Dear Eco friends,

I would like to share with you my memorable and most adventurous experience of 5 days field project trip to Wadi Wurayah (UAE?s first mountain protected area by government ) .

Actually our school won World Action Day Programme and as an award our school was nominated to send 5 eco stars or the most environmentally active students from the school and 2 teachers for this amazing 5 days trip.

Ours was  the first school team to enter the Wadis. We embarked on an  adventurous voyage to Fujairah to  discover the Wadis and  unfold the water  mystery  from 8^th November to 12^th November,2014.

Water scarcity is a huge problem around the world and almost 60% of the countries that do not have access to fresh water, are here in the Middle East. This is a basic human necessity and something programs like this are committed to improving .

The programme combines scientific field research activities led by Emirates Wildlife Society-WWF and a learning programme, designed by Earthwatch, to equip us with the knowledge and skills to understand and explain water issues in our region.

Introduction of Wadi Wurayah

On March 16, 2009, Wadi Wurayah in the emirate of Fujairah, was designated a Protected Area, becoming the first Mountain Protected Area of the United Arab Emirates.

Wadi Wurayah National Park is the first national park in the UAE and continues to  serve as a regional model for wildlife and water conservation. The wadi encompasses one of the few permanent freshwater sources in the UAE and is home to many plants and animals that cannot be found elsewhere. Wadi Wurayah is of considerable ecological significance allowing some of the rarest species found in the UAE, Arabian Peninsula and the world to survive this harsh climate.

The Wadi Wurayah Mountain Protected Area is already known to be one of the world?s three remaining strongholds of Arabian Tahr. Of the 75 species of birds recorded within the Wadi Wurayah region, 5% are considered endangered worldwide by the IUCN and 24 % are of conservation concern for the UAE. 

More than 300 species of plants have been recorded in the area, including species that are found only in wetlands such as Typha dominginsis and the unique orchid species of UAE: Epipactis veratrifolia .

While the biodiversity of Wadi Wurayah is exceptional, its cultural value cannot be underestimated. Because of the presence of permanent water, the wadi has been used by local communities for long time. 

Wadi Wurayah is, however, not without threats, the main ones being overexploitation of water resources, overgrazing of domestic animals, hunting, habitat degradation (littering, fires), quarrying, habitat fragmentation, urbanisation and the introduction of invasive species. 

Given the biological and cultural wealth and its vulnerability to anthropogenic pressures, protection to Wadi Wurayah is of paramount importance.That is why project like ours are happening .

The long term aim of the Wadi Wurayah Mountain Protected Area is the realisation of a restored, protected and sustainably managed freshwater ecosystem that would: support rich biodiversity provide environmental services and socio-economic opportunities serve as a replicable example of sustainable freshwater ecosystem management and build local government capacity in designing and managing protected areas. 

Research Project

Our this research oriented project is called WRLP(Water Research & Learning Project). WRLP is a Water and Ecosystems field Research and environmental learning programme which aims to understand and protect a unique Middle Eastern Wadi Ecosystem, and to engage with and inspire its Citizen Science Leader participants to promote and protect precious freshwater resources across the Middle East region. This programme forms part of the HSBC Water Programme (HWP).

The research trip was conducted in Wadi Wurayah National Park, located in the upper Hajar Mountains of Fujairah which was declared a Ramsar site in year 2010.

objectives of Research were :

- Study the biodiversity of freshwater habitats and how species are affected by physical and chemical environmental factors

- Assess how key species are dispersed

-Measure impact of human activities

-Conduct hydrological surveys to understand on water quality, water availability and sustainability

-Predict how biodiversity may be affected by climate change and propose conservation strategies

Other Activities included :

-Water quality testing

-Hydrology surveys

-Mammal trapping

-Bird trapping

-Insect surveys – marking and counting dragonflies

-Toad counts

-Lots of hiking!

We went on an adventurous hiking trip for three days as a part of our fieldwork activity where we caught and tagged dragonflies, measured toads and also tested the quality of water in the Wadi which is a fresh water resource.

Initially it was scary to capture toads to look for the chitrid fungus but later it was OK. We captured toads by hand (wearing gloves) and swab with cotton buds on various parts of our body, for the samples to be analysed by a lab. We also counted, measured and weighed toads caught from water pools to establish their abundance throughout the wadi.

We also carried out capture-mark-recapture surveys and point counts. This

entailed catching dragonflies with nets to mark and release them, and recording individuals spotted which have already been marked. Point counts involved examining a set area for a period of 15 minutes to spot, identify and record

any dragonflies and damselflies that are present. We were taking photos for species identification and GPS locations of sites. Wel also conducted surveys of water pools to look for larvae.

We had set up bird nets above the waterfall where there is a higher density of birds. Then wel waited for birds to be trapped in the net "pockets". We weighed, measured, identified and ring captured birds.

Camera traps (motion sensor cameras) were strategically deployed throughout Wadi Wurayah National Park to collect information on individual animals or species. We also helped field staff maintain some of those camera traps in the Wadi and download pictures to collect information on species occurrence and abundance.

Other Experiences & Findings

We were given Porta-cabins to stay in as a part of our five day programme including outdoor fieldwork as well as indoor research in the lab.

Throughout the course of the project, there were many exciting findings. Identified were nine different freshwater habitat types with exceptionally good water quality. Hydro-chemical analyses indicate that the spring waters meet all World Health Organisation standards for drinking and bottled water!  

During the programme there were facilitated learning and discussion sessions each day. These were designed to support our learning in the field and were interactive .

Through lectures and learning sessions we were made aware about various  water facts, availability and threats  in the Middle East on a global comparison and got a hands-on experience on how unmindful water consumption habits can adversely affect life on Earth. We were presented with eye-opening facts and statistics .

We were informed about the risks of continued water wastage and how Wadi Wurayah is the only location that contains the last freshwater waterfall in the United Arab Emirates. We were informed about the current condition of water in the Middle East and how the government is doing everything to stop the depletion of the last water resource in the Middle East.

Many activities during the indoor sessions were also held such as making posters to make people of different age groups in the Middle East aware of this crisis. Another activity was a water challenge where we were given a scenario and a budget to make an office sustainable. We  participated enthusiastically to develop sustainable solutions and measures to spread awareness.

Closing

When we completed the programme we were titled " Citizen Science Leader". Each of us were rewarded with  certificates that entitled us to be  "Citizen Science Leaders from the Middle East region" which is an honour .  As Citizen Science Leaders it is our responsibility to inspire , educate and motivate others around us to use water judiciously , to respect eco system and protect biodiversity. Citizen Science Leaders play an active role in championing water management issues in their business and community.

It was a fantastic and a very educational experience . The water program was one of the best things I have done in my life. I am amazed from the experience and the amount of information I have learned.

This unique program news is covered in "Gulf Today" newspaper and regional language paper"Mathrubhumi" .Pl read thru below links :

http://www.gulftoday.ae/portal/6ee6ce09-6725-4fe7-9e88-2ec02140f928.aspx

http://digitalpaper.mathrubhumi.com/384898/Outside-Kerala/29-NOVEMBER-2014#page/14/1