DUBAI // The death of a young dugong found floating off the waters of the Palm Jebel Ali this week remains a mystery for scientists.
The male marine mammal was discovered by staff of the Dubai-based Emirates Marine Environmental Group (Emeg), as they were carrying out routine monitoring on Monday.
The body was spotted near Waterfront, an offshore reclamation project by developer Nakheel. The project was once supposed to be the biggest waterfront development in the world, but work stopped following the economic and real estate slowdown in late 2008.
Laurence Vanneyre, project manager at Emeg, said that while many dugongs are usually killed by hitting boats or entanglement in fishermen's nets, this was not the case with this young animal.
"There were no marks or scars on its body," said Ms Vanneyre.
Shy, peaceful animals, dugongs need calm waters to thrive. With more than 2,500 of the mammals, the UAE has the world's second-largest population, behind only Australia. Most of the country's dugongs are in Abu Dhabi, in the shallow coastal waters surrounding the Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve and other offshore islands.
Dugongs are listed as a species vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and are also protected by federal law.
Despite their protected status, the number of dugong deaths recorded by scientists has been increasing.
In Abu Dhabi, the Environment Agency recorded three deaths in 2002. Last year 12 deaths were recorded. Scientists think the actual number of deaths could be 50 per cent higher, as not all are reported.
In the first three months of this year, there have been nine dugong deaths in Abu Dhabi. Many cases involved animals that were tangled in fishermen's nets. When this occurs, the animals usually panic and drown.
Other reasons for the population decline include destruction of the sea grass beds dugongs feed on.
Also known as sea cows, dugongs can eat the equivalent of up to 15 per cent of their body weight every day.
In Dubai, the case on Monday was the first of the year, said Ms Vanneyre. The animal's body was relatively well preserved, which meant it was probably living nearby.
Donna Kwan, programme officer for dugongs at the United Nations Environment Programme / Convention on Migratory Species Office in Abu Dhabi, was also present as the animal was examined.
Judging by its size - 133cm - the animal was between six months to a year old, she said.
Its stomach contents showed it was still feeding on its mother's milk. Ms Kwan said that separation from the mother could be one explanation of the death.
"They are very dependent on the mother for about three years," she said. "Perhaps she too died or is looking for him in the area," she said.
For the first 18 months of their lives, newborn dugongs feed only on milk from their mothers, gradually switching to a diet of sea grass over a period of one year.
The scientists took DNA samples from the animal and then buried it. The bones will be exhumed in a few months' time for further analysis.
While the find was not a happy one, Emeg's work in the area is a cause for optimism.
The offshore areas along the fronds of Palm Jebel Ali have become good habitats for sea grass, with three species - Halodule uninervis, Halophila ovalis and Halophila stipulacea - recorded in the area.
Since early 2010, the group has been studying the growth and spread of the sea grass beds. If the growth continues, the area may become an attractive feeding place for dugongs and green turtles, Ms Vanneyre said.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
