Correspondents' Correspondence Return of the Unicorn
LAND, THOMAS
Correspondents' Correspondence BRIEF TAKEOUTS OF MORE THAN PERSONAL INTEREST FROM LETTERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED BY THE EDITORS. Return of the Unicorn Geneva-the last wild Arabian oryx...
...But the species associated with the unicorn legend was rescued by North American and European nature reserves and zoos, and continued to breed in captivity...
...The creamy white antelope, with the long straight horns that in profile look like the legendary beast's single horn, once roamed the deserts of Arabia and Mesopotamia...
...Many believed that eating oryx meat could expel a bullet from a wound...
...Their eyesight is keen, and they can disappear quickly into the sands when humans approach...
...Since the oryx could easily outrun traditional camel-back hunting parties, it did not disappear until the advent of four-wheel drive vehicles and automatic weapons...
...The designated protectors of the first herd are the Har-asis, a tribe of about 500 who, like their charges, roam the desert of Oman...
...Tales of the unicorn, which go back to the Old Testament, were carried to Europe by the English Crusaders to the Holy Land...
...They have been chosen because of their concern for nature conservation and their knowledge of the wildlife oasis in the region where the animals have been set free...
...According to a spokesman for the World Wildlife Fund, the organizer of Operation Oryx, the fledgling herd already is "part of a major effort to establish a large and well-managed conservation areain the Arabian Peninsula...
...Killing an animal of such great strength and endurance was regarded as evidence of manhood...
...now they will try to guard them against poachers...
...Two calves have been born so far in the wild, and a second full herd is about to be introduced in another part of the desert.-Thomas Land...
...For it could lead to new and more rational sys-tems of game management across Africa and the Arabian Peninsula...
...and in periods of drought they can go for almost a year without drinking, conserving the moisture they derive from desert grasses and herbs...
...Now, the first full herd of 10 has been reintroduced to its natural habitat under the care of a nomadic tribe...
...The Arabian oryxes, whose movements in the wild have never been well understood, have often been called the Princes of the Desert...
...The oryx' return has been made possible by the cooperation of many individuals as well as private and government organizations...
...This means the oryx and other wild species might be bred in sufficient numbers to supplement domestic livestock as a source of high-quality protein for undernourished populations...
...Return of the Unicorn Geneva-the last wild Arabian oryx (oryx leucoryx) was slaughtered in 1972 by a motorized hunting party in the Omani desert...
...They are known to drift over very great distances in search of areas of recent rainfall...
...Operation Oryx is one of the outstanding success stories of the global nature conservation movement, and its implications may be a good deal more far-reaching than meets the eye...
...He adds that the rescue of the oryx raises the possibility of developing "breeding stock for other Middle East nations wishing to reintroduce the animal...
...The animal became popular in medieval folklore, tapestry and painting throughout the Western world, signifying purity, magical powers and courtly love...
...The trouble is worth taking because the wild beasts thrive in regions far too sparse to maintain the usual domestic herds...
...Over the long term, he says, "controlled utilization of the oryx may be possible...
...Specialists of the London Zoological Society, working with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, have investigated game reserves in the southern Sahara where herds of various protected species could possibly be expanded to become carefully controlled and sustained food sources...
...Arabian hunters responded to the creature's mythical aura in their own way, and this proved its undoing...
...In the future, it may be resurrected as a symbol of hope...
...A powder made out of its horn was used as an aphrodisiac...
...Eland, for example, another form of antelope, are already farmed in the drier areas of many sub-Saharan countries, including Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania...
...Considering their task a great honor, the Harasis prepared the oryxes for freedom by caring for them in special enclosures...
...The same holds true for some of the oryx' relatives...
Vol. 66 • November 1983 • No. 21
