Natural World

Pearls once brought wealth to the Arabian Gulf. Today it comes from oil that gushes from beneath the sea. The gulf's bounty of wildlife is a part of its natural riches too. Migrating birds flock to its shores and its waters conceal a stunning array of creatures: sea snakes, batfish, corals, huge shoals of jacks and blooms of jellyfish that stretch to the horizon. But for how long can these priceless treasures survive the onslaught of modern development or, worse still, the war which now threatens its shores?