ASSESSMENT OF SOME ANTHROPOGENIC ACTIVITIES ON BIODIVERSITY IN MOUNT SINAI, ST. KATHERINE PROTECTORATE

Abstract

The current study aimed at assessing the impact of some anthropogenic activities along the touristic hiking trail passing through Mount Sinai area in St. Katherine protectorate (SKP) on biodiversity. The study also aimed at identifying and quantifying representative groups of vertebrate and invertebrate taxa within the study localities of Mount Sinai. The Nubian ibex (Capra ibex nubiana) was the only recorded wild herbivore species in Mount Sinai. Five reptiles’ species, 11 pollinators’ species, three gall-inducing species, nine ant species, and 39 plant species were recorded from the study localities in Mount Sinai. The current study showed that the hiking trail had a negative environmental impact on the vertebrate (large mammals and reptiles) and invertebrate (insect pollinators, gall inducing insects, and ants) taxa distribution within the study localities in Mount Sinai.