Wadi Dessah-  (Jabal Qaraqir)

Wadi Dessah is located about 90 km sw of Tabuk town. It is a narrow wadi of significant importance due to its beauty and diverse biodiversity. The wadi is long with sand covered wadi beds and protected on both sides by red and yellow sand stone pinnacles and hillocks of various altitudes. A narrow stream flows along the wadi bed for throughout the year, which often flows just beneath the sand surface. Banks of wadi beds and pinnacle slopes are supported by several plants of floristic and ecological importance, such as Retama raetam, Nerium oleander, Convolvulus hystrix, Hyphaene thebaica; endemic plants such as Douepea arabica, Nepeta sheilae, Reseda pentagyna, Verbascum deserticola and endangered plants like Globularia arabica, Epipactis veratrifolia, Delphinium sheilae, Hypericum sinaicum, Satureja thymbrifolia, Phlomis brachyodon. The most dominant tree species, Acacia gerrardii dominate in most of the dry wadi beds, while gullies dominate small trees such as Ficus spp., Pistacia falcata and shrubs and shrublets like Convolvulus hystrix, Astragalus echinus, Ochradenus baccatus, Lycium shawii, etc. Wet wadi beds are dominated by common reeds, Phragmites australis and Typha domingensis, large tussocks of Saccharus ravannae and Imperata cylindrica, etc. Wadi Dessah now holds not less than 158 species belonging to 50 families.

The area is also home to a relatively large population of Nubian Ibex and other wild animals such as wolves, hyaena, fox, wid cats and a number of birds.

Hyphaene thebaica

Aizoaceae

Aizoon canariense L.

Alliaceae

Allium dictyoprasum C.A.Mey. ex Kunth

Amaranthaceae

Aerva javanica (Burm.f.) Juss. ex Schult.

Haloxylon salicornicum (Moq.) Boiss.

Salsola tetrandra Forssk.

Anacardiaceae

Pistacia cf. khinjuk Stocks

Pistacia falcata Becc. ex Martelli

Apocynaceae

Nerium oleander L.

Gomphocarpus sinaicus Boiss.

Asparagaceae

Asparagus aphyllus L.

Asphodelaceae

Asphodelus tenuifolius Cav.

Boraginaceae

Echium rauwolfii Delile

Heliotropium ramosissimum (Lehm.) Sieber ex A.DC.

Lappula spinocarpa (Forssk.) Asch. ex Kuntze

Paracaryum intermedium (Fresen.) Hiliger & Podlech

Capparaceae

Capparis cartilaginea Decne.

Capparis spinosa L.

Maerua crassifolia Forssk.

Caryophyllaceae

Dianthus strictus Banks & Sol.

Gymnocarpos decandrus Forssk.

Polycarpaea robbairea (Kuntze) Greuter & Burdet

Silene sp. aff. grisea Boiss.

Chenopodiaceae

Chenopodium murale L.

Cistaceae

Helianthemum lippii (L.) Dum.Cours.

Compositae

Anvillea garcinii (Burm.f.) DC.

Artemisia sieberi Besser

Asteriscus graveolens (Forssk.) Less.

Atractylis carduus (Forssk.) C.Chr.

Centaurea eryngioides Lam.

Centaurea pseudosinaica Czerep.

Centaurea sinaica DC.

Chiliadenus montanus (Vahl) Brullo

Echinops glaberrimus DC.

Echinops hystrichoides Kit Tan

Iphiona mucronata (Forssk.) Asch. & Schweinf.

Launaea massuensis (Fresen.) Sch.-Bip. ex Kunth.

Launaea spinosa (Forssk.) Sch.Bip.

Leysera leyseroides (Desf.) Maire

Pulicaria undulata (L.) C.A. May

Senecio glaucus L.

Tanacetum sinaicum (Fresen.) Delile ex K.Bremer & Humphries

Zoegea purpurea Fresen.

Convolvulaceae

Convolvulus hystrix Vahl

Crassulaceae

Umbilicus horizontalis (Guss.) DC.

Cruciferae

Aethionema carneum (Banks & Sol.) B.Fedtsch.

Anastatica hierochuntica L.

Biscutella didyma L.

Diplotaxis harra (Forssk.) Boiss.

Douepea arabica (Hedge & Kit Tan) O.Appel & Al-Shehbaz

Eremobium aegyptiacum (Spreng.) Asch. & Schweinf. ex Boiss.

Farsetia aegyptia Turra

Isatis lusitanica L.

Matthiola arabica Boiss.

Matthiola longipetala (Vent.) DC.

Morettia canescens Boiss.

Schimpera arabica Hochst. & Steud.

Sisymbrium erysimoides Desf.

Zilla spinosa (L.) Prantl

Cucurbitaceae

Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad.

Cucumis prophetarum L. var. dissectus (Naudin) C.Jeffrey

Cupressaceae

Juniperus phoenicea L.

Cyperaceae

Isolepis setacea (L.) R. Br.

Scirpoides holoschoenus (L.) Sojak

Dipsacaceae

Pterocephalus brevis Coult.

Ephedraceae

Ephedra aphylla Forssk.

Ephedra pachyclada Boiss. subsp. sinaica (H.Riedl) Freitag & Maier-Stolte

Euphorbiaceae

Chrozophora oblongifolia (Delile) A.Juss. ex Spreng.

Geraniaceae

Erodium hirtum (L.) Willd.

Erodium malacoides (L.) L’He´r.

Erodium neuradifolium Delile ex Godr.

Erodium oxyrhynchum M.Bieb.

Globulariaceae

Globularia arabica Jaub. & Spach

Gramineae

Brachypodium distachyon (L.) P. Beauv.

