Taxon name
Polycarpaea spicata
Wight ex Arn.
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Polycarpaea spicata
Wight ex Arn.
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Plants
Flowering Plants
Species authority
Wight ex Arn.
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Least Concern
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This species appears to be fairly widespread within the UAE, although it is scattered. As a result of its distribution both inland and on offshore islands, the extent of occurrence (EOO) is likely to exceed the threshold for threatened categories. It is suggested that it may well be more common than it appears due to under-collection. As a result, it is assessed as Least Concern.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
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.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
Within the UAE, it is considered to be widespread although scattered (Brown et al. 2007). It can be found on coastal sands and plains, including Taweela and Al Jazeera al-Hamra (Brown et al. 2007). It has also been recorded from offshore islands of Abu Dhabi (Sakkir et al. 2017). Globally, this species occurs from north-east Africa to the Arabian Peninsula and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Incomplete
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
It is an annual herb species that can grow up to 15 cm in height (Jongbloed et al. 2003, Brown et al. 2007). This plant has fine stems, basal rosette leaves and spoon-shaped stem leaves (Jongbloed et al. 2003). Flower spikes that resemble a tuft of grass can be seen between February and April (Jongbloed et al. 2003). It generally grows within stable sand and silt substrates that can be found in between rocks and in wadis (Jongbloed et al. 2003).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
There is no information available.
Publication
Allen, D.J., Westrip, J.R.S., Puttick, A., Harding, K.A., Hilton-Taylor, C. and Ali, H. 2021. UAE National Red List of Vascular Plants. Technical Report. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, United Arab Emirates, Dubai.
