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Objective: The reef flats at the Gulf of Aqaba, Jordan, are exposed to the accelerated development associated with increased interest in recreational marine activities such as diving and snorkeling. The physical damage from net entanglement and overfishing has also affected the coral reef. This research evaluated the effects of aquatic, commercial, and land-based activities on the total coral cover in the Aqaba Marine Park (Now the Aqaba Marine Reserve) and the power station located north of the reserve. Materials and Methods: The line transect method was used to estimate the coral cover, followed by measuring the distance of the 13 diving sites to the different landscape disturbances and applying a linear regression analysis. Results: The results showed no significant relationship between the distance to the nearest human disturbance and the entire coral cover in the depth categories. In addition, there was no significant difference between low and high-frequency diving pressure and the mean coral cover at any depth category and no significant difference in the mean coral cover between low and high-frequency snorkeling sites. Sites with higher fishing activity had significantly lower coral cover than sites with lower fishing activity. However, there was no significant difference in the mean coral cover between sights with higher and lower fishing activity at the 21-30 m depth range. Conclusion: The study illustrated that local marine recreational activities (diving and snorkeling) do not affect the coral cover structure up to 10 meters depths. However, considerable coral degradation was found in high fishing zones less than 10 meters deep, which correlates with illegal fishing activities. We believe illegal fishing has negatively affected the coral cover, and recreational marine activities reduced coral cover, especially in diving areas requiring shore entrance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Black-winged Kite, Elanus caeruleus, is an opportunistic breeding species that is a resident in the Middle East. This study investigates its distribution patterns and breeding behaviour in Palestine based on observations spanning from 2014 to 2022. The species was first recdorded in Palestine in September 2014. Up until 2018, its presence was recorded at only a few specific locations, primarily in the northern Jordan Valley along the Jordanian border, Al Mukata' valley in Jenin, and the western regions of the central and northern West Bank. However, a noticeable population increase and a remarkable expansion in its geographical range have been observed since then. The first documented breeding observation took place in 2019, and we identified 25 breeding sites. Clutch size varied between two to three eggs per nest, with an average of 2.71±0.49 (n=7). Additionally, instances of double-brooding were noted. Given the opportunistic breeding tendencies, the availability of suitable habitats, and potential food resources, we anticipate a continued expansion of the Black-winged Kite's distribution in Palestine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Survival of juvenile Nubian ibex was higher than sexually mature ibex, which indicated that ibex in the Sinai can be categorised into two survival classes, sexually immature ibex (i.e. age <=2; I S i = 0.82-0.85 for all ibex pooled) and sexually mature ibex ( I S i = 0.25-0.75 for all ibex pooled; Table 1, Figure 2). Alternative mating tactics and their impact on survival in adult male alpine ibex (Capra ibex ibex). Nubian ibex have been hunted by humans for >=2000 years, and prehistoric hunting was believed to have negatively impacted ibex based on reconstructed age structure of killed ibex, which indicated that survival to age 4 was 0.57 (Munro et al., 2020). Adult survival pattern of the sexually dimorphic Alpine ibex (Capra ibex ibex). [Extracted from the article]

The population status of the IUCN vulnerable Nubian Ibex Capra nubiana is largely unknown in the Middle East because of difficulties conducting intensive surveys. We tested the utility of camera-trapping at permanent water sites to estimate demographics and population trend of the species in the Dana Biosphere Reserve, Jordan. We also studied the relationship between precipitation and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index NDVI on water site use by the Nubian Ibex, demographics, and population trend. The Nubian Ibex showed a mean annual productivity of 0.81 neonate/female and an adult female survival of 0.87 which is a lower survival rate than found in other ibex species. The mean potential annual rate of increase of this population (λ=1.14) was similar to those reported from other ibex species and indicated a viable population. The capture rate of camera traps (number of photographed animals/camera day) was found not to be a reliable index to monitor population trends because water site use was related to environmental conditions that could not be standardized or predicted a priori. Quantifying population demographic ratios using camera trapping allowed for monitoring the status of key population parameters and growth potential of Nubian Ibex populations in the Dana Reserve, and likely can be used to monitor population status and facilitate informed management of similar populations in the Middle East. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the size distribution, sex ratio, and proportion of sexually mature green (Chelonia mydas) and loggerhead (Caretta caretta) turtles in Lake Bardawil, a large coastal lagoon. During the study 30 green turtles (8 males, 4 females, and 18 juveniles / sub-adults) and 14 loggerheads (1 male, 8 females, and 5 sub-adults) were captured. Forty percent of the green and 64 % of loggerhead turtles were believed to be sexually mature. The green turtles had a mean curved carapace length of 65.23 cm (15 - 100 cm range) and the loggerhead turtles 68.79 cm but with a much narrow range (60 - 80 cm) reflecting the absence of juveniles. This study provides evidence that Lake Bardawil is an important feeding and development area for green turtles and feeding area for loggerhead turtles and expands our knowledge of such important sites in the Mediterranean basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During autumn migration, people set trammel nets along most of the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, with migrating Common Quail Coturnix coturnix as their primary target. These nets capture large numbers of quail, but also illegally capture other birds, which are then killed. We present the results of surveys from 2008 to 2012 along these lines of nets on the coast of North Sinai, Egypt. In desert scrub, which covers most of the Sinai coast, the mean number of quail killed reached a high of 357.1 per km per day in 2012, with a grand mean over the study period of 191.9 per km per day. Trammel nets also captured 54 other bird species in 28 families. Species captured at the highest rates in desert scrub included Corncrake Crex crex, Isabelline Wheatear Oenanthe isabellina and Greater Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla. Based on mean rates of capture from 2008 to 2012 in desert scrub and sand bar habitats, we estimate 2.0 million quail and 0.5 million birds of other species are killed annually in North Sinai during the 45 days of peak migration. In 2012, however, after the use of MP3 players to attract quail became widespread, we estimate that 3.3 million quail and 0.5 million other birds were captured. Hunters near the coast have recently begun covering shrubs and trees with mist nets to catch passerines. From 2010 to 2012, mist nets along our survey routes caught birds of 17 species in three families, with seven of these species caught only in this type of net. Hunting is likely to be a contributing factor to population declines for some species that migrate across Egypt and further studies of migratory bird hunting along the southern Mediterranean shore are badly needed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents information on the distribution and mortality of the Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and Green (Chelona mydas) Turtle in 2012. Topics discussed include the important nesting sites along the Mediterranean coast, the method of acquiring nesting site data which included recording the coordinates of nests, and the comparison of data from data gathered in 1992.