Spix's Macaw
The Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation in Qatar has developed a captive breeding program for the Spix’s Macaw, extinct in the wild. In an interview by Mark Szotek for mongabay.com, Dr. Sven Hammer, the Director of Wildlife and Veterinary Services at Al Wabra, spoke of the facility’s history:
“It is quite common for wealthy Sheikhs in the gulf region to keep wild animals, most of which are acquired illegally from unstable parts of the world such as the Horn of Africa region. Rarely do these animals receive proper care and are simply replaced if and when they die. Just prior to the turn of the 21st century Sheikh Saoud made the decision that this practice was no longer personally acceptable and that if he was going to continue keep exotic animals at Al Wabra farm, conditions had to improve. From this point, professional zoo management practices were implemented through the hiring of qualified and experienced staff to manage the animals at Al Wabra. Sheikh Saoud went from “Collector” to “Protector” and Al Wabra went from your typical Arabian hobby farm to a world class wildlife preserve.”
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