Book on UAE island of Abu Al Abyad's natural history released

The Environmental Research and Wildlife Development Agency has released a new book entitled The Island of Abu Al Abyad, which depicts the natural history of one of the largest islands in the UAE.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Deputy Chairman of the agency, has called Abu Al Abyad in the foreward a unique environment whose areas have been preserved in their original character, making the island a refuge for several rare species.

"They move freely and benefit from the abundance of food and freedom in the absence of hunters, all in a world where areas like this are hard to keep unspoiled", he added.

Sheikh Hamdan hoped that the book is the beginning of more detailed studies to come on the island, because it holds treasures of great importance of many historical, environmental, and civilisation aspects.

Mohammed Al Bowardi, agency's managing director, underlined the main features of Abu Al Abyad island in the introduction.

"So named after its dazzling white appearance, Abu Al Abyad is situated 125km west of Abu Dhabi and is one of the largest islands in the UAE. It lies within the southeast corner of the Marawah marine protected area, which covers an area of 5,561km.

"Its precious environment is being preserved with efforts exerted to protect the ruins and the heritage, as well as the living creatures that inhabit the island", he said.

Bowardi said "in the past, the island was used extensively as a base for the pearl industry, the rich legacy of artefacts bears witness to this.

"The earliest clearly recognisable historical references to abu al abyad dates to the 1820s, although it is believed that abu al abyad was probably continuously occupied, perhaps seasonally, throughout the last 7,000 years all the way up through the last 300-400 years, when it was a centre of the pearl fishing industry."

"Today the links with the sea remain just as strong with a thriving mariculture industry on the island", he added.

Bowardi said, "the presence of coral reefs and extensive sea grass beds adds to the diversity of marine life surrounding the island, supporting a wide array of fish species and providing important habitat for endangered species."

The low lying topography of the island, interspersed with a few scattered small hills, rises to about 50 metres in the centre of the island.

The island is covered with a mosaic of sabkha (inland or coastal saline flats) mingled with stony gravel and sandy deserts, fringed by a narrow strip of mud and marine sand covered mostly with mangrove plantations that border much of the island.

Bowardi said that the island has an arid desert climate that is characterised by low rainfall and high temperatures and a prolonged dry and hot summer.

Because of the arid climate, the saline soils are nutrient poor, and high evaporation rates limit water availability for plant growth. The vegetation is therefore generally sparse but well adapted to these harsh conditions.

The 130-page book in Arabic and English, authored by a galaxy of prominent local and foreign researchers and academicians, is considered a rich source of updated information, facts and statistics for scientific and academic research on the natural history of Abu Al Abyad.