Wadi Sireen Reserve is home to one of the rarest and most timid mammals in the world known as the Arabian Tahr. The wadi’s has the perfect environment for Tahr to live such as: mountain cliffs and rocky slopes.
To protect the reserve, people who want to visit the reserve have to take permission from the Office for the Conservation of the Environment. It provides the visitors with some rules and restrictions to abide by.
Wadi Sireen Reserve is located in the eastern Al-Hajar Mountains about 45 kilometers south west of Muscat Governorate.
The wadi borders three wilayats: Amerat, Quriyat, and Dima Wa Tayeen, and there are two entry points atJebel Aswad “The Black Mountain” and in Jebel Abyad “The White Mountain”.
Along with Tahr, there are a number of animals which share wadi Sireen’s hospitality such as Arabian gazelle, Arabian wolf, Blanfor’s fox, Red fox, Hedgehog, deer, Jayakar’s Oman lizard, common Kestrel, Egyptian vulture, Sand partridge, Oman saw-scaled viper.
There are also some kinds of birds, in addition to many reptiles and invertebrates. Animals in the area are found alone or in small groups like family groups.
Wadi Sireen contains 400 types of plant, ten of them are endemic and four are endangered species.
The Arabian Tahr is the smallest animal of its species in the world. It is unique with a short body, hooked horns in sexes, reddish-brown hair, as well as a dark line that extends along the back.
The male Tahr has a long mane that covers its entire neck and continues to grow as the animal advances in age.
It can survive without water for a long time. However, in case of good vegetation presence, in summer it will come down to drinking every two or three days.
Tahr feeds on vegetation like grasses, fruits, seeds and leaves.