AMMAN — The Migratory Soaring Birds Project
hopes to support one of Jordan’s most often overlooked tourism draws, and build
a foundation for
avitourism in the country once the pandemic is over.
اضافة اعلان
Funded by the
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and conducted in collaboration with BirdLife, the project will
take advantage of Jordan’s location and the thousands of birds that migrate
through the country every year, as well as the unique species that call the
Kingdom home.
Tareq Qaneer, a bird specialist at the
Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RCSN), described birdwatching as a global type of tourism and
subgenre of environmental tourism.
He
explained that the significance of Jordan as a destination for birdwatching is
twofold: Jordan lies along important migratory routes and is also home to rare
species of birds.
“One
of the most important migratory routes, which goes from Turkey to Africa,
passes through Jordan. … Millions of migratory birds fly through Jordan,” he
said.
Additionally,
certain species of birds — while native to the region — are “best represented”
in Jordan.
Qaneer
said that one such example is the Syrian serin, which can be found in
Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria but exists in much larger numbers in Jordan and
nests at the Dana Biosphere Reserve.
Another example is the Sinai rosefinch, which
has become a draw for foreign birdwatchers, especially from the United States
and Europe.
The Nubian Nightjar, the Desert Lark, and the
Dead Sea sparrow — which frequent the Dead Sea and Southern Ghor — also draw
foreign tourists.
“Jordan also has the potential to become an
important destination for birdwatching tourists. Neighboring countries have
taken advantage of this type of global tourism and generate large amounts of
money as a result,” Qanner
explained.
“For example, Turkey’s income from
birdwatching tourism is close to 1 billion dollars.”
As such, the program hopes to develop Jordan’s
capacity for and marketing of birdwatching tourism.
Qaseem added that the majority of birdwatching
tourists come from the United States, Australia, and European countries like
Spain, France, the Netherlands, and Britain.
“If
a tourist wants to come for the purposes of birdwatching, there needs to be a
program for that. Travel companies also need a program they can advertise,” he
continued.
The Migratory Soaring Birds program comes with
several options depending on tourist preferences, including duration of the
trip and birdwatching routes.
Qaseem outlined two different types of tourists
that the program accommodates. “Twitchers” have a list of birds that they hope
to see and therefore look for specific species, while others are more
interested in the migratory patterns of birds.
He added that the project has worked to
develop a training program for around 20 people to visit the areas — whether in
Aqaba, Southern Ghor, Azraq, or Shaumari — that are most attractive to
birdwatchers.
“We picked 20 people from local communities
and, to create new job opportunities for them, we will have them join the
tourist groups for a duration of eight days,” he said.
In addition to tourism, the project will also
operate across four other sectors, including energy, agriculture, hunting, and
waste management.
Qaseem emphasized the need to work with local
associations, like the Ministry of Tourism, in addition to travel companies to
ensure the success of the program.
He also noted that, in collaboration with this
program, some resorts are looking to birdwatching as a means of diversifying
the activities that they offer.
Because Aqaba is an important resting place
for birds before they cross the ocean and fly into Africa, Ayla Oasis has built
bodies of water for the birds, in addition to having recently created a
“Feather” trail that any visitor can walk through to watch birds.
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