Presented during the 17h Annual Sahelo-Saharan Interest Group Meeting organized by the NGO Sahara Conservation Fund in Senegal, from 4 to 6 May 2017. The Sahara Conservation Fund (SCF) gathers every year about a hundred people who are interested in the field of Sahelo-Saharan species conservation.

1. 17th Annual Sahelo-Saharan Interest Group Meeting
2 days of talks on biodiversity conservation in the Sahara and in the Sahel
Under the umbrella of the oryx – Monitoring the Biodiversity of Tunisia
Marie PETRETTO, Conservation Biologist - Marwell Wildlife
May 4 – 6, 2017

2. Under the umbrella of the oryx
Marie Petretto1, Phil Riordan1, Tim Woodfine1, Chaouki Najjar1, Habib Abid2
1 Marwell Wildlife, Colden Common, Winchester, Hampshire, SO21 1JH, UK
2 DGF, Ministère de l’Agriculture et des Ressources Hydrauliques, Avenue Savary, 1002 Tunis, Tunisia
SSIG 2017,
Saint-Louis, Senegal
Monitoring the biodiversity in Tunisia

3. Small
population
Erratic
environment
Woodfine T. & Gilbert T. (2004). The Biology, Husbandry and Conservation of Scimitar-
horned Oryx (Oryx dammah)

4. Population
Performance

5. Population
Performance
Animal
Health

6. Population
Performance
Animal
Health
Rainfall

7. Population
Performance
Animal
Health
RainfallVegetation

8. Population
Performance
Animal
Health
RainfallVegetation
Other
species

9. Scimitar-horned oryx reintroduction
& pilot project in Dghoumes NP
Antelope Monitoring & Management in Tunisia
(Dghoumes NP, Sept 2012 – Sept 2013)
üMonitoring & Management of SH Oryx and their Wider
Environment
üConservation Genetics & Evaluation of the SH Oryx Meta-
Population

10. Births & deaths
Number & sex-ratio
Group structure and habitat use
Body condition
Genetics

11. Preliminary analysis on the
status of the herpetofauna
in Dghoumes NP
Ernesto Filippi, 2013
ü14 reptiles
(2 geckos, 1 skink, 2 lacertids,
2 agamids, 1 varanid, 6 snakes)
ü1 amphibian

12. Small mammals and their relationship with large
herbivores in Dghoumes NP
Robert Cooke, 2014
ü8 species (gerbillus sp, meriones
sp, Ctenodactylus sp)
üLow capture rate
üTime consuming method

13. Measuring grazing pressure as part of post-release
monitoring of reintroduced antelope in semi-arid steppe
Tim Woodfine, Marie Petretto, Abdelkader Chetoui, Khaled Zahzah & Guy Parker
SSIG Agadir, 2013
ü Evidence that vegetation has recovered significantly following protection
compared to grazing land outside the park
ü However, historic over-grazing is still evident
ü Prolonged drought and a growing oryx population could push the
vegetation back into decline

14. Cooke R. et al (2016). Resource partitioning between ungulate populations in arid environments.
Ecology and Evolution
Distance sampling as a technique
for quantifying habitat use:
Resource partitioning by
ungulates in Tunisia
Robert Cooke, 2014
SH Oryx
üpositively associated with plant species richness
and vegetated ephemeral watercourses
ünegatively associated with rock cover
Dorcas gazelles
üno significant relationship the covariates
quantified (no habitat type preference)

15. The conservation implications of diet & resource use
the African wolf and the red fox in southern Tunisia
Holly Meynard, 2015
ülow impact of predation on large ungulate
species
üdiverse prey spectrum
üWolf and fox play an opportunistic predator
role in this environment
üSuccessful genetic analysis of species
identification

16. Habitat use: what role play the mountains in the
SH Oryx environment?
Marie Petretto & Chawki Najjar, 2016
üCamera-trap & transect surveys
üThe SH Oryx extend their habitat to
the mountain basements
üPossible way out of the park

17. Habitat use: what role play the mountains in the
SH Oryx environment?
Marie Petretto & Chawki Najjar, 2016
üBreeding groups of wild Barbary
sheep have been re-observed
üMany observations of wolves, foxes,
wild boars, Dorcas gazelles, gundis;
evidences of more cryptic species
Petretto M. et al (2017). Confirmation of free-ranging Barbary sheep (A. lervia) in Dghoumes NP
and Boukornine NP, Tunisia. ORYX, Conservation news, 51(3).

