The Arabian ostrich or Syrian ostrich (Struthio camelus syriacus) is an extinct subspecies of the ostrich which lived on the Arabian Peninsula and in the Near East until the mid-20th century.
Its range seems to have been continuous in prehistoric times, but with the drying-up of the Arabian Peninsula, it disappeared from the inhospitable areas of the Arabian Desert, such as the Rub' al Khali.
In historic times, the bird seems to have occurred in two discrete relict populations: a smaller one in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula (8.8 feet tall) and a larger one in the area where today the borders of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq and Syria meet (10 feet tall).
It was also present in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (in prehistoric times), Oman, and Kuwait.
The Arabian ostrich has long had a significant place in the culture of the region. An adult with 11 offspring is featured on the famous prehistoric "Graffiti Rock I" near Riyadh.
In Mesopotamia, it was used as a sacrificial animal and featured in artwork, painted on cups and other objects made from ostrich eggs, traded as far as Etruria during the Neo-Assyrian period.
Arabian ostrich products, as well as live birds, were exported as far as China.
A Tang Dynasty source states that the "camel bird" inhabiting Arabia is "four chi and more in height, its feet resembling those of a camel; its neck is very strong, and men are able to ride on its back...".
In Roman times, there was a demand for ostriches to use in venatio games or cooking. The plumes of the Arabian ostrich were considered superior material for millinery compared to those of the North African subspecies.
The widespread introduction of firearms and, later, motor vehicles marked the start of the decline towards extinction of this subspecies.
Earlier hunting methods with bow, arrows and dogs had allowed most animals of a group to escape, but rifles enabled poaching and excessive game hunting to diminish the species into extinction.
By the early 20th century, the Arabian ostrich had become rare. Last confirmed individual died in 1966.
Its main stronghold was the northern Nefud northwards to the Syrian Desert, eastwards to the Euphrates Valley, and it was most plentiful in Al Jawf Province, where it associated with herds of the Saudi gazelle and the Arabian oryx, both also extinct or very rare, respectively, nowadays.
Some of the last sightings include a dying individual found in the upper Wadi el-Hasa north of Petra in 1966.
Remains of old eggs are still found in the former range of the southern subpopulation, which disappeared between the 1900s and the 1920s, probably mainly because of increasing aridity.
Some eggshell fragments were collected by St. John Philby from Mahadir Summan, Arabia, around 1931.
Following analyses of mtDNA control region halotypes that confirmed the close relationship of the Arabian and the North African subspecies, a reintroduction project using S. c. camelus was set up in Saudi Arabia and Qatar in 1994.
A failed reintroduction was attempted in Negev in 2004 where the Arabian ostrich lived before.
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Music: Desert Caravan - Aaron Kenny (YouTube Audio Library)

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