The Zekreet Peninsula, also known as the Abrouq Peninsula, is located to the north of the industrial city of

Dukhan Dukhan () is a city in the western municipality of Al-Shahaniya, Qatar. It is approximately west of the capital, Doha. Dukhan is administered by Qatar's state oil agency QatarEnergy and is the site of the first oil discovery in Qatar. It was pr ...

in western

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

. Much of the area is associated with erosional landforms such as

foothills Foothills or piedmont are geography, geographically defined as gradual increases in elevation at the base of a mountain range, higher hill range or an highland, upland area. They are a transition zone between plains and low terrain, relief hill ...

mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge, or hill, bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and standing distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks, such as shales, capped by a ...

s and gypsum

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

x. The village of

Zekreet Zekreet () is a village in north-western Qatar near Dukhan and about north-west west of Doha. Originally a sparsely populated area, Zekreet was built up in the 1940s after oil operations commenced in Qatar. This included the construction of a h ...

, the Zekreet Film City, and the

headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...

Ras Abrouq Ras Abrouq (; also known as Bir Zekreet) is the northernmost extension of the Zekreet Peninsula, a stretch of land to the north of Dukhan in Qatar. It has a beach of the same name

(which includes a nature reserve for wild deer) are all found on this stretch of land. The peninsula is part of the Al Reem Biosphere Reserve.

Geography

One of its defining features is the

Bay of Zekreet The Bay of Zekreet () is a half-moon shaped bay on the Zekreet Peninsula in western Qatar. The Zekreet Peninsula is a rocky, sandy desert, with numerous rock formations and gypsum plateaux. The bay is situated to the north of the industrial city ...

, which is shaped like a half-moon.

Geology

Oryx in a depression near Zekreet Film City

The Abarug member of the

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

-period Dammam Formation is the dominant structural-lithic unit of the area. The uppermost part of the Abarug member is formed of dull-colored slightly calcareous dolomitic limestone and is roughly thick, while the lower part is approximately thick and is composed of brightly-colored slightly calcareous dolomitic

marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, Clay minerals, clays, and silt. When Lithification, hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. M ...

Wildlife

Common ostrich The common ostrich (''Struthio camelus''), or simply ostrich, is a species of flightless bird native to certain areas of Africa. It is one of two extant species of ostriches, the only living members of the genus ''Struthio'' in the ratite group ...

es, wild deer and

gazelle A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . There are also seven species included in two further genera; '' Eudorcas'' and '' Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, ' ...

s occur in the peninsula. The Ministry of Municipality and Environment advises tourists not to visit during the ostrich breeding season due to their aggressive tendencies.

Flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes () are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbe ...

s are commonly found near the Bay of Zekreet. The peninsula is a popular destination for foreign tourists due to its unspoiled beaches and limestone rock formations. Visitors frequently camp here overnight. However, some of the natural geography has suffered as a result of litter left behind, damage to the vegetation and damage to the land caused by tourists.

References

{{coord, 25, 34, N, 50, 51, E, type:landmark_region:QA_dim:10000, display=title Peninsulas of Qatar Al-Shahaniya