Jordan

Jordan is a country that is rich in history. Relics of many of the world's great civilizations can still be seen here, and it was home to some of the earliest settlements and villages known to man. The region played a significant role in biblical history, separated from ancient Palestine by the Jordan River. Within its borders lie the ancient biblical kingdoms of Moab, Gilead, and Edom, as well as the renowned red stone city of Petra, which was the capital of both the Nabatean kingdom and the Roman province of Arabia Petraea. Jordan has a wide range of habitats that are rich in biodiversity. Over two thousand plant species have been recorded in the country, including about 150 plant families and 700 genera. In the 1930s, the Arabian Oryx was hunted to extinction in the country. Also hunted and greatly reduced in numbers were three species of gazelle, the Dorcas Gazelle, Goitered gazelle and Mountain Gazelle. As a result, legislation was passed in 1973 to control hunting. A closed season and quotas were established. A breeding and reintroduction program for the Arabian Oryx, along with other species such as the Somali Ostrich, Persian Onager and gazelles, is now underway at the Shaumari Wildlife Reserve, a fenced-off area in the Central Jordanian desert. Nubian Ibex, Wild Boar, Fallow Deer and Roe Deer have also been released into the wild. There are many carnivorous mammals in Jordan, and about 426 species of birds have been recorded in the country. Jordan also hosts five species of turtles and a variety of snakes, mainly colubrids and venomous snakes, but with members of seven snake families.