Queen of Sheba's gazelle

Queen of Sheba's gazelle
Conservation status
Extinct (1951)  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Family:	Bovidae
Subfamily:	Antilopinae
Tribe:	Antilopini
Genus:	Gazella
Species:	†G. bilkis
Binomial name
†Gazella bilkis Groves & Lay, 1985

The Queen of Sheba's gazelle or Yemen gazelle (Gazella bilkis) is an extinct species of gazelle. It was sometimes regarded as a subspecies of the Arabian gazelle, which is no longer a valid species. It was found on the mountains and hillsides in Yemen, but none have been sighted since 1951, when five specimens were collected in mountains near Ta'izz, where it was reportedly common at the time.^[1]

Surveys in the area of their former occurrence have failed to find any sign of its presence.^[2] In 1985, a photograph of gazelles was taken in a private collection, Al Wabra Wildlife Farm, in Qatar. Zoologist Colin Groves claims these could possibly be surviving Queen of Sheba's gazelles.^[3] It is not confirmed whether these animals truly belong to this species. The cause of extinction is still uncertain.

References

1. IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group (2016). "Gazella bilkis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T8987A50188129. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T8987A50188129.en. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
2. Mallon, D.P. and Al-Safadi, M. 2001.Yemen. In: D.P. Mallon and S.C. Kingswood (compilers). 2001. Antelopes. Part 4: North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Global Survey and Regional Action Plans, pp. 63-68. IUCN, Gland.
3. Research in Arabia, 1987 and 1992: visits to King Khalid and National Wildlife Research Centres (Saudi Arabia), Al Wabra Wildlife Farm (Qatar), Al-Areen Wildlife Park and Reserve (Bahrain) and Al Ain Zoo (United Arab Emirates). Downloaded on 29 December 2006 from "Fichier HTML". Archived from the original on October 16, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2006.