recently. Gradually these species will be reintroduced by the NCWCD.
•
100 km across desert due east of Ranyah, 300 krn east of Taif.
44 r
Llewellyn's Arabia
3: 'Uruq Bani Mu'arid
'Uruq means long dunes, and these scenic 250 m high breakers of rose-colored sand, 100 km
long, are the largest and longest longitudinal dunes on earth. Their wavelength is 1 to 2 1/2 km
and the corridors between them, traversed in places by barchan dunes, are remarkably well
vegetated and little grazed. They rise over the southern end of Jabal Tuwaiq whose dissected
limestone wadi beds are un grazed and relatively well vegetated. Owing to their inaccessibility
they are one of the most intact ecosystems left in Arabia. It was here in 1978-9, that the last
reported sightings of Arabian oryx in the wild were made by pilots flying overhead. The dunes
of 'Uruq Bani Mu'arid offer a very suitable area for the reintroduction of wildlife.
• On the western edge of the Rub al Khali, east of the Najran-Sulayil road.
4: Jabal ad Dubbagb
A precipitous granite pluton rising from 200 m above an exceedingly arid coastal plain through a
range of life zones to 2,300 m high where it is often covered with snow. Its smooth spires have
the appearance of glaciated country and the rock has beautifully delicate honeycomb weathering
with many natural windows and bridges. Under the rock, streams can be heard and there are
many seeps and springs supporting several endemic plant species. Magnificent Acacia raddiana
and Juniperus phoenicia stand in the cirques. Hidden in a small valley near the summit grows a
fragrant white tulip known from Siberia, Tulipa biflora, a Pleistocene relict found so far south
only here, on nearby Jabal al Lawz and on one Egyptian peak. Ibex and caracal are also found on
the mountain.
•
35 km north-northeast of Duba.
5: Jabal Qaraqir
Jabal Qaraqir is a labyrinth as rugged as Bryce Canyon in southern Utah but on a wider scale and
twenty times as high. It is composed of reddish Quweira sandstone capped with yellowish
Ramm sandstone (the formation which runs from Petra to Al Ula) and is covered with
honeycomb weathering. There are permanent springs among the deep narrow canyons, one
stream is 6 km long and seeps supporting hanging gardens of maidenhair fern. There are
cascades of azure-leafed Capparis spinosa and the only thickets of wild oleander in the country.
The inaccessible summits harbor herds of ibex that are thought to be the largest populations in
Arabia.
• 65 km west of Duba on the Duba-Tabuk road, then 50 km south near Dissah.
6:
AI Wa'bab
Al Wa'bah is a sunken volcanic crater 250 m deep and 2 km across. Its floor is crusted with
accumulated salts banded like white agate when dry but after rain, with subtle shades of ochre
I
I
Llewellyn's Arabia
3:
'Uruq Bani Mu'arid
'Uruq means long dunes, and these scenic 250 m high breakers of rose-colored sand, 100 km
long, are the largest and longest longitudinal dunes on earth. Their wavelength is 1 to 2 1/2 km
and the corridors between them, traversed in places by barchan dunes, are remarkably well
vegetated and little grazed. They rise over the southern end of Jabal Tuwaiq whose dissected
limestone wadi beds are ungrazed and relatively well vegetated. Owing to their inaccessibility
they are one of the most intact ecosystems left in Arabia. It was here in 1978-9, that the last
reported sightings of Arabian oryx in the wild were made by pilots flying overhead. The dunes
of 'Uruq Bani Mu'arid offer a very suitable area for the reintroduction of wildlife.
• On the western edge of the Rub al Khali, east of the Najran-Sulayil road.
4: Jabal ad Dubbagh
A precipitous granite pluton rising from 200 m above an exceedingly arid coastal plain through a
range of life zones to 2,300 m high where it is often covered with snow. Its smooth spires have
the appearance of glaciated country and the rock has beautifully delicate honeycomb weathering
with many natural windows and bridges. Under the rock, streams can be heard and there are
many seeps and springs supporting several endemic plant species. Magnificent Acacia raddiana
and Juniperus phoenicia stand in the cirques. Hidden in a small valley near the summit grows a
fragrant white tulip known from Siberia, Tulipa bij7ora, a Pleistocene relict found so far south
only here, on nearby Jabal al Lawz and on one Egyptian peak. Ibex and caracal are also found on
the mountain.
