Plant Diversity in Saudi Arabia an introduction |
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The flora of Saudi Arabia is somewhat a complex one, having affinities with the floras of East Africa, North Africa, the Mediterranean countries and the Irano-Turanian countries. The flora consists of about 2285 species; of which 9 species are Gymnosperms and 27 are Pteridophytes. These species belong to 855 genera in 131 families. Among these 33 families are represented by a single species. According to the present estimates, Saudi Arabia contains 97 trees (4.25%), 565 shrubs (24.73%) and about 1620 herbs (71.02%).
The species are not evenly distributed in Saudi Arabia. Majority of species are seen in meadows, mountains and wadis (valleys). Though the average number of species occurring in a km2 area is only a few, especially in the central, eastern and northern regions, the southwestern mountainous regions are densely vegetated, containing the maximum number of species. Approximately 70% of the flora is reported from these areas. However, despite the large size of country, the share of endemism is very meager. Only 56 species (2.54%) are strictly endemic to the Kingdom. |
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