9,000 Gazelles in Isfahan at Risk of Starvation

The commander of the Environmental Protection Unit of Isfahan Province has announced that 9,000 gazelles are at risk of "starvation" due to drought, with some of their forage being provided through "vows." According to IRIB News Agency, Morteza Jamshidian stated that forage in the gazelle habitats in "Mouteh," "Kolah Qazi," and "Gomishloo" in Isfahan Province has decreased due to ongoing drought. Mr. Jamshidian added that about two thousand gazelles in "Kolah Qazi" Park are in need of "forage." He mentioned, "If we want to provide each of these animals with one kilogram of forage daily, we need two tons of forage each day." This official also announced that the Isfahan environmental department lacks "sufficient funding" to provide this amount of forage, but a citizen in "Golpayegan" has fulfilled a "vow" to supply forage for these animals. He also reported that "some farmers in the Mahyar plain have also donated their crop forage to feed the Kolah Qazi gazelles." As reported by IRIB News Agency, in the protected area of "Mouteh," more than five thousand gazelles and in the national park of "Gomishloo," two thousand gazelles are facing food shortages. Water scarcity and drought in recent years in Isfahan Province and some other provinces of Iran have led to a decrease in wildlife populations or the migration of these animals to other areas. On August 15 of last year, Saeed Youssefpour, the deputy for monitoring and evaluation of the Isfahan Environmental Protection Agency, had also announced that small ruminants were in a state of alert due to prolonged droughts. Isfahan Province is among the top provinces in terms of wildlife population and has a significant population of animal species, with approximately 50% of Iran's wild small ruminant population located in this province. Currently, two million hectares of natural areas in Isfahan Province are protected and managed by environmental guards under the designation of four protected areas and hunting and shooting bans. In this context, "the generation of gazelles, marals, and roe deer in Iran is declining."