Bromus fasciculatus C.Presl

Cenchrus pennisetiformis Hochst. & Steud.

Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng.

Hyparrhenia hirta (L.) Stapf

Imperata cylindrica (L.) Raeusch.

Panicum turgidum Forssk.

Pennisetum divisum (J.F.Gmel.) Henrard

Pennisetum setaceum (Forssk.) Chiov.

Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud.

Piptatherum holciforme (M.Bieb.) Roem. & Schult.

Polypogon viridis (Gouan) Breistr.

Saccharum ravennae (L.) Murr.

Stipa capensis Thunb.

Stipagrostis ciliata (Desf.) De Winter

Stipagrostis foexiana (Maire & Wilczek) De Winter

Stipagrostis obtusa (Delile) Nees1

Stipagrostis plumosa (L.) Munro ex T.Anderson

Tricholaena teneriffae (L.f.) Link

Haloragaceae

Myriophyllum spicatum L.

Hyacinthaceae

Dipcadi erythraeum (Stocks.) Bak.

Hypericaceae

Hypericum sinaicum Hochst. ex Boiss.

Iridaceae

Moraea sisyrinchium (L.) Ker Gawl.

Juncaceae

Juncus rigidus Desf.

Labiatae

Ballota undulata (Sieber ex Fresen.) Benth.

Lavandula coronopifolia Poir.

Lavandula pubescens Decne.

Mentha longifolia (L.) L.

Micromeria imbricata (Forssk.) C.Chr.

Nepeta sheilae Hedge & R.A.King

Otostegia fruticosa (Forssk.) Schweinf. ex Penzig

Phlomis brachyodon (Boiss.) Zohary ex Rech.f.

Salvia aegyptiaca Pers.

Salvia palaestina Benth.

Satureja thymbrifolia Hedge & Feinbrun

Stachys aegyptiaca Pers.

Teucrium leucocladum Boiss.

Teucrium popovii R.A.King

Leguminosae

Acacia gerrardii Benth. var. najdensis Chaudhary

Acacia tortilis (Forssk.) Hayne subsp. raddiana (Savi) Brenan

Astracantha echinus (DC.) Podlech subsp. arabica Hedge & Podlech

Astragalus spinosus (Forssk.) Muschl.

Crotalaria aegyptiaca Benth.

Crotalaria persica (Burm.f.) Merr.

Hippocrepis constricta Kunze

Lotononis platycarpa (Viv.) Pic.Serm.

Retama raetam (Forssk.) Webb & Berthel.

Senna italica Mill.

Trigonella stellata Forssk.

Loranthaceae

Plicosepalus acaciae (Zucc.) Wiens & Polhill1

Malvaceae

Abutilon ramosum Guill. & Perr.

Alcea striata (DC.) Alef.

Moraceae

Ficus cordata Thunb. subsp. salicifolia (Vahl) C.C.Berg1

Ficus palmata Forssk. subsp. virgata (Roxb.) Browicz1

Ophioglossaceae

Ophioglossum polyphyllum A.Braun

Orchidaceae

Epipactis veratrifolia Boiss. & Hohen.

Orobanchaceae

Cistanche phelypaea (L.) Cout.

Palmae

Hyphaene thebaica (L.) Mart.

Phoenix dactylifera L.

Plantaginaceae

Plantago afra L.

Polygalaceae

Polygala schwartziana Paiva

Polygonaceae

Rumex nervosus Vahl

Rumex pictus Forssk.

Rumex vesicarius L.

Pteridophytes

Adiantum capillus-veneris

Ranunculaceae

Delphinium sheilae Kit Tan

Resedaceae

Caylusea hexagyna (Forssk.) M.L.Green

Ochradenus baccatus Delile

Reseda aucheri Boiss. var. bracteata (Boiss.) Abdallah & De

Reseda pentagyna Abdallah & A.G.Mill.

Rhamnaceae

Sageretia thea (Osbeck) M.C.Johnst.

Rubiaceae

Crucianella ciliata Lam.

Crucianella membranacea Boiss.

Pterogaillonia calycoptera (Decne.) Lincz.

Rutaceae

Haplophyllum tuberculatum (Forssk.) A.Juss.

Scrophulariaceae

Anarrhinum forskallii (J.F.Gmel.) Cufod.

Kickxia acerbiana (Boiss.) Ta¨ckh. & Boulos

Lindenbergia indica (L.) Kuntze

Verbascum deserticola (Murb.) Hub.-Mor.

Verbascum sheilae Kit Tan

Verbascum sinaiticum Benth.

Verbascum sp.

Solanaceae

Hyoscyamus pusillus L.

Hyoscyamus sp. aff. aureus L.

Lycium shawii Roem. & Schult.

Solanum cordatum Forssk.

Tamaricaceae

Tamarix aphylla (L.) H.Karst.

Tamarix nilotica (Ehrenb.) Bunge

Typhaceae

Typha domingensis Pers.

Umbelliferae

Anisosciadium lanatum Boiss.

Chaetosciadium trichospermum (L.) Boiss.

Ferula ovina Boiss.

Ferula rutbaensis C.C.Towns.

Ferula sinaica Boiss.

Pycnocycla tomentosa Decne

Scandix stellata Banks & Sol.

Urticaceae

Forsskaolea tenacissima L.

Parietaria alsinifolia Delile

Valerianaceae

Valerianella oxyrhyncha Fisch. & Mey.

Zygophyllaceae

Fagonia indica Burm.f.

Fagonia mollis Delile

Fagonia ovalifolia Hadidi

Peganum harmala L.

Tetraena simplex

Site created and maintained by Dr. Jacob Thomas, Dept. of Botany & Microbiology, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.