A contribution to the flora of Sinai. Part 2. A plant species list from pre-conservation collections in South Sinai, Egypt

摘要

This study presents a pre-conservation list of plant species, recorded and collected from the mountainous region, south of latitude 29o in Southern Sinai. This area was declared as a conservation region, the 'St. Catherine National Park', by the Egyptian Government, according to the Ministerial decree 613/1988. Practical conservation measures were implemented in the region in 1997/1998, and so the information here will help facilitate ongoing monitoring of conservation and species recovery. A total of 277 plant species of Pteridophyta and Spermatophyta belonging to fifty-seven families was collected from Southern Sinai. Amongst these, seventeen endemic species are known to be present only in the study area. The valid names, new locational records, and reference to site names and the ecological status, are given for all these species. Twelve plant species are newly recorded in Southern Sinai. The significance of the conservation strategy now being implemented, on species composition of the plant communities, their status and the updated distributional records within the region, will be evaluated by future comparative floristic and ecological surveys. This will be through monitoring programmes in the conservation area.