•
35 km north-northeast of Duba.
5: Jabal Qaraqir
Jabal Qaraqir is a labyrinth as rugged as Bryce Canyon in southern Utah but on a wider scale and
twenty times as high. It is composed of reddish Quweira sandstone capped with yellowish
Ramm sandstone (the formation which runs from Petra to Al Ula) and is covered with
honeycomb weathering. There are permanent springs among the deep narrow canyons, one
stream is 6 km long and seeps supporting hanging gardens of maidenhair fern. There are
cascades of azure-leafed Capparis spinosa and the only thickets of wild oleander in the country.
The inaccessible summits harbor herds of ibex that are thought to be the largest populations in
Arabia.
• 65 km west of Duba on the Duba-Tabuk road, then 50 km south near Dissah.
6:
AI Wa'bah
Al Wa'bah is a sunken volcanic crater 250 m deep and 2 km across. Its floor is crusted with
accumulated salts banded like white agate when dry but after rain, with subtle shades of ochre
45 Journal of the Saudi Arabian Natural History Society
and lavender. The salt accumulates in a pattern of converging runnels, contrasting strongly with
the dark volcanic walls. On its northeast side is an oasis of palms. To the east the Harrat Kishb is
one of the most rugged of lava flows with good examples of ropy (pahoehoe) and rugged (aa)
lavas. There are groves of moringa trees; wolves and hyenas and gazelles have been reported.
• Near the village of Al Hufr, 75 km north of Radwan on the Taif-Riyadh road.
7: AI Hijr
AI Hijr is the classical name for the region of Madain Salih and Al Ula. The area is composed of
the same arresting sandstones as Jabal Qaraqir. These are on the east side of the plateau capped
by Harrat 'Uwayrid which has ibex and gazelles. The landscape is not as grand nor as
biologically rich as Qaraqir but the rock is eroded into sculptural fonns and is covered by filigree
bands of honeycomb weathering. The scale of the wide bowl surrounding Madain Salih is
impressive.
• Al Ula and Madain Salih are 300 km directly north-northwest of Al Madinah.
8: Hisma
The northern extension of the sandstone of Jabal Qaraqir but where Qaraqir is a mazy creviced
mass, Hisma is a broken range of weathered red monoliths in space, thousands on thousands of
separate blocks and peaks surrounded by rose and apricot colored sands. It is barren because of
overgrazing and in winter can be cool. The plant associations are Syrian but there are at least two
or three endemic species. There are still some ibex and gazelles and leopard are reported close to
the Jordan border.
• Either side of the road from the Gulf of Al Aqabah to Tabuk.
9: Jabal Ral
An isolated pluton of pale gray and buff granite with magnificent honeycomb weathering like
Jabal Dubbagh surrounded by some of the most overgrazed country in Arabia. Yet the mountain
is hardly grazed at all. For over 200 years the Billi tribe have treated it almost as a hema and
protected the ibex on it. It deserves support as an outstanding example of local conservation.
•
75 km southeast of Al Wajh.
10: Jabal Radwa
A very rugged reddish, granite mountain with forbidding spires and pinnacles and wadis that are
filled with cannonball-like boulders. It carries juniper woodlands and perhaps the best and
densest stand of dragon trees (Dracaena draco) in Arabia. On its north side (Jabal Kallab) ibex
and idmi gazelles are still found together. Jabal Radwa is inhabited by a very secretive people
46 Llewellyn's Arabia
who have little contact with the world. They produce a rare and prized honey and jealously
protect both their grazing and the ibex on the mountain. Hence it is in effect a traditional
conservation area.
•
40 km north-northeast of Yanbu.
