Barka: More than 55,000 people visited the Daymaniyat Islands Nature Reserve from the beginning of this year until the end of August.

The nature reserves includes an archipelago of nine islands off the coast of the Wilayats of Seeb in the Governorate of Muscat and Barka in the Governorate of South Al Batinah.

It is distinguished by its nature and beautiful scenery due to the islands of limestone rocks and ancient coral reefs.

Eng Salem bin Saeed al Maskari, Director of the South Batinah Environment Department, said that the Daymaniyat Islands Nature Reserve includes nine main islands, namely: (Al Dimaniya - Hayut - Qafsiya - Al Jabal Al Kabir - Al Ghorfa - Al Lomiya - Qasma - Awlad Lajoun and Lajoun), and its total area is 203 square kilometers, including the land and the surrounding marine area.

He added to the Oman News Agency that the Environment Authority has allocated the islands of Al Jabal Al Kabir and Lajoun for overnight stay and camping for visitors from the beginning of November to the end of April only, while from the beginning of May to the end of October, landing is not permitted on any of the beaches of the islands of the reserve, in order to protect migratory birds whose nests are spread on the beaches and flats of the islands, stressing that the reserve is an incubator for these birds and their young during the nesting season.

He said that during May, an underwater museum was opened near the reserve, which is the first of its kind in the Sultanate of Oman. It aims to rehabilitate and increase the areas of coral reefs and compensate for those lost due to natural and human impacts, and to create a new ecosystem that matches natural coral reefs. It is expected that this museum will contribute to attracting many marine creatures of various sizes.

He pointed out that the museum is an innovative idea to establish an underwater military equipment museum and support eco-tourism by creating a distinctive and innovative tourist attraction for tourists and diving enthusiasts that supports tourism in the Sultanate of Oman in general, and reduces the density of visitors to the natural coral reef sites in the Daymaniyat Islands Nature Reserve.

For his part, Hamoud bin Khamis Al-Nairy, an environmental specialist and supervisor of the Daymaniyat Islands Islands Nature Reserve, said: “The Environment Authority issues an electronic permit for visitors to enter the reserve through the authority’s portal, enter data and obtain the permit electronically, stressing that there are efforts to preserve the reserve, represented by enacting laws and legislation that would regulate the reserve and provide a supervisory cadre that works around the clock according to the prepared programme.

The environmental specialist said that the beaches of the Daymaniyat Islands are visited by two types of turtles: the sharf and the green, as the reserve is a safe haven for turtles, as they nest due to the calm atmosphere at the site.

The reserve is also visited by marine mammals such as whales, dolphins and whale sharks.

He added that the Daymaniyat Islands Nature Reserve is the natural habitat for a large group of wildlife species, including a diverse group of plants, up to 15 species on the land and a group of algae and marine plants in the marine part. There are also many different types of birds that take refuge in the reserve due to the availability of food and the shallow nature of the islands’ waters.

He added that the islands are an important station for migratory birds such as the osprey and the peregrine falcon, and the island turns into a wonderful panorama when thousands of seabirds migrate during the breeding season.

Sea turtles also use the reserve as a nesting station and lay eggs there every year. In the marine part, we find a diversity of marine organisms and coral reefs, as the reserve contains a number of species of marine mammals and fish.

 

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