Taxon name
Indigofera cordifolia
B.Heyne ex Roth
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Indigofera cordifolia
B.Heyne ex Roth
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Plants
Flowering Plants
Species authority
B.Heyne ex Roth
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
Qualifying criteria (if given)
D2
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This species is known from a single location in Hatta, UAE. As the species occurs at a single locality between two roads, any expansion of these roads could threaten the overall existence of Indigofera cordifolia within the UAE, potentially driving it to Critically Endangered, or possibly, Regionally Extinct, within a short amount of time. It is therefore assessed as Vulnerable (VU D2).
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 is known to occur within a restricted roadside locality in Hatta, north-east UAE (Sharjah Seedbank & Herbarium). The species was absent from Jongbloed et al. (2003) but included in the draft Red Data Book for the UAE (MEW 2010). Globally, the range of this species includes from Cape Verde to the Arabian Peninsula, to China and tropical Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019), however the native distribution is not clear. Kameswara Rao (2013) does not list presence in the UAE.
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
Indigofera cordifolia is has been recorded growing between two roads in a mountainous area. It is considered to be a xerohalophyte (salt-tolerant desert species) and has a therophyte life form, in terms of completing its life cycle when conditions are favourable (Böer and Saenger 2006). This annual species is a crop wild relative of indigo, Indigofera tinctoria (Kameswara Rao 2013).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Expansion of the existing roads within its known locality would likely have significant impacts on this species within the UAE. It is considered that this species may well be grazed.
History
This species is not known to occur anywhere else within the UAE, therefore it retains the same category and criteria as in 1996.
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.
