Acridocarpus orientalis | UAE National Red List of Vascular Plants

Taxa
Acridocarpus orientalis | A.Juss.
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 is restricted to a single wadi (Fawzi and Ksiksi 2012, Ksiksi et al. 2012): Wadi Tarabat, a valley in the northern foothills of Jebel Hafeet in Abu Dhabi Emirate (Jongbloed et al. 2003). The native range of this species is reported as north-east Somalia, the Arabian Peninsula, and Iran (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019). Within Oman, the species is known from a number of localities in the Hajar Mountains, including Jebel Akhdar, Muscat and north to the Musandam Peninsula.
Habitats and Ecology
Ecological system type
Terrestrial system
No
Freshwater system
No
Marine system
No
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
A perennial, woody, branched shrub, up to 2(-6) m in height that flowers in April-June in addition to October and November (Jongbloed et al. 2003). In its Arabian Peninsula range, the species is found in semi-desert bushland, in rocky places, particularly in wadis, from 100-700 m asl (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Assessed status
Asessment status in full
Endangered
Assessment status abreviation
EN
Assessment status criteria
D
Assessment rationale/justification
Within the UAE, this species is restricted to Wadi Tarabat in the northern foothills of Jebel Hafeet in Abu Dhabi Emirate. It has an extent of occurrence (EOO) and an area of occupancy (AOO) of less than 8 km<sup>2</sup>. Around 200 individuals are known, however, the population trend is not known, nor whether there is a decline in the number of mature individuals or habitat quality. Jebel Hafeet has been subject to habitat degradation as a result of livestock grazing, however fencing to restrict grazing in Wadi Tarabat was implemented in 2005, and again around 2017, and all known individuals of this species occur within this fenced area. The species is assessed as Endangered (EN D) as a result of its restricted population size (&lt;200 mature individuals). Further research is needed to understand the current situation for this species, and continued conservation action is required. The species potentially qualifies as CR as a result of the restricted EOO and AOO, if a continuing decline is shown. The species does occur as significant wadi and mountain slope populations in adjacent parts of Oman to the east and south. No immigration is known in recent years and therefore no regional adjustment is required.
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
Jongbloed et al. (2003) stated that the species is not grazed by livestock, however, the Jebel Hafeet area has been heavily degraded by livestock and introduced animal grazing.
Conservation Measures

Conservation measures:
Conservation measures notes:
Required conservation measures:

Further information
History
This species naturally occurs within a restricted distribution, which is not believed to have been altered between 1996 and the present.
Scientific Name Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus
Acridocarpus orientalis Plantae Tracheophyta Magnoliopsida Malpighiales Malpighiaceae Acridocarpus