removed the rest. The same thing happened to the gazelle. The last one seen 
here was 12 years ago. The birds were resident and ate grass, seeds and 
grain". 
Discussion 
Large areas of the steppe regions of Syria have only been permanently 
settled since the 1950s (B.Wedeman pers.comm.). Prior to this bedu 
pastoralists were the principal land users. The advent of motor vehi- 
cles and mechanised farming has brought an influx of people onto 
these marginal lands and the establishment of crops (predominantly 
barley). Subsequent cultivation and grazing have caused severe soil 
degradation and areas that once supported crops no longer do so (G. 
Gintzberger pers.comm.). The natural vegetation of many areas has 
been reduced to a sparse cover of annual grasses (Hordeum sp. and 
Schimus harbatus) and weeds (mainly thistles). 
Whilst habitat destruction is probably the main cause of the decline in 
Houbara numbers in Syria, hunting has become an increasing prob- 
lem, especially as hunters have become more mobile, aggravating the 
decline. Many Syrians are keen hunters and a variety of birds are 
sought as quarry, including Houbara. Omar, a Syrian hunter for much 
of his life has shot two Houbara. One was in the Safar area, south-east 
of Damascus in 1958, where they commonly occurred in a rocky area 
between the lava fields and steppe. The other he shot in the Bir Al- 
Kasab area, 60-70 km east of Damascus, in late August 1962. 
According to Omar, the last Houbara was seen in this latter area in 
1973. Gazelle were also observed in this area until 1957. Omar stated 
that, according to bedu, Houbara in the latter area migrate to Saudi 
Arabia during the winter months. Despite a life-long passion for hunt- 
ing he has now elected to stop as, in his opinion, most Syrians are 
indiscriminate in their hunting practices. 
Another trip was made to the steppe around Palmyra, central Syria, 
where further enquiries were made as to the species' status. Although 
there appear to be few, if any, Houbara in the area, I was able to visit 
the Al Talila Nature Reserve, a 20,000 ha wildlife reserve, 30 km 
south-east of Palmya. A deep trench surrounds the area, which has 
not been grazed for three years (A. Assa'ad pers.comm.). Vegetation 
in the reserve is significantly taller than in outside areas although in 
the section visited it is dominated by Anabasis sp., an unpalatable 
shrub. One of the aims of establishing the reserve was to attract 
20 