11: Jabal Batharah (Jabal Ibrahim)
A great, gray granite pluton on the edge of the escarpment, best seen from the road between Bani
Salad and Baha, with alpine meadows between its peaks. It is the southernmost refuge of most
Palaearctic flora in Arabia, being like many such mountains, an island of relative coolness and
moisture above the desert and so a center for relict communities. Its plant associations are unique
and its scenery is some of the lushest in the country, with juniper woods and cascades of jasmine
and clematis. lbere are beautiful views from the east side along the headwaters of Wadi Turabah
bordered by thick Cyparis alternifolia and harboring quite large fish.
•
60 km north-northwest of Baha. Best approached from the east side.
12: Najran Highlands
A high plateau of granite which weathers to a tumble of dark cannonball boulders under ragged
castellated sandstone buttes, all blackened by desert varnish. Vegetated with Adenium obesum,
Acacia nubica, dragon trees, Balm of Gilead (Commiphora gileadensis) and compact dome-like
shrubs of Euphorbia balsamifera. It also has outstanding groves of Zyziphus spina-christi and
Balanites aegyptiac.
• West of Najran on the Abha highway and north of Najran on the Yadamah road.
Members of the Society would also like to add the following mountains to this list:
13: Jabal Shada al Ala
A steep many-pinnac1ed 2,000 m mountain isolated in front of the escarpment northwest of
Baha, only 70 km from Jabal Batharah. A species-rich island of Afrotropical plants that has
about 22% of the Saudi flora (460 species) in an area of only 50 sq km. There are also
Blanford's fox, wolf, ratel, porcupine, caracal, genet and white-tailed mongoose here.
•
West of the Mikwah-Qilwah road.
14: Jabal Qahar & Jabal Ash Shajarah
Two table-topped sandstone mountains (the same sandstone as at Habalah, near Abha) split by a
remarkable orange colored gorge 300 m deep, 10-20 m wide and 3 km long. Limestone seeps in
the walls harbor rare southern plants. Caracal may be found there.
•
80 km northeast of Baysh, which is on the Abha-Jizan road, via Haqu and Al Rayth.
47
l
Journal of the Saudi Arabian Natural History Society
15: Jabal Fayfa
A steep 2,000 m high mountain range near the Yemen border, the top 1,000 m cut into hundreds
of precipitous farmed terraces. The wetter side is prosperous, the drier east side retains ancient
circular tower farmhouses. The Bani Malik tribesmen of nearby valleys are the "flowered men"
of the Maugers' books. There are still a few botanical rarities on the peak .
• 60 km east of Sabya, north of lizan.
16: Jabal Habalah & Jabal Qushairid
The nearest spectacular mountains to leddah (the Al Ifar valley beneath Jabal Qusharid is often
incorrectly called Harithi). Sheer red granite stacks and pinnacles on the escarpment surge above
juniper woodland. On the main migratory flyway .
•
5-10 km south of Al Hada, via Wadi Ghadirain.
&
.~,
42"
39'
36'
4e'
~"
54'
51'
60'
c
\
/"
"
28'
+1
+6
I
Figure 1: Locations mentioned in the text
48
r
ATLAS OF THE BREEDING BIRDS OF ARABIA
PROGRESS REPORT
The Atlas ofthe Breeding Birds ofArabia project has grown from strength to strength each year
since it was launched in 1984. 1991 should be a watershed year for the project as in this year all
data should be computerized and a draft for an interim Atlas finished. The project has so far
collected reports from literature and museum sources. However, the latter sources are still almost
untouched and the accession of these records to the database will be a major task for the project
researcher Chris Tucker to undertake during the coming months.
The Atlas is now financially sponsored by National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and
Development, Riyadh, which has provided funds for the computer system and the researcher, as
well as logistical and other assistance for the Coordinator's surveys in Arabia. The NCWCD will
also publish for the Atlas in due course.
The project Coordinator has now made ten atlassing surveys to Arabia (nine to Saudi Arabia and
one to South Yemen). These surveys have generally been to those areas that are very poorly
covered by other observers. The most recent trip in Spring 1991 was to the southern part of
central Saudi Arabia between Bisha, Najran and Sulayil which is particularly interesting because
in the whole contiguous region of about 100,000 square km there is not yet a single record in the
ABBA database from any source. A full report and a short summary of all surveys are available.
