Q Life Magazine Q Magazine December 2018 | Page 23

Innovate & Inspire |
Mohamad Y Al Sulaiti
Conserving wildlife in the
Arabian Gulf
Mohamad Y Al Sulaiti PhD, Research Director at ExxonMobil Research
Qatar, explains the objectives of the programme and talks about what makes
dugongs such fascinating creatures
What is significant about the dugong population
in Qatar?
Qatari dugongs are part of a larger group found in the
Arabian Gulf – which we think is around 6,000 to 7,000
individuals – and the second largest group in the world,
second only to Australia. The largest aggregation of
dugongs ever recorded was of the Qatari dugong – more
than 670 animals. As recently as one hundred years ago
in the Gulf, dugongs were hunted and used for food,
leather, and as a source of oil.
Why and when was the programme created?
Dugongs are listed by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as “vulnerable”.
We realised that there was a need to develop a better
understanding of Qatar’s dugong population and how
we could help protect it. So in 2014, an agreement was
signed between ExxonMobil Research Qatar (EMRQ),
Texas A&M University and Qatar University (QU). A
great deal of our initial work has focused on examining
stranded specimens, giving us information on the
demographics of the population in Qatari waters.
What are the objectives of the research on
Qatar’s dugong population?
The dugong is a fascinating species and we want to
try our best to understand and protect it now and for
generations to come. Dugongs help maintain healthy
seagrass meadows, which are important fish nurseries,
and food source for sea turtles. They help ensure
vegetative balance and a healthy ecosystem. They also
add to the marine biodiversity of the region. They are
facing a high risk of extinction – so I would say that we
have three main objectives: to learn more about Qatar’s
dugong population; to educate Qataris and those living
in Qatar that these animals exist in our waters and are
important to the ecosystem; and to ensure their long-
term protection.
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