emirates7 - The Sharjah International Conservation Forum for Arabian Biodiversity (SICFAB) is advancing discussions on specialised environmental challenges and practical applications in its 25th edition. Organised by the Sharjah Environment and Protected Areas Authority at Sharjah Safari and continuing until 5 February, the sessions are fostering knowledge exchange and elevating professional conservation practices through a focus on invasive species management, seabird stranding response, and sea snake assessment.
The forum focused on health challenges associated with avian influenza and the need to identify stable pathways for local species as well as the routes through which invasive species spread. Review sessions stressed implementing the Indian House Crow Management Guide, including prevention, awareness, monitoring, the removal of gatherings, and early surveillance of ports and coastal areas while considering the birds’ intelligent behavior.
Participants also emphasised integrating multiple strategies, such as poisoning, nest destruction, and oiling eggs to limit reproduction, while leveraging artificial intelligence to assess the feasibility of eradication, enhance early monitoring, and utilise resources from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The “Toxicology and Seabird Examination” session highlighted Sharjah’s pioneering efforts in monitoring environmental and marine wildlife health. Collaborating with Sharjah Municipality laboratories, the team tracked seabirds’ ingestion of solid waste, microplastics, and oils, and examined epidemic diseases, ensuring the safety of both the ecosystem and wildlife, as part of the Sharjah Marine Stranding Response Program.
The forum offered intensive training on avian forensic necropsy, led by Dr. Daniela Denk and Dr. David Roberts. The training covered medical history review, weight measurement, external examination for trauma, parasites, feather condition, and systematic internal examination. Critical indicators such as hemorrhages in the tongue or cranial cavity, liver lesions, eye exudates, and sterile brain swabs for viral testing were highlighted. Experts demonstrated techniques for working efficiently under field conditions and distinguishing pre-mortem trauma from predator damage, thereby enhancing regional capacity for scientific diagnosis and environmental response.
Professor Fatin Samara and Dr. Lara Dronjak linked environmental health to human activities, emphasising heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, and microplastic contamination found in all examined seabirds, primarily as fibers from synthetic textiles, indicating human impact on marine ecosystems.
The IUCN Sea Snake Specialist Group continued its first global reassessment since 2009, co-chaired by Dr. Vinay Udyawer and Dr. Aaron Lobo, by integrating local data, such as oil spill impacts, with global perspectives to evaluate extinction risks for all 72 sea snake species.
The forum concluded with a safari tour at Sharjah Safari, connecting scientific discussions to practical wildlife management and protected area conservation. Collectively, the sessions underscored that effective biodiversity stewardship relies on scientific accuracy and practical skills, strengthening regional capacity to monitor, diagnose, and respond to environmental challenges in the Arabian Peninsula.
The forum focused on health challenges associated with avian influenza and the need to identify stable pathways for local species as well as the routes through which invasive species spread. Review sessions stressed implementing the Indian House Crow Management Guide, including prevention, awareness, monitoring, the removal of gatherings, and early surveillance of ports and coastal areas while considering the birds’ intelligent behavior.
Participants also emphasised integrating multiple strategies, such as poisoning, nest destruction, and oiling eggs to limit reproduction, while leveraging artificial intelligence to assess the feasibility of eradication, enhance early monitoring, and utilise resources from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The “Toxicology and Seabird Examination” session highlighted Sharjah’s pioneering efforts in monitoring environmental and marine wildlife health. Collaborating with Sharjah Municipality laboratories, the team tracked seabirds’ ingestion of solid waste, microplastics, and oils, and examined epidemic diseases, ensuring the safety of both the ecosystem and wildlife, as part of the Sharjah Marine Stranding Response Program.
The forum offered intensive training on avian forensic necropsy, led by Dr. Daniela Denk and Dr. David Roberts. The training covered medical history review, weight measurement, external examination for trauma, parasites, feather condition, and systematic internal examination. Critical indicators such as hemorrhages in the tongue or cranial cavity, liver lesions, eye exudates, and sterile brain swabs for viral testing were highlighted. Experts demonstrated techniques for working efficiently under field conditions and distinguishing pre-mortem trauma from predator damage, thereby enhancing regional capacity for scientific diagnosis and environmental response.
Professor Fatin Samara and Dr. Lara Dronjak linked environmental health to human activities, emphasising heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, and microplastic contamination found in all examined seabirds, primarily as fibers from synthetic textiles, indicating human impact on marine ecosystems.
The IUCN Sea Snake Specialist Group continued its first global reassessment since 2009, co-chaired by Dr. Vinay Udyawer and Dr. Aaron Lobo, by integrating local data, such as oil spill impacts, with global perspectives to evaluate extinction risks for all 72 sea snake species.
The forum concluded with a safari tour at Sharjah Safari, connecting scientific discussions to practical wildlife management and protected area conservation. Collectively, the sessions underscored that effective biodiversity stewardship relies on scientific accuracy and practical skills, strengthening regional capacity to monitor, diagnose, and respond to environmental challenges in the Arabian Peninsula.
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