Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve

Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve
Interactive map of Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve
32°45′11″N 35°00′47″E / 32.753°N 35.013°E / 32.753; 35.013
LocationCarmel mountains, Northwestern Israel
Land area1,500 acres (610 ha)[1]
WebsitePreserve Website

Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve (Hebrew: שמורת טבע חי בר בכרמל) is a 1,500-acre (610 ha) breeding and acclimation center administered by the Israel Nature Reserves and National Parks Authority, situated in the Carmel mountains in northwestern Israel, within the larger Mount Carmel National Park. The Carmel Hai-Bar is the Mediterranean climate counterpart of the Yotvata Hai-Bar Nature Reserve which operates in the desert. The University of Haifa is located next to the entrance to the park.[2]

Endangered and locally extinct animals (which formerly lived in Israel) are bred here for possible reintroduction to the Mediterranean forest of northern Israel.

Some of the species bred here are:

Persian fallow deer, griffon vultures, Egyptian vultures, and roe deer have been successfully reintroduced into the wild from this facility.[7][5][4] Formerly extinct in Israel, the Persian fallow deer now numbers approximately 300 in the wild.[8] Research shows that Egyptian vultures bred in the Hai Bar reserve and released into the wild have similar survival rates to those born in the wild.[3][6]

The 2010 Fire and the Heroic Rescue Operation

During the devastating Mount Carmel forest fire in December 2010, the Carmel Hai-Bar Nature Reserve faced an immediate and existential threat that put its entire reintroduction project at risk, particularly the vulnerable Persian fallow deer population.[9] As the massive wildfire surrounded the reserve, rangers and rescue teams bravely refused to evacuate the site, risking their lives to create fire barriers and protect the trapped animals.[10] A complex rescue operation was quickly launched under heavy smoke to evacuate the animals, during which endangered raptors, wild sheeps, wild goats were captured and rushed to safer locations.[10] While some territorial fallow deer had to be released into the open forest to flee the flames on their own, the dedicated, round-the-clock efforts of the staff ultimately saved the vast majority of the reserve's rare wildlife from destruction.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Hai Bar Carmel". parks.org.il. Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Hai Bar Carmel National Park - Full Guide - Travel Israel". Israel In Photos. 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  3. 1 2 Efrat, Ron; Hatzofe, Ohad; Miller, Ygal; Berger-Tal, Oded (December 2020). "Determinants of survival in captive-bred Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus after their release to the wild". Conservation Science and Practice. 2 (12) e308. Bibcode:2020ConSP...2E.308E. doi:10.1111/csp2.308. ISSN 2578-4854. S2CID 228895154.
  4. 1 2 Saltz, D.; David, S. Bar; Zidon, R.; Dolev, A.; Perelberg, A.; King, R.; Berger-Tal, O. (2011-04-08). "Reintroducing the Persian fallow deer Dama mesopotamica in Israel – a chronology". Animal Production Science. 51 (4): 251–258. doi:10.1071/AN10187. ISSN 1836-5787.
  5. 1 2 Wallach, Arian D.; Inbar, Moshe; Shanas, Uri (2009-05-18). "Roe deer and decapitated Anemone flowers". Israel Journal of Plant Sciences. 57 (1–2): 103–106. doi:10.1560/IJPS.57.1-2.103 (inactive 16 July 2026). ISSN 0792-9978. S2CID 215510846.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2026 (link)
  6. 1 2 Ron Efrat, Ohad Hatzofe, Ygal Miller, Thomas Mueller, Nir Sapir, Oded Berger-Tal, Postrelease survival of captive-bred Egyptian Vultures is similar to that of wild-hatched Egyptian Vultures and is not affected by release age or season, Ornithological Applications, Volume 124, Issue 2, 5 May 2022, duab065, doi:10.1093/ornithapp/duab065
  7. ↑ Saltz, David (1996-01-01). "Minimizing extinction probability due to demographic stochasticity in a reintroduced herd of Persian fallow deer Dama dama mesopotamica". Biological Conservation. 75 (1): 27–33. Bibcode:1996BCons..75...27S. doi:10.1016/0006-3207(95)00041-0. ISSN 0006-3207.
  8. ↑ Werner, N.Y., Rabiei, A., Saltz, D., Daujat, J. & Baker, K. 2015. Dama mesopotamica (errata version published in 2016). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T6232A97672550. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T6232A22164332.en. Accessed on 16 May 2023.
  9. ↑ שטיינר, נועה; זלוצקי, מנחם; אלבז, נתן; חשמונאי, ענבר; דולב, עמית; רותם, דותן; שקדי, יהושע; גינזבורג, אורית; גלון, ישראל; אדר, כליל; ויינברגר, מיכאל; סוויסה, יצחק; פרבולוצקי, אבי (13 December 2015). "חמש שנים לאחר השרפה הגדולה בכרמל: תמונת מצב של השיקום האקולוגי". אקולוגיה וסביבה (in Hebrew). 6 (4/2015).
  10. 1 2 3 יעל דראל ובועז פיילר. "האש הגיעה לחי-בר, החיות שרדו: "נס של הטבע"". secblock.yit.co.il. Retrieved 2026-07-14.


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