Balochistan has very vast arid zones in Pakistan but this province is full of wonders. Zhob is also a small town and the district capital of Zhob is located in Balochistan along the banks of the Zhob river. This river is a tributary of the Gomal river and it passes about 4 km away from Zhob city. We can describe Zhob in any other article in detail but here we’ll tell you about a unique natural wonder i-e Kapip Reserved Forest of Balochistan: Where Olive Lives.

Kapip Reserved Forest in Balochistan – Image © Sarfraz Hayat

Kapip Reserved Forest is located on the outskirts of Zhob. This natural forest land is the place of the wild olive trees that are found in the upland areas of the west and north of Pakistan. Kapip Reserved Forest is a no go area and the olive trees are pretty safe from the human intervention. Olive trees are evergreen shrubs which is extremely popular in the Arabian countries and South Asia. Olive has tremendous religious significance near Muslims and the olive tree produces tiny white colored flowers, borne generally on the last year’s wood, in racemes springing from the axils of the leaves. The Olive fruit is a small drupe 1–2.5 centimeters (0.39–0.98 in) long, thinner-fleshed and smaller in wild plants than in orchard cultivars. Olives are harvested in the green to purple stage. Canned black olives may contain chemicals (usually ferrous sulfate) that turn them black artificially.

Kapip Reserved Forest presents a magnificent scenery with the wonderful display of the wild olive trees in the flowering season. The trees of Kapip Reserved Forest of Balochistan, where Olive lives are generally tough plants that are considered drought tolerant but some pests are harmful for them. Kapip Reserved Forest is also the natural habitat of shrikes, warblers, buzzards, mistle thrushes, spotted flycatchers and partridges.

Arabian Oryx , the unicorn antelope is rebounded from extinction with the efforts of IUCN through their captive breeding program and now their population is almost grown back with almost 1000 individuals. There was a time when Arabin Oryx was found largely throughout the Middle East. But they were ruthlessly hunted by Arabian princes in the start of the 19^th centuries and till the 1980’s they were almost extinct.  Arabian Oryx love to live in gravel desert or hard sand and now they have been reintroduced in the hard sand areas of  Oman, Saudi Arabia, Israel, United Arab Emirates, and Jordan.

Arabian-Oryx-Ashton-photos. © Arabian Deserts : Middle East

The Unicorn Arabian Oryx is known as re’em in Hebrew and their diet mainly consists of vegetation like  trees, buds, herbs, fruit, tubers and roots. The adult Arabian Oryx may be of 65-75 KG and normally they prefer to live in groups consisting of  8 – 20 animals. But Arabian Oryx have also been reported in herds of up to 100. The female Arabian Oryx is mature enough to give birth between the ages of 25 and 46 months. No particular season for birth of young Arabin Oryx is observed. The female Arabian Oryx may produce a calf yearly under favorable conditions. The average age of Arabian Oryx is 20 years. The Arabian Oryx are socially compatible with each other and they pass the hotter part of the day lying and resting under the tree shades.

Arabian Oryx , the unicorn antelope which was already extinct  from the world due to over hunting and they were classified endangered on the IUCN Red List ,even now the reintroduced wild Arabian Oryx is under the extreme threat of poaching. In the late 1990’s almost 200 of reintroduced Arabian Oryx were killed again by hunters in Oman.