189532

Floristic Composition of Species Inhabiting the Threatened Oolitic Sand Dune Habitat in Egypt

Article

Last updated: 01 Jan 2025

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Abstract

EGYPT is in the arid belt, with a semi-arid Mediterranean coast. Characteristic maritime oolitic sand dunes stretch parallel to the sea from Alexandria westward to Mersa Matruh. This habitat has a highly specialized floristic composition that never grows southward. Recently, the oolitic sand dune habitats have become threatened by urbanization expansion and global climate change, inducing a notable decline in floristic composition and species richness. The present study aimed to assess the flora land vegetation of the oolitic sand dunes along the Mediterranean coast in Egypt. The floristic composition in the surveyed area included a total of 116 psammophyte species (91 genera belonging to 27 families), with annuals comprising 47.4% and perennials comprising 40.5%. Chronological analysis revealed the dominance of the Mediterranean elements, with either mono-, bi- or pluri-regional chorotypes accounting for 64.7% of the total number of species. According to canonical correspondence analysis, the relationship between the prevailing species composition and soil variables revealed that CaCO3 and organic carbon positively affected, whereas sand and clay fractions and chloride ions negatively affected, the species distribution. The deterioration of oolitic habitats due to the construction of resorts and urbanization has led to a severe decline in the vegetation and flora of the area; this expansion must be stopped.

DOI

10.21608/ejbo.2021.86390.1737

Keywords

Chorotypes, Floristic composition, Mediterranean vegetation, Oolitic sand dune

Authors

First Name

Azza B.

Last Name

Hamed

MiddleName

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Affiliation

Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

Email

azzabadr@sci.cu.edu.eg

City

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Orcid

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First Name

Wafaa M.

Last Name

Amer

MiddleName

-

Affiliation

Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

Email

wafaa_amer@hotmail.com

City

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Orcid

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First Name

Ashraf T.

Last Name

Soliman

MiddleName

-

Affiliation

Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

Email

ashsoliman@sci.cu.edu.eg

City

-

Orcid

-

Volume

61

Article Issue

3

Related Issue

29103

Issue Date

2021-12-01

Receive Date

2021-07-14

Publish Date

2021-12-01

Page Start

795

Page End

808

Print ISSN

0375-9237

Online ISSN

2357-0350

Link

https://ejbo.journals.ekb.eg/article_189532.html

Detail API

https://ejbo.journals.ekb.eg/service?article_code=189532

Order

24

Type

Original Article

Type Code

111

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Egyptian Journal of Botany

Publication Link

https://ejbo.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Floristic Composition of Species Inhabiting the Threatened Oolitic Sand Dune Habitat in Egypt

Details

Type

Article

Created At

22 Jan 2023