Vegetation diversity along the altitudinal and environmental gradients in the main wadi beds in the mountainous region o

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Vegetation

diversity

e-mail: [email protected]

along

http://jms.imde.ac.cn https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-020-6153-9

the

altitudinal

and

environmental gradients in the main wadi beds in the mountainous region of South Sinai, Egypt

Kamal H. SHALTOUT1 Yassin M.

Ebrahem M. EID2,3* Selim Z.

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8588-2991; e-mail: [email protected]

AL-SODANY2

HENEIDY4

Mostafa A. TAHER3,5

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8417-9129; e-mail: [email protected]

http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2452-4469;

e-mail: [email protected]

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9885-460X; e-mail: [email protected] https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5463-4418; e-mail: [email protected]

*Corresponding author 1 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt 2 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafr El-Sheikh 33516, Egypt 3 Biology Department, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha 61321, Saudi Arabia 4 Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Moharam Bey, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21511, Egypt 5 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Aswan University, Aswan 81528, Egypt Citation: Shaltout KH, Al-Sodany YM, Eid EM, et al. (2020) Vegetation diversity along the altitudinal and environmental gradients in the main wadi beds in the mountainous region of South Sinai, Egypt. Journal of Mountain Science 17(10). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-020-6153-9

© Science Press, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, CAS and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020

Abstract: South Sinai includes Egypt’s highest mountains that resemble an ecological island surrounded by desert. The present study aims to analyse the vegetation physiognomy along the altitudinal and environmental gradients in the main wadi beds in South Sinai mountainous region. This includes determining the natural, native-weed and alien vegetation in representative stands in this region, analysing their vegetation in terms of species composition, abundance and life forms and determining the national and global distribution of the associated species. This investigation also aims to describe the prevailing plant communities and assess the role of environmental conditions that affect the vegetation in this region. Thus, thirty-two stands were chosen during March-June 2018 to reflect the Received: 22-Apr-2020 1st Revision: 19-Jul-2020 2nd Revision: 19-Aug-2020 Accepted: 1-Sep-2020

prevailing altitude and environmental gradients. Total species was 316 (229 genera and 61 families): 186 species were perennials (58.9%), while 130 were annuals (41.1%). In addition, 152 species were native weeds (48.1% of total species), 31 were aliens (9.8%), along with 133 natural species (42.1%). Eight species were recorded as endemic to Egypt: Anarrhinum pubescens, Euphorbia sanctae-catharinae, Hypericum sinaicum, Origanum syriacum subsp. sinaicum, Phlomis aurea, Primula boveana, Rosa arabica and Solanum sinaicum. In addition, 10 species were recorded