Page 137 - Arabian Studies (II)

Hunting Techniques and Practices in the Arabian Peninsula 129

The following are the traditional quarry of the hawk and the
saluki in the Arabian Peninsula: 1. the houbara*; 2. the stone curlew;
3. the hare*; 4. the gazelle*; 5. the oryx*.

1. The houbara is the MacQueen’s bustard, chlamydotis undulata
Macqueenii, a member of the family oticlidae. The houbara is
naturally hunted by the hawk alone. The bird has a wing span of
about 36 inches. It is a courageous enemy when attacked by the
hawk and kicks viciously at it when caught.6 8
2. The stone curlew, burhinus ocdicnemus saharae, is, like the
cream-coloured courser, of the family charadriiformes. It has a wing
span of 17-18 inches.69
3. The hare, of the family lepus capensis, with the houbara is the
most common quarry in the Peninsula and is hunted by both hawks
and hounds. The Arabian species of the hare are all smaller than the
brown hare, being approximately 17 inches on average, i.e. about the
same size as the common European rabbit, while maintaining the
distinctive shape and habits of the hare family. They will, however,
often hide in other animals’ burrows and will scoop out small forms
in the sand. Their activity is mainly nocturnal.70
4. There are eleven listed species of the gazelle found in the
Peninsula. Arab sources indicate four common species all of which
are given in the Glossary below. Of these only the gazella gazella
arabica and the gazella gazella have been tentatively identified with
the Arabic names, rim and idmi respectively. The largest males stand
about 24 inches at the shoulder, though the height differs con­
siderably from species to species. 7 1
5. The oryx, oryx leucoryx, is the largest Arabian antelope and the
quarry of the saluki in the past. The animal stands about 40 inches at
the shoulder and the horn of the adult male is approximately 28
inches long. The adult is white with contrasting dark chocolate
brown markings. The calf is fawn.7 2

HUNTING
First hand information can now be found only on the hunting of the
birds, the houbara and the stone curlew, and the hare. The hunting
of gazelle was prohibited about three years ago in Saudi Arabia due
to their extreme scarcity and in other countries bordering the
Peninsula73 even before 1956. Informants today remember gazelle
hunts, but these were invariably carried out with firearms, and such
material is thus not included in this article. As for the oryx, the
numbers of this huge beast were decimated even earlier than those of