18. Feasibility study for an integrated wildlife-livestock
health monitoring in Tunisia:
small ruminants and SH oryx
Gian-Lorenzo d’Alterio, 2013-2014
9th International Sheep Veterinary Congress, May 2017
üQuestionnaire-based surveys
üWhat are the pathogens?
üImprovements in pastoral practices
and management

19. Replicated the model to the other
protected areas

20. Replicated the model to other
antelope species

21. Catalyzed the North-African ostrich
reintroduction
üFounders from 2 lineages
üComprehensive national strategy
üNatural breeding (semi-wild)

22. Tozeur
Gafsa
Sfax
Douz
Tataouine
Ben Guerdane
Haddej
Mezzouma
Bou Hedma
5 000 ha
(16 448 ha)
Orbata
220 ha
(5 746 ha)
Haddej (Bou
Hedma)
320 ha
Sidi Toui
6 315 haOued Dekouk
500 ha
(5 750 ha)
Jabbes
(Senghar)
2 660 ha
(287 000 ha)
El Gonna
(4 711 ha)Dghoumes
8 000 ha
Djebil
7 700 ha
(150 000 ha)
Poster presnnted at the EAZA Forum, Fuengirola 2016

23. Captive breeding for repopulation
purposes
üMain identified weakness
üRely on voluntary services
üLack of resources

24. Capacity building: Wildlife &
Conservation Medicine workshop

25. Capacity building: Veterinary training

26. Risks assessment: developing standard
of practices
üImprove understanding &
adapt management
üDocument events
üLab work & diagnosis

27. Ecosystem health
Animal health Human health

28. Risks assessment:
developing standard
of practices
üMitigation of the illegal wildlife trade
impact
üRehabilitation & release
üAnimal movements, diseases
transmission and human health

29. Reinforcement as a conservation tool for returning
Tunisian spur-thighed tortoises seized from wildlife
trade back into the wild
Kezia Bellamy, 2015

30. Assessment of the risks associated to the use of
seized tortoises as a tool for population reinforcement
üImpact on the ecosystems
üHybridization
üPathogens transmission risk

31. Preliminary assessment of the tortoises potential role
in the transmission of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic
Fever (CCHF)
Chawki Najjar, 2015
üVectorial zoonosis
üSub-species distribution & relative density

32. Small
population
Erratic
environment
Habitat
restoration
Other species
recovery
Capacity building
Benefits for locals
Development of
partnerships and
networks (human
health, livestock,
tourism)
ICONIC SPECIES

33. 8,5
1
62
8,5
8
86
-90-85-80-75-70-65-60-55-50-45-40-35-30-25-20-15-10-5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90
Scimitar-horned Oryx (O. damah) population structure,
all protected areas (N=176), 01/17
male female
Dghoumes
; 71
Bou
Hedma;
38
Haddej; 18
Sidi Toui;
42
Oued
Dekouk;
39
Estimated population size per protected area
(N=208), 01/17

34. Bou Hedma;
0
Haddej; 44
Djebil; 20
Jabbes; 50
Estimated population size per protected area (N=114),
01/17
0
5
2
39,5
0
5
5
46,5
-50 -45 -40 -35 -30 -25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
Addax (A. nasomaculatus) population structure,
all protected areas (N=104), 01/17
male female

35. Dghoumes;
25
Orbata; 27
Sidi Toui; 8
Friguia; 5
Estimated population size per protected area (N=65),
01/17
13
19
8
5
20
-25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25
North-African ostrich (S. c. camelus) population structure,
all protected areas (N=65), 01/17
male female

36. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION
Further discussions
welcome!
mariep@marwell.co.uk