Taxon name
Rostraria pumila
(Lam.) Tzvelev
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Rostraria pumila
(Lam.) Tzvelev
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Plants
Flowering Plants
Species authority
(Lam.) Tzvelev
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 is widespread in eastern parts of the UAE. Whilst subpopulations may have undergone significant decline as a result of coastal development, it is thought that the species still qualifies 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
This species has been recorded widely in the north-east of the UAE, with a distribution in the Hajar Mountains and the western foothills and gravel plains (Jongbloed et al. 2003). The species has also been recorded in the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011). Feulner (2016) considered it likely to be present in Wadi Hiluw. Judas (2016) recorded the species from Wadi Wurayah National Park. The species has also been reported from Taweela, as well as the coastal dunes from Umm al-Quwain to Ra's al-Khaimah, which suggests this species is continuously distributed along the coastal strip from Abu Dhabi Island to Ra's al-Khaimah (Brown et al. 2007). It has also been recorded from Jebel Hafeet (Sakkir and Brown 2014).Globally, the species occurs from the Macaronesian Islands, across southern Spain, and through northern Africa to the Middle East, India and Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018). It has been introduced to southern Africa and to Australia.
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This is an annual grass that grows up to 0.35 m and on sand, silt between rocks and in fields (Jongbloed et al. 2003), in silty depressions on the plains around Jebel Hafeet (Brown et al. 2007). It was found in the wadi bottom at Wadi Wurayah (Judas 2016). In the Ru'us al Jibal, the species is found in terraced fields and waste ground to at least 1,000 m (Feulner 2011).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Grazing by livestock may impact the species in parts of its range, and impacts from coastal development are likely to have been significant.
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.
