Following on from Emma's blog, the historic oasis settlement of Al Ain is the new home to two very special inhabitants, the highly endangered white lions of Sanbona.

Their story began in November 2009 when a team of conservation specialists from the Al Ain Wildlife Park & Resort flew to South Africa to receive a very special gift from the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve. The gift of these two lions was presented in recognition of AWPR's commitment to conserving arid land carnivores.

The journey taken by these two beautiful white lions from Africa to the UAE made them ambassadors for their wild cousins and helped tell the story of the current and very real plight facing African lions. Fifty years ago 450,000 African lions inhabited Africa. Today, only 20,000 remain thanks largely to the intervention of man.

After a 3 hour road transfer interrupted by a punctured tyre, the cats were transported to Dubai International Airport in secure containers by air to meet their new owners, inlcuding trainer Bridget Tighe. Today, they are the star attraction at the wildlife park and these stunning creatures are just one part of an amazing, unique collection of African lions whose future has been safeguarded by the park. 

This isn't the first time that animals have been imported from Africa to the Middle East. A larger scale project was put in place in the making of Desert Islands Resort & Spa, an offshore island housing all manner of species from cheetahs and hyenas to giraffes and oryx.

Also located at Al Ain's Wildlife Park you will find zebras, elephants, flamingo, giraffes, desert antelopes, Arabian Oryx and all manner of other species making it a terrific day out for the whole family.