Dacar Cas/Somali Red Aloe: a new species of Aloe (Asphodelaceae) from Somaliland

By

Barkworth, Mary E. (Mary Elizabeth), 1941-
Awale, Ahmed
Gelle, Faisal Jama

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2019

Original Publication

PhytoKeys

Volume

117

Pages

85-97

Subjects

Africa , Asparagales , species density

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers [2010]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.117.28226

 

Abstract

A new species of Aloe (Asphodelaceae) is described from Somaliland. It differs from other species in forming large clumps and in having sap that is initially yellow but quickly turns bright red and then dark red or reddish-brown, paniculate red-flowered inflorescences and uniformly coloured leaves with red teeth. Its recognition raises the number of species known from the combined area of Somaliland and Somalia s.s. from 31 to 36. A map portraying species density of Aloe by country, as that genus is now interpreted, shows that Aloe has its highest density on islands in the Indian Ocean but that, within Africa, the greatest density is in countries along the eastern highlands. The data also reinforce the importance of field botanists in determining a country’s known plant diversity.