The species is used extensively as a horticultural plant along roads, in wadis and coastal areas, and is likely to have been cultivated historically for medicinal use. The species is not common in the wild in the UAE, and it is hard to differentiate truly 'wild' plants from cultivated and 'escapee' plants. Jongbloed et al. (2003) cite three wild localities in the UAE; Dubai Creek, the Shawka-Munay area, and Kalba. In addition, it is described as occurring in the Hajar Mountains, within rocky areas, in addition to Jebel Hafeet. It is cultivated in many regions of the UAE, especially in western dunes, wadis and coastal areas, and as windbreaks along roadsides (DDCR 2019). The species is native to Africa, the Middle East and the Arabian Peninsula, although the UAE is excluded by Plants of the World online (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, it has been recorded at Sha'am and Abu Dhabi (Jongbloed et al. 2003). Globally, this species is native to northern Africa, the Sahara, Israel and through to the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species has been recorded from Jebel Hafeet (Stuart and Stuart 1998). However, it is generally recorded from scattered locations across the country (Jongbloed et al. 2003). This species is native to Somalia, Oman, Qatar and the UAE (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species is widespread along the coastline, occurring from north of Dubai to Sila'a (Brown et al. 2007, G. Brown pers. comm. 2019), including Khalifa City, close to Abu Dhabi (Perry 2008). It also extends further northeast, and with records from Khor Kalba (Sharjah Seed Bank and Herbarium pers. comm. 2019) on the east coast. It is also known from offshore islands, including Marawah and Salaha island (S. Sakkir pers. comm. 2019). This species is native to the Arabian Peninsula, Iran and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species is known from scattered localities (Böer and Saenger 2006, Jongbloed et al. 2003, MEW 2010). It has been recorded along the coast in Abu Dhabi (Böer and Saenger 2006) in addition to Ras Mushayrib, Sila' peninsula, Dabb'iyah, Hatta and Al Ain (Jongbloed et al. 2003), including up to Dubai. The native range of this species spans from Sudan to Iraq (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

There seems to be little information available regarding this species in the UAE, both under Caroxylon arabicum and under other synonyms for the species, and the presence and distribution of the species in the UAE requires confirmation. However, it has been suggested that it could be widespread throughout the western region of the UAE, on near-coastal plains. This species is native to the Arabian Peninsula (Gulf States, Saudi Arabia; Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species inhabits sandy plains inland from the Arabian Gulf coast (Jongbloed et al. 2003), from eastern Abu Dhabi north to Ras al Khaimah (Western 1983). The global distribution of this species is the eastern Mediterranean to the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species is believed to be restricted to the Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011), however it has been suggested that these records may actually refer to individuals of Roemeria hybrida [= Papaver dodecandrum (Forssk.) Medik.] (Jongbloed et al. 2003). In the Ru'us al-Jibal, it has been recorded at altitudes between c. 750 m - 1,600 m (Feulner 2011). Globally, the native range of this species extends from Turkey to the Arabian Peninsula and Central Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species has been described as occurring within low dunes in the northern Emirates (G.R. Feulner, in litt, MEW 2010). It also considered to grow in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, Jebel Nazwah, Jebel Ali and in Dubai (G. Brown and S. Sakkir pers. comm. 2019, Sharjah Seed Bank & Herbarium pers. comm. 2019), in addition to further scattered localities (D. Aplin pers. comm. 2019). Globally, the native range of this species spans from Somalia and Ethiopia to the Arabian Peninsula and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species is widespread in the Hajar Mountains and occurs on some offshore islands (Jongbloed et al. 2003), and has also been recorded from Jebel Hafeet where it was widely but sparsely distributed (Stuart and Stuart 1998), including Wadi Tarabat (Fawzi and Ksiksi 2012). Sharjah Seedbank & Herbarium hold specimens from the central Hajar Mountains in the UAE, as well as single specimens from further north in R'as al-Khaimah and from Al Ain. Feulner recorded a species of Reseda from the upper part of Wadi Bih (low gravel terraces at c. 300 m asl; possibly in Oman) that may refer to R. aucheri (Feulner 2016). The species is native to native from the eastern Arabian Peninsula east to Iran and Turkmenistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).