Israel is well known for its fascinating history, its turbulent current events and its significance for the three monotheistic religions of the world, but less well known are the beauty and variety of its natural landscapes, and its fascinating and abundant wildlife. The writers of the Bible knew and were intimately connected to the Land, its climate and its wildlife, not to mention the agricultural cycles. The prophets, and even Yeshua (Jesus) himself, often used nature as metaphor or parable to explain spiritual principles. Today, those who seek a deep and rich understanding of the Bible must also have some acquaintance with these aspects of the Land.

In this section I will be sharing various aspects of the Land of Israel and its wildlife with the aim of enriching your study of the Bible.

INTRODUCTION

Spring in the Judean foothills

Israel lies at the junction of three continents and consequently its flora and fauna contain elements of those of each continent. In addition, there are many species found only in Israel. Israel’s variety of geology, landscapes and climates creates a great variety of habitats. Although this Land has been influenced by human settlement for millennia and this has caused some extinctions of local wildlife, there still remains an astounding richness of life in its natural habitats, and, surprisingly, even in its cities. One day I sat in a pocket-sized public park in Netanya and in the space of about half an hour counted over 20 different species of birds!

Israel has over 2800 known species of plants, 104 species of mammals, about 100 species of reptiles and amphibians, more than 500 species of birds, 58 species of freshwater fish, not to mention the thousands of species of marine fish in the Mediterranean and Red Sea coasts, and at least 30,000 known species of invertebrates. Some of the species native to the region have already become locally extinct, including the Asiatic Lion, the Syrian brown bear, the white oryx and the Asiatic wild ass. What is thought to have been the last Arabian leopard in Israel, strangely named “Messiah”, died recently from natural causes, but there is still a chance some survive in the mountains of the high Negev. In ancient times, it is believed that hippopotamus, hartebeast, aurouchs and even elephants lived in Israel.

Messiach – the last Israeli leopard (his stuffed skin at Hai Bar Nature Reserve near Eilat)

In recent times neglect and over-hunting reduced many species to near extinction but since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 much effort has been made to protect our wildlife. In spite of the fact that Israel is only about the size of New Jersey or Wales, and has a fast-growing population of nearly 9 million, it currently has 190 nature reserves. Israel is the only country in the world in which there are more trees than there were 100 years ago. Trees are so venerated that permits must be acquired to cut them down and roads sometimes have to be built around them!n

In the following posts I will be sharing with you some of the information and photos I have taken of various aspects of Israel’s wild places, flora and fauna, and what the Bible has to say about them.