Within the UAE, it is known to occur in Taweela, creating a near continuous distribution along the Arabian Gulf coast (Brown et al. 2007). This coastal strip extends from the west of the UAE, near to Abu Dhabi Island, up to Ra's al-Khaimah in the northeast of the country. There has also been a record of this species occurring at Jebel Hafeet (Brown et al. 2007). Globally, this species is known to occur from Macaronesia and the Mediterranean, through northern Africa to the Arabian Peninsula and India (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species has been recorded from Jebel Hafeet, where it was found near the lower radio tower (Jongbloed 1988). Jongbloed (1988) reported that the species is also known from adjacent parts of Oman, on Jebel Qatar. The species has not apparently been recorded by subsequent surveys on the mountain. The global range of this species is across North Africa, through much of the Arabian Peninsula (including the UAE) to Pakistan and central Asia (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

Within the UAE, this species is known to occur in the high Ru'us al-Jibal (Feulner 2011) above 1,000 m elevation (G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019). The species has also been recorded from the upper parts of Wadi Siji in the Wadi Wurayah National Park (WWNP) buffer zone, and it is also thought to also occur in WWNP itself. Globally, this species' native range encompasses Macaronesia, Europe, western Asia and the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species is widespread in the Ru'us al-Jibal and northern Hajar Mountains (Jongbloed et al. 2003, Feulner 2014). It is an annual species which can regularly be seen at high elevations. Filago desertorum has been reported among bedrock at c. 900 m, as well as from silt at Birkat al-Khalidiyah (Mandaville) up to high elevations (Feulner 2011). The global distribution of this species includes the Canary Islands, South Spain, and North Africa to Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

This species is widespread in the Hajar Mountains and Ru'us al-Jibal (Jongbloed et al. 2003). This plant species can be found in silt and fallow fields up to 1,200 m and above (Feulner 2011). However, it is also recorded at lower elevations within montane areas too (Feulner 2011). The global distribution of this species is in Macaronesia, Europe to the Mediterranean and West Himalaya, and the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species is a locally common and widespread in the north-west of the UAE (Jongbloed et al. 2003). It has also been recently recorded at Jebel Hafeet (Sakkir and Brown 2014). The global distribution of this species extends from the South and East Mediterranean to South Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).

This species has been recorded from the northern Hajar Mountains and the Ru'us al-Jibal (Jongbloed et al. 2003) where it can be found at elevations of up to at least 1,600 m (Feulner 2011). The global distribution of this species includes Macaronesia, the Mediterranean to Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

In the UAE, this species is widespread in the Hajar Mountains and the Ru'us al-Jibal at all elevations (Jongbloed et al. 2003). It is found to c. 1,550 m asl in the Ru'us al-Jibal, although it is more common at higher altitudes (Feulner 2011). Karim and Dakheel (2006) record the species from Al Ain, Shwayb, Hatta and Dhaid. Globally, this species occurs from Macaronesia, across North Africa, to the Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula, and east to Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018).

In the UAE, this species is known from Jebel Hafeet (Jongbloed et al. 2003), where it is known from three distinct areas;<ol><li>Wadi Tarabat: the upper reaches (a few plants observed; G. Brown pers. comm. 2019) and on the plains and lower parts of Wadi Tarabat at the northern end of Jebel Hafeet (R. Khan, G.R. Feulner pers. comm. 2019). Two locations, based on the division of this area by the privately managed fenced reserve.</li><li>Very locally immediately to the east of Jebel Hafeet at the base of the mountain. One location, defined by camel grazing.</li><li>A small subpopulation in a small wadi at high elevation (900 m) close to the summit (S. Sakkir pers. comm. 2019). One location; threats uncertain, but likely to include grazing pressure and drought.</li></ol>In addition, the species has been recorded once in Wadi Shuaib (T. Mahmoud pers. comm. 2019), however the origin of the species here requires confirmation; it is may be of anthropogenic origin, or have originated from above the dame, in adjacent parts of Oman. The estimated EOO for this species is 213 km². There are at present no records of the species from Oman, but it might be expected to occur in the Musandam Peninsula (S. Ghazanfar pers. comm. 2019) or on adjacent parts of Jebel Hafeet. Globally, this species occurs in Egypt (Sinai), the eastern Mediterranean (Israel, Palestine, Jordan), through the Arabian Peninsula, to Iraq and Iran (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2018), whilst Greuter (2006-2009) gives a wider distribution to Morocco in North Africa and possibly north to Lebanon-Syria, but excludes the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq and Iran.

In the UAE, Phoenix dactylifera is known from Al Ain, Abu Dhabi and Dubai (Karim and Dakheel 2006). Plants of the World Online state that the UAE encompasses part of this species native range (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019), while the draft UAE Red Data Book labelled the species as 'Not Applicable' as it is cultivated (MEW 2010), and the species is listed as an introduced landscape plants by MoCCaE (O. Al Shamsi pers. comm. 2018). This species can persist at a range of altitudes up to 1,200 m (MEW 2010). Globally, this species' native distribution spans from the Arabian Peninsula to the south of Pakistan (Board of Trustees, RBG Kew 2019).