Eight New Native Plant Species Discovered at NEOM

Eight plant species native to Saudi Arabia have been discovered, according to the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture and NEOM.

The research is part of the NEOM flora program, which is focused on preserving 95% of the region’s natural land, whilst making a record of its unique biodiversity. Including these eight new species, researchers have been able to document 345 local plant species over the past two and a half years.

The eight newly-discovered species have been identified as Bituminaria flaccida (Nabelek) Greuter