The Somali ''Acacia''–''Commiphora'' bushlands and thickets is a semi-arid tropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ecoregion in the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

. It is home to diverse communities of plants and animals, including several endemic species.

Setting

The Somali ''Acacia''–''Commiphora'' bushlands and thickets ecoregion occupies most of the Horn of Africa east and south of the

Ethiopian Highlands The Ethiopian Highlands (also called the Abyssinian Highlands) is a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia in Northeast Africa. It forms the largest continuous area of its elevation in the continent, with little of its surface falling below , whil ...

, including eastern Ethiopia's

Haud The Haud (also Hawd) (, ), formerly known as the Hawd Reserve Area, is a plateau situated in the Horn of Africa consisting of thorn-bush and grasslands. The region includes the southern part of Somaliland as well as the northern and eastern part ...

plateau and adjacent parts of Somaliland, Somalia and northeastern Kenya. It also extends along the floor of the

East African Rift The East African Rift (EAR) or East African Rift System (EARS) is an active continental rift zone in East Africa. The EAR began developing around the onset of the Miocene, 22–25 million years ago. It was formerly considered to be part of a l ...

, bisecting the Ethiopian highlands, and along the northeastern edge of the highlands into Eritrea and Sudan. The ecoregion is bounded on the southwest by the

Northern Acacia–Commiphora bushlands and thickets The Northern ''Acacia''–''Commiphora'' bushlands and thickets are a tropical grasslands, savannas and shrublands ecoregion in eastern Africa. The ecoregion is mostly located in Kenya, extending north into southeastern South Sudan, northeastern ...

and the Masai xeric grasslands and shrublands. To the south, it is bounded by the humid

Northern Zanzibar–Inhambane coastal forest mosaic Northern Zanzibar–Inhambane coastal forest mosaic, also known as the Northern Swahili coastal forests and woodlands, is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of coastal East Africa. The ec ...

in the lower Shebelle–

Jubba River The Jubba River or Juba River (, ) is a river in southern Somalia which flows through the region of Jubaland. It begins at the border with Ethiopia, where the Dawa and Ganale Dorya rivers meet, and flows directly south to the Somali Sea, where ...

valley. The

Hobyo grasslands and shrublands The Hobyo grasslands and shrublands is a Deserts and xeric shrublands, desert and xeric scrubland ecoregion in Somalia. The ecoregion includes a belt of coastal dunes, 10 to 15 km wide, along the Indian Ocean coast, extending from north of H ...

occupy a narrow strip of coastal dunes along Somalia's central Indian Ocean coast. To the northeast, the

Somali montane xeric woodlands The Somali montane xeric shrublands is a desert and xeric scrubland ecoregion in Somalia. The ecoregion lies in the rugged Karkaar Mountains, which run parallel and close to Somalia's northern coast on the Gulf of Aden, and follows coast from C ...

occupy the

Ogo Mountains The Ogo Mountains (Ogo Highlands), also known as the Galgodon Highlands, (, ) are a mountain range in Somaliland / Somalia. They cross the Sanaag– Sahil and Togdheer– Maroodi Jeh regions. However, there is some fluctuation in the literature a ...

along Somaliland's northern coast, and the

Ethiopian xeric grasslands and shrublands The Djibouti xeric shrublands is an ecoregion defined by One Earth, consisting of a semi-desert strip on or near the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden coasts in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia. This ecoregion lies mainly between sea level and ...

occupy the lowlands along the Red Sea. Between 1100 and 1500 meters elevation in the Ethiopian Higlands, the Acacia–Commiphora woodlands transition to the

Ethiopian montane forests The Ethiopian montane forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in Ethiopia. It covers the southwestern and southeastern portions of the Ethiopian Highlands. The ecoregion includes distinctive Afromontane evergreen forests. The ecoreg ...

Climate

The ecoregion has a hot semi-arid to

hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk'') is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

. Rainfall ranges from below 100 mm annually in the Ogaden to 600 mm on the lower slopes of the Ethiopian Highlands. Rainfall can be erratic and vary widely from year to year.

Flora

The plant communities include woodlands, shrublands, grasslands, and thickets. The predominant trees are deciduous species of ''

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

'' and ''

Commiphora ''Commiphora'' is the most species-rich genus of flowering plants in the frankincense and myrrh family, Burseraceae. The genus contains approximately 190 species of shrubs and trees, which are distributed throughout the (sub-) tropical regions of A ...

'', with a low herbaceous understory. ''

Dactyloctenium aegyptium ''Dactyloctenium aegyptium'', or Egyptian crowfoot grass is a member of the family Poaceae native to Africa and Asia. The plant mostly grows in heavy soils at damp sites. Description This grass creeps and has a straight shoot which are usuall ...

'' and ''

Panicum turgidum ''Panicum turgidum'' is an old world clumping desert bunchgrass of the genus '' Panicum''. It is a plant of arid regions across Africa and Asia, and has been introduced to other parts of the world. Description ''Panicum turgidum'' is a perenni ...

'' are the principal grass species. Where rainfall is lower, the ''Acacia–Commiphora'' woodlands yield to low bushlands and grasslands.

Fauna

The ecoregion is home to many species of gazelle, including the endemic

dibatag The dibatag (''Ammodorcas clarkei''), or Clarke's gazelle, is a medium-sized slender antelope native to Ethiopia and Somalia. Though not a true gazelle, it is similarly marked, with long legs and neck. It is often confused with the gerenuk du ...

(''Ammodorcas clarkei'', VU), beira (''Dorcatragus megalotis'', VU),

hirola The hirola (''Beatragus hunteri''), also called the Hunter's hartebeest or Hunter's antelope, is a critically endangered antelope species found as of now, only in Kenya along the border of Somalia. It was first described by the big game hunter an ...

(''Damaliscus hunteri'', CR) and

Speke's gazelle Speke's gazelle (''Gazella spekei'') is the smallest of the gazelle species. It is confined to the Horn of Africa, where it inhabits stony brush, grass steppes, and semi deserts. This species has been sometimes regarded as a subspecies of the Dor ...

(''Gazella spekei'', VU).

Protected areas and conservation

10.88% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. Protected areas include

Yangudi Rassa National Park Yangudi Rassa National Park () is a national park in Ethiopia located in Afar Region. Geography Its of territory include Mount Yangudi () near the southern boundary and the surrounding Rassa Plains, with altitudes from above sea level. The Awas ...

Nechisar National Park Nechisar National Park (or Nech-Sar National Park) is a national park in the South Ethiopia Regional State of Ethiopia. It is in the Great Rift Valley within the southwestern Ethiopian Highlands. Geography The park includes the "Bridge of God", ...

Awash National Park Awash National Park is a National parks in Ethiopia, national park in Ethiopia. Located at the border of Oromia state and Afar Region, Afar state, the park covers an area of 827 square kilometers, most of it lies at an altitude of 900 meters. ...

Omo National Park Omo National Park is a national park in Ethiopia founded in 1980. Located in the South Ethiopia Regional State on the west bank of the Omo River, the park covers approximately 4,068 square kilometers, about 870 kilometers southwest of Addis Ababa ...

Mago National Park Mago National Park is a national park in Ethiopia located in the South Ethiopia Regional State about 782 kilometers south of Addis Ababa and north of a large 90° bend in the Omo River, the 2162 square kilometers of this park are divided by the ...

Borena National Park Borana National Park (also known as Borena National Park) is a wildlife sanctuary located in the Borena Zone of the Oromia Region in Ethiopia. Geography Borana National Park is located in southern Ethiopia. It covers an area of 45,366 km2. ...

, Chelbi Wildlife Reserve, Babille Elephant Sanctuary,

Senkelle Swayne's Hartebeest Sanctuary Senkelle Swayne's Hartebeest Sanctuary is a protected area in the Oromia Region (or ''kilil'') of Ethiopia, dedicated especially to the protection of the Swayne's hartebeest (''Alcelaphus buselaphus swaynei''). Covering 54 square kilometers, the ...

, and Yabello Sanctuary in Ethiopia, Malka Mari National Park in Kenya, and the Alifuuto Nature Reserve in Somalia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Somali acacia-commiphora bushlands and thickets Afrotropical ecoregions Ecoregions of Eritrea Ecoregions of Ethiopia Ecoregions of Kenya Ecoregions of Somalia Ecoregions of Sudan Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands Ecoregions of Somaliland