Phoenix 7 was published in December 1990. It is probably the best issue yet and at 20 pages it
matched in size the previous two issues. It contained several maps, artwork and photographs,
articles on two new breeding species for Arabia, notes on the black-winged stilt breeding in
Bahrain and crab plovers breeding in the UAE. Other articles dealt with mourning wheatear,
taxonomy, potential reserves in southwest Saudi Arabia, the wattled starling, the Oman Natural
History Museum and several other topics. Regular articles included "recent reports," "sites of
interest" and the book review section which aims to review all titles relevant to the Arabian
environment. If you have not seen a recent issue of Phoenix and would like a free copy of No.7
please contact the Coordinator. A number of other papers have been produced from data collected
and now on ABBA files. The computerization of the information collected so far will mean that
so much more can be provided to those who want data on Arabian birds or local regional
information. It is also planned to introduce a personal print for each current observer that will
show all the species breeding in a block of squares adjacent to their town.
If you would like to be kept informed of the progress of the ABBA project and especially about
the publication of the interim Atlas please contact the coordinator. If any observers still have
records that have not been forwarded for inclusion in the ABBA database, they should ask for a
set of the project instructions and report forms. Where appropriate, reports to ABBA should be
copied to the local bird recorder.
ABBA Coordinator:
Michael C. Jennings
49 Journal of the Saudi Arabian Natural History Society
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE
Dr. Ahmed Abo-Khatwa is an Associate Professor of Toxicology and a long time member
of and contributor to the Natural History Society. Address: Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz
University, P.O. Box 9028, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Mr. John Ady is a landscape architect and lecturer in the Department of Landscape
Architecture, King Abdulaziz University. Address: SED, P.O. Box 9027, Jeddah.
Dr. John Grainger is a botanist and conservationist who has worked at King Abdulaziz
University, Jeddah, with MEPA and for five years with the NCWCD on the establishment of
protected areas in the Kingdom. Address: 8, St. Edmunds Church St., Salisbury, England.
Mr. Michael Jennings is the originator and editor of the ongoing project, the Atlas of the
Breeding Birds of Saudi Arabia, supported by the NCWCD. He has collated ornithological data
from the region for fifteen years. Address: 1 Warners Farm, Warners Drove, Somersham,
Cambridgeshire, PE17 3HW, England.
Dr. Hosam Joma is an Assistant Professor in and Chairman of the Deptartment of Landscape
Architecture, King Abdulaziz University. Address: SED, P.O. Box 9027, Jeddah.
Mr. Othman Llewellyn has worked in Arabia for ten years as an environmental planner and a
landscape architect, first with the Hajj Research Center in Makkah and now with the National
Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development. Address: NCWCD, P.O. Box 61681,
Riyadh 11575.
50 Summaries
SUMMARIES OF ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE Avifauna Changes in the distribution of Arabian birds are described by the author of the Atlas
ofthe Breeding Birds ofArabia.
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,
y
~\ 'r.~ ~ .)~\~, ....1.l;..
~
~
Conference The Society's representation at a world conference of non-government
environmental organization is reported.
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Mountains
Many of the finest mountains
In
~.,t..
Arabia are described by a knowledgeable
connOIsseur
Oil spill A conservationist recall the war-related oil spi11s in the Arabian Gulf and the strenuous
efforts made to control the damage.
~I ..:..b~~ .<:'...""....11 ~I ~ y.rJ1 y:.. ~ ~I ..::........)1 ~ ~ ~ r-!l.e.
.
. .;\""-p":il
.;.....,j.l1 ~
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Osher The poisonous and medicinal properties of this familiar weed are described by an Arab
toxicologist.
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i~ r:1lc. ~
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l
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;yL.lI
if~1
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Villages Three oases of the leddah area are described. The role of the decrease in the quantity
and quality of water in their changing patterns of land use and the government response to this
change are discussed.
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.,
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- . " . .
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51