Mammals in the
Negev desert in the
Yotvata wildlife reserve in distress swims off national park of
Caesarea Maritima s
bow-riding off
Ashdod Israel contains a variety of mammals due to its geographical and climatic diversity. For many of the mammals, Israel is the border of their territory. The territories of species which originate in the
Palearctic generally stop at the deserts and those who originate from the African deserts usually stop at the Mediterranean coasts. Most of the mammals in Israel are of a Palearctic origin and about a tenth of the mammals are endemic to
its general area. The land of Israel once contained a greater variety of
mammals, however in recent times many mammals such as the
European water vole, the
Asiatic cheetah and the
Caucasian squirrel went locally extinct. The largest
predator in Israel was the
Arabian leopard which is now also believed to be locally extinct due to the lack of sightings since 2011. In the modern age many mammal populations such as the
sand cat are in a high risk of extinction. In total there are 57 species of mammals which are endangered (as of 2002) out of the total 104 species. There are 33 species of
bats in Israel (as of 2002), the most species out of the ten mammalian
orders currently in Israel, most of which are insect-eaters. Researchers from
Tel Aviv University found 12 species of bat living in old army outposts in the
Jordan Valley. Various animal species have become extinct due to unchecked hunting under
Ottoman rule and to a lesser extent under
British Mandate rule, due to a non-enforcement of hunting laws. By the early 20th century, the
white oryx,
Syrian brown bear,
Asiatic lion,
red deer,
Asiatic cheetah, and
Syrian wild ass had become extinct in the region. Modern hunting laws prohibit all hunting of mammals, birds, reptiles and
amphibians, except those considered
pests and specific animals in hunting seasons. However the packs of feral dogs that are taking over the countryside are an increasing threat to wildlife and domesticated animals. Rapid
urbanization as well as overforestation (planting many dense
eucalyptus and
pine forests) have caused the destruction of many natural habitats in modern times. One of the most famous examples of habitats destroyed is the drying of swamps including the
Hula lake which caused the local extinction of the
European water vole and
jungle cat. An ancient wave of urbanization during the
Iron Age resulted in the local extinction of the
aurochs,
bubal hartebeest, and
hippopotamus. Another distinguished cause of endangerment is the past use of
DDT and other chemicals which has hurt all of the
birds of prey populations as well as the bat population (mainly
Microchiroptera) which were also killed by human made lighting in the caves due to the suspicion that fruit-eating bats were harming local crops. Some mammals that have gone locally extinct are being
reintroduced, such as the
Persian fallow deer and the
roe deer. The extinct
narrow-nosed rhinoceros may have survived in Israel as recently as 15,000 years ago, which if correct would make it the youngest known record of the species.
Reptiles Israel has roughly 100 species of
reptiles, of which almost a third live in its northern areas. The extinction rate among reptiles has been relatively low here; reptiles that became locally extinct in the region around the beginning of the 20th century include the
Nile crocodile,
European pond turtle,
Levant viper, and
Nile monitor.
Amphibians '' , Israel's most widespread amphibian The number of amphibians in Israel has decreased dramatically since the last century mainly due to the drying of various swamps and wetlands by early settlers. The
Hula painted frog was thought to be
extinct until a female specimen was found in November 2011. Environmental improvements in the Hula reserve have been cited as a possible reason for the frog's re-emergence. The amphibians of Israel include five from the
order Anura (the
marsh frog,
Hyla savignyi, the
variable green toad, the
eastern spadefoot toad, and the
Hula painted frog) and two from the order
Urodela (the
fire salamander and the
banded newt). The banded newt, the eastern spadefoot toad, and the Hula painted frog are critically endangered. The
variable green toad is the most widespread amphibian in Israel, living across nearly the entire
Mediterranean shore. While the toad is usually limited to areas with a constant supply of water, populations have begun to spread into drier places. Even though it has relative great range in Israel, a 55% decrease has been noted in active
spawning sites, mainly due to destruction of habitats, water contamination and habitats being split by roads or train tracks. The population currently numbers at a few thousands. The
banded newt (
Ommatotriton vittatus vittatus) lives mainly in the northern areas of Israel, especially in the
Galilee area, mostly in
vernal pools. The coastal shores near
Ashkelon are the southern border for its global population. Small populations in more southern areas disappeared due to water contamination. They are inactive during the summer, staying underground in
aestivation, and even in winter they are only active at night. The newts have slightly different
breeding seasons depending on location, ranging from January–February in the coastal plains to February–March in the Galilee. The banded newt is critically endangered in Israel (only 5% of the 1950s population remains) and is thus a protected species.
Fire salamanders (
Salamandra salamandra salamandra or
S. s. infraimmacullata) reside near the Mediterranean shores and are the least widespread of the amphibians of Israel. The salamanders have three distinct populations (in
Tel Dan,
Mount Carmel and the Galilee). Compared to European populations, the adults have especially long legs and fingers and a more rounded head. The local populations differ in size (Tel Dan salamanders are much smaller), arrangement of spots on the skin and colour (ranging from
orange to
yellow), in mating habits and times, as well as activity times (Tel Dan salamanders are active throughout most of the year because of their proximity to water). The populations are relatively stable. Nevertheless, they are an endangered species in Israel and one of the three amphibians to be a protected species.
Marsh frogs (
Pelophylax ridibundus) live almost exclusively near stable water pools or winter pools, mainly in north and central Israel. The frogs are active even during the summer and sometimes during the day. The frogs are lighter and slightly smaller than in other countries.
Fish s in the
Gulf of Eilat Israel is currently home to about 1,728 species of fish, 410 of which in the
Mediterranean and 1,270 in the
Red Sea. The rest, 48 species, are cultivated or wild freshwater fish. The fish population has declined and endemic species such as
Nemacheilus dori have become endangered.
Acanthobrama hulensis became extinct in the 1970s following a decline in population after the drying of the Hula lake. In 2012, the
Acanthobrama telavivensis, was which was nearly extinct, reappeared in the
Yarkon River after a decade of rehabilitation and preservation efforts. Einot Zukim, saline
wetlands in the north of the
Dead Sea, is the only known place in the world where populations of blue and Dead Sea
killifish (Nevit Hula and Nevit Yam Hamelakh) live side by side. The
long jaw tristramella became extinct in 1990.
Birds , Israel's national bird, with insect About 500 million birds from 500 species pass through Israel during the bi-annual migration season, from Europe and West Asia to Africa in the winter, and back in the spring. A program has been developed to build major birdwatching centres in
Ein Gedi and
Sde Boker. Existing stations will be upgraded in
Eilat, the
Jordan Valley and
kibbutzim Kfar Ruppin and
Ma'agan Michael.
Lake Hula is the stopover point for tens of thousands of cranes migrating from Finland to Ethiopia every winter. In Israel, farmers set out food for them to keep them from damaging crops near the lake. The number of
raptors has been decreasing due to its prey becoming endangered or extinct as well as massive poisoning of some prey. About a fifth of the nesting birds are endangered (39 out of 206). The
Arabian ostrich has been extinct from Israel for years. An attempt was made to introduce the
North African ostrich from captivity to the open areas and reserves of the
Negev desert in Israel where once Arabian ostriches lived. The
northern bald ibis has been
extirpated from Israel.
Invertebrates '' crab Israel has about 30,000
invertebrates, of which about 22,500 are
insects and 3,900 are non-insect
arthropods. Among the invertebrates there is a wide variety of
molluscs, of which about 230 are terrestrial, 850 are of the
Mediterranean and 1,120 are of the
Red Sea. The insects of Israel belong to various ecological zones, but mainly to the Mediterranean. There are insects belonging to roughly 27
orders in Israel, out of about 29 worldwide.
Invasive species Israel contains many
invasive species brought by man, including scores of
molluscs (the most common is the common garden snail
Cornu aspersum) which usually live around gardens and greenhouses but also in natural habitats of native molluscs. As of 2008, over 220 species of invasive
insects have been identified, some of them considered pests. The situation is little better with
vertebrates, as a 2004 report reported that there are two mammalian invasive species (the
coypu and
Indian palm squirrel), one
fish species (
mosquito fish), two reptilian species (the
red-eared pond slider and the
roughtail gecko) as well as 18 bird species. There are no amphibian invasive species, most likely due to the fact there are no suitable habitats for such. ==Flora==