Within the UAE, this species is restricted to coastal areas of the Arabian Gulf, from at least Ra's Ghanadha at the northern end of the Al Taweela coastal plains (Brown et al. 2007) to Ra's al Khaimah (Jongbloed et al. 2003) in the north, and recorded from at least one offshore island (Zirku Island, Abu Dhabi Emirate; Brown et al. 2007). In addition, Western (1983a) recorded the species from Abu Dhabi Island and noted that the species formed a dominant broad belt for up to 100 m inland from north of Ra's Ghanadha, behind a clearly-defined barrier beach. Western (1983b) recorded the species from the seaward shore of Abu Dhabi Island, and that it persisted even after levelling and back-filling with material in early 1982. Al Meharibi et al. (2019) show presence to Abu Dhabi Island, hence perhaps the species does indeed persist there. Western also collected the species from Saadiyat Island (date uncertain, but assumed to be the 1980's). The estimated EOO is 14,328 km² and it is considered to occur at between 5-10 locations. Globally, its native range spans from Egypt south to Mozambique in Africa, Madagascar, through the Arabian Peninsula to India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).