page_title: Wildlife of Saudi Arabia
section_title: Flora
hierarchical_section_title: Wildlife of Saudi Arabia / Flora
caption_attribution_description: Prosopis cineraria tree known as Khejri in Rajasthani and Hindi
context_page_description: The wildlife of Saudi Arabia is substantial and varied. Saudi Arabia is a very large country forming the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula. It has several geographic regions, each with a diversity of plants and animals adapted to their own particular habitats. As well as high mountains and deserts, there is a coastal plain and long coastline on the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea to the west and a rather shorter coastline on the Persian Gulf to the east.
context_section_description: Studying the flora of Saudi Arabia is a daunting task because of the vast size of the kingdom; the general pattern of vegetation is now known but the exact distribution of the many species of flowering plant is poorly understood. Almost 3,500 species of plant have been recorded in the country, with nearly 1,000 species known from the southwestern region of Asir with its higher rainfall. Plants in general are xerophytic and mostly dwarf shrubs or small herbs. There are few species of tree but date palms are abundant in places.
  The east of Saudi Arabia often receives "Mediterranean depressions" from November onwards. The arrival of sufficient quantities of rain causes perennial plants to produce new shoots and the seeds of annual plants to germinate. These annuals grow with great rapidity and complete their life cycle within a few weeks. By April or May, the annuals will have flowered, set seeds and died, and the perennials returned to a state of dormancy.
  In desert areas, plant growth is mostly confined to depressions or wadis, though some plants with deep rooting-systems grow elsewhere. The Rub' al Khali desert has very little plant diversity, with about 37 species of flowering plant having been recorded here, 17 of which are only found around the periphery of the desert. There are virtually no trees, and the plants are adapted for desert life and include dwarf shrubs such as Calligonum crinitum and saltbush, and several species of sedge. Around the margins of this desert are open woodlands with Acacia and Prosopis cineraria.
  The Asir Mountains in the southwest of the country, and most of the western highlands of Yemen, support a distinct flora which has affinities with parts of East Africa. The highest parts are clothed with cloud forests, southwestern Arabian montane woodlands which includes, on north-facing slopes, Juniperus procera and Euryops arabicus, draped with the lichen Usnea articulata, and on south-facing slopes, dwarf shrubs such as Rubus petitianus, Rosa abyssinica, Alchemilla crytantha, Senecio and Helichrysum abyssinicum, with Aloe sabae and Euphorbia in the driest locations. Lower down, below about 2,500 m (8,200 ft), there is evergreen woodland and scrub dominated by Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata and Tarchonanthus camphoratus. Below about 2,000 m (6,600 ft) the vegetation is deciduous scrubland with Acacia, Commiphora, Grewia and succulent plants.
  In Ha'il Region is located Jabal Aja Protected Area, which is noted for its flora, is located in the area of the Aja Mountains.
caption: Prosopis cineraria grows around the fringes of deserts.
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