page_title: Al Hefaiyah Conservation Centre
section_title: Fauna
hierarchical_section_title: Al Hefaiyah Conservation Centre / Fauna
caption_attribution_description: English: Arabian Leopard in Sharjah
context_page_description: Al Hefaiyah Mountain Conservation Centre is a wildlife reserve and visitor centre located west of the coastal town of Kalba in the Emirate of Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates.
context_section_description: Developed by the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), the Centre is operated by the Sharjah Environment and Protected Areas Authority. The centre comprises a number of landscape enclosures in which mountain fauna are housed in their natural environment. Many of the species housed at the centre were previously at Sharjah's Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife (BCEAW), and are indigenous to the regions of Wadi Al Helo, Khor Fakkan and Kalba in Al Hajar Mountains.
  Outdoor animals include Arabian leopard, rock hyrax, gazelle, caracal, Arabian tahr, Arabian wolf and striped hyena. In addition to the critically endangered leopard, the Arabian wolf (Canis lupus arabs) and Arabian tahr (Arabitragus jayakari) are designated threatened species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
  Smaller species are housed indoors at the centre and include snakes, lizards and hedgehogs.
  Visitors to the centre travel around the outdoor areas in golf buggies with guides, with a number of hides set up to allow the animals to be observed in their natural habitat. The centre also plays host to art exhibitions and other events.
caption: Arabian leopard
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