Commicarpus stenocarpus | UAE National Red List of Vascular Plants

Taxa
Commicarpus stenocarpus | (Chiov.) Cufod.
Publication
UAE National Red List of Vascular Plants
Location
Countries in Assessment
United Arab Emirates
Country ISO code(s)
ARE
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Off
Scope (Assessment)
National
Taxon
Taxonomic Group
Plants
Taxonomic Group Level 2
Flowering Plants
Assessed taxon level
Species
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
Within the UAE, this species has been recorded from north of Masafi (A.R. Western, in Jongbloed et al. 2003; G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019). MEW (2010) considered it to occur in the foothills of the mountains. D. Aplin recently found the species in a narrow, steep-sided, north-facing wadi in metamorphic rocks c.1 km north of Al Khulaybiyah, north of Masafi, in the Emirate of Fujairah (D. Aplin pers. comm. 2019). Further investigations would be needed to determine if this is an isolated population. Globally, this species is native from Eastern Africa (Somalia), through the eastern Arabian Peninsula, to Iran, Pakistan and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).
Habitats and Ecology
Ecological system type
Terrestrial system
No
Freshwater system
No
Marine system
No
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
Commicarpus stenocarpus is a low, spreading, much branched shrub up to 0.6 m, growing in steep north-facing wadi often along steep wadi walls in rocky, scree habitats often associated with the fern Onychium divaricatum, Forsskaolea viridis and Leucas inflata (D. Aplin pers. comm. 2019). The plant is covered in fine glandular greyish hair which feels tacky to the touch. Fruits comprise large glands near the apex with numerous, smaller, reddish glands scattered lower down. Deep pink flowers can be seen flowering from October.
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Assessed status
Asessment status in full
Data Deficient
Assessment status abreviation
DD
Assessment rationale/justification
This species has been described as being rare in the UAE, but has recently been found to be at least locally common. It had been recorded in the past from an area of metamorphic rocks north of Masafi, and recent investigation of a similar area (Al Khulaybiyah, north of Masafi), recorded c.150 individuals within a single square kilometre (D. Aplin pers. comm. 2019). There is little other information available on the plant's habitat, threats, and conservation. Therefore, it is assessed as Data Deficient at present.
About the assessment
Assessment year
2019
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Affliation of assessor(s)/contributors/reviewers listed on assessment
Government
IGO
Assessor affiliation specific
Government|IGO
Criteria system
Criteria system specifics
IUCN v3.1 + Regional Guidelines v4.0
Criteria system used
IUCN
Criteria Citation
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Endemism
Endemic to region
Not_assigned
Endemism Notes
Is an endemic?: Not_assigned
Conservation
Threats listed in assessment
There are no immediate threats to the population found in north of Masafi, although at the entrance to the wadi (c.400 m away) there is evidence of recent bulldozing of silt and sand. However, the population resides sufficiently high enough for this not to be a threat (D. Aplin pers. comm. 2019).
Conservation Measures

Conservation measures:
Conservation measures notes:
Required conservation measures:

Scientific Name Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus
Commicarpus stenocarpus Plantae Tracheophyta Magnoliopsida Caryophyllales Nyctaginaceae Commicarpus