Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve has reintroduced the Persian onager to Saudi Arabia, marking the species’ return to the Kingdom after more than a century of absence. In April 2024, seven Persian onagers were translocated from the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature’s (RSCN) Shaumari Reserve in Jordan to the Reserve, establishing the first wild population in the Kingdom in over a century. The onagers, following their 935-kilometer journey, have adapted well to their new habitat, celebrated by the birth of the first foal in the Reserve — a pivotal milestone in Saudi Arabia’s rewilding efforts. “These are the first free-running onagers seen in Saudi Arabia since their extinction in the early 1900s. Historically celebrated by Arabic poets, these strong, untamable, and elusive creatures are classified as Endangered by the IUCN, with fewer than 600 Persian onagers remaining in the wild globally. Their reintroduction represents a transformative step for their conservation and a major landmark in the Kingdom’s biodiversity efforts,” said Andrew Zaloumis, CEO of Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve. Historically, the now-extinct Syrian wild ass, a close genetic relative of the Persian onager, roamed the Reserve as an ecosystem engineer. Today, the Persian onager has taken […]