Nahal Alexander ( he, נחל אלכסנדר), called Nahar Iskandar in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

(), is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

in the States of Palestine and

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

that flows from the western side of the

Samaria Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first- ...

mountain belt in the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

to the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

, north of

Netanya Netanya (also known as Natanya, he, נְתַנְיָה) is a city in the Northern Central District of Israel, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa, between Poleg stream and Wingate I ...

. The length of the river is about 45 km. Several small streams flow into Nahal Alexander: Nablus, Te'enim, Ometz, Bahan, and Avihail. The river is the habitat of soft-shell turtles that can reach a size of 1.20 meters.

Flora and fauna

Nahal Alexander is the habitat of soft-shell turtles that can reach a size of 1.20 meters and weigh up to 50 kilograms. In addition to giant turtles, there are

coot Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually ...

s and other waterfowl,

nutria The nutria (''Myocastor coypus''), also known as the coypu, is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent. Classified for a long time as the only member of the family Myocastoridae, ''Myocastor'' is now included within Echimyidae, the family of t ...

s and swamp cats. Indigenous fish include

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

tilapia Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically most ...

, river eels and mullet. On the southern bank there are shifting sand dunes and on the northern bank, a eucalyptus grove.

History

Hurvat Samra ( Khirbet Samra), an ancient ruin on a hill overlooking Nahal Alexander, may have been a customs station for goods transported down the river to the port near the estuary.

Beit Yanai Beit Yanai ( he, בֵּית יַנַּאי, lit. ''House of Yanai'') is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Sharon plain on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea around six kilometres north of Netanya, it falls under the jurisdiction of ...

beach is located where the river flows into the Mediterranean.Beit Yannai beach yields serenity on winter weekdays
/ref> North of the beach are remnants of a quay built in 1938, during the British Mandate. It was used for clandestine Jewish immigration to

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...

when British authorities turned away ships of European Jews fleeing the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

s. In the winter of 1991, Nahal Alexander overflowed and most of its soft-shelled turtle population drifted into the Mediterranean. When the remaining eggs that failed to hatch, the

Israel Nature and Parks Authority The Israel Nature and Parks Authority ( he, רשות הטבע והגנים ''Rashut Hateva Vehaganim''; ar, سلطة الطبيعة والحدائق) is an Israeli government organization that manages nature reserves and national parks in Israel, ...

launched a project to collect the eggs, incubate them and return the turtles to the water.The Best Kept Secret of Emek Hefer: Nahal Alexander & Turtles
/ref> In 2003, Nahal Alexander was part of a cleanup project that won first prize in the Riverprize environmental rehabilitation competition in Australia after being one of the most polluted rivers in Israel.

Gallery

File:African Softshell Turtle.jpg, alt=,

African softshell turtle The African softshell turtle or Nile softshell turtle (''Trionyx triunguis'') is a large species of turtle from fresh-water and brackish habitats in Africa (larger parts of East, West and Middle Africa) and the Near East (Israel, Lebanon, Syria ...

at Nahal Alexander File:Head of African Softshell Turtle.jpg, alt=, Head of

at Nahal Alexander File:African Softshell Turtle with Caspian Turtles.jpg, alt=,

with

Caspian turtle The Caspian turtle or striped-neck terrapin (''Mauremys caspica'') is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae (=Bataguridae), living in the eastern Mediterranean region from southwestern former USSR and central Iran to Saudi Arabia, Bahrai ...

s at Nahal Alexander

References

External links

Alexander Stream Hof Bet Yanai National Park
- official site * Zachi Evenor
Alexander Stream Photography

Flickr Flickr ( ; ) is an American image hosting and video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was a popular way for amateur and professional ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Nahal National parks of Israel Rivers of Israel Landforms of Central District (Israel) Protected areas of Central District (Israel)

Flora and fauna

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links