A photograph I took in 2020 on a visit to the camel farm
In 1908, J.G. Lorimer wrote the following about Failaka and it’s animal life, “Failakah boasts a dozen camels, a number of donkeys, a few flocks and herds, and some poultry. Flamingos, pelicans, gulls and flocks of bird resembling the curlew haunt the shore, and the island is said to be visited in the hot weather by large flocks of sand-grouse. There are a number of gazelles, descending from a pair which a member of the Shaikh of Kuwait’s family turned loose some years ago: only relations of the chief are permitted to shoot them.” When Freya Stark visited Failaka in 1937, she wrote the following,
We decided to make a grand tour of the island on donkeys… and to look for potsherds by the way. But the day was far too lovely for these dim antiquities; the corn too green, the larks too shrill, the desert and the sown too full of flowers. The corn lay in patches unenclosed when the soil allowed, so sparsely growing that our small donkey hooves did little damage as they crossed the narrower places. The donkeys were small and… [had] enormous ears furry and very pretty but more like a rabbit than a donkey. We had seven altogether.
In her work “Failaka Island”, Jehan Rajab writes, “Failaka Island had many donkeys that were used to transport agricultural produce from the gardens and had many other usages. They started to disappear in the early sixties when modern changes reached the island.”
(1) Taken by Tareq Rajab in the early 60s (2) from André Hedinger in 1970 (3) from the film “The Silence” (4) taken by the parents of Brett Jordan in 1961
Today there is one animal on the island – his name is Socrates (سقراط) and he lives at Dar FIKAR
People on the island have also raised goats and sheep, as you can see below:
(1-2) from “The Silence” (3) taken by PV Glob in 1960
Here are a few photographs I took in the winter of 2024 of goats being herded:
There are some camels on the island – as shown on the first picture, trips on the island often include a visit to the camel farm. Here are photographs I took in the winter of 2025 of them being herded:
