''Sphaerocoma'' is a
monotypic genus of
flowering plants belonging to the family
Caryophyllaceae. The only species is ''Sphaerocoma hookeri''.
Its native range is Egypt to Northeastern Tropical Africa (Sudan, Eritrea, and Somalia),
Sinai Peninsula,
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate ...
, southern
Iran, and southwestern
Pakistan.
[
]
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized:[
* ''Sphaerocoma hookeri'' subsp. ''aucheri'' (Boiss.) Kool & Thulin – Arabian Peninsula, southern Iran, and southwestern Pakistan
* ''Sphaerocoma hookeri'' subsp. ''hookeri'' – Egypt, Eritrea, Sinai, Socotra, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen
]
Ecology
In the South Iran Nubo–Sindian desert and semi-desert ecoregion of southern Iran and southwestern Pakistan, ''Sphaerocoma hookeri'' subsp. ''aucheri'' in association with ''Euphorbia larica
''Euphorbia'' is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae (in deference to t ...
'' forms one of the ecoregion's typical plant communities.[Takhtajan, A. L. (1986). ''Floristic Regions of the World''. University of California Press, Berkeley. QK 101.T313 1986 ISBN 0-520-04027-9]
References
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q10373712, from2=Q17243304
Caryophyllaceae
Monotypic Caryophyllaceae genera
Flora of the Arabian Peninsula
Flora of Northeast Tropical Africa
Flora of Socotra
Flora of Iran
Flora of Pakistan