Taxon name
Arthrocaulon macrostachyum
(Moric.) Piirainen & G.Kadereit
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Arthrocaulon macrostachyum
(Moric.) Piirainen & G.Kadereit
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Plants
Flowering Plants
Species authority
(Moric.) Piirainen & G.Kadereit
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
Although this species has undergone declines (including the loss of localities along the east coast of the UAE), and is currently threatened by ongoing development, it remains relatively widespread throughout the country. As a result, it is likely to far exceed the distribution range required to meet the threshold for threatened categories. Therefore, it is assessed as Least Concern with the need to review this status as coastal development continues.
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 occurs along coastal areas including Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah (Karim and Dakheel 2006, MEW 2010). The species is becoming more localised on the east coast due to development; a large area has been lost completely over the past decade (G. Brown pers. comm. 2019). It has also been recorded from the offshore islands of Abu Dhabi (Sakkir et al. 2017). Globally, this species is native to the Mediterranean, Macaronesia and parts of Africa, in addition to the Arabian Peninsula and Senegal (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This 'salt-bush' halophyte species grows within salt-marsh, coastal sand and mangrove ecosystems (Böer and Saenger 2006, Feulner and Hornby 2008, Hornby 2003). It is a perennial succulent shrub that can reach up to 125 cm in height (Jongbloed et al. 2003, Karim and Dakheel 2006). It produces cone-like yellow flower spikes in the Autumn (September - December) and also has small ovoid seeds (Jongbloed et al. 2003, Karim and Dakheel 2006). The shrub may be parasitised by Cynomorium coccineum and Cistanche tubulosa (Perry 2008).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
This species is threatened by development on the East coast (G. Brown pers. comm. 2019) which can cause habitat loss (Heneidy et al. 2018).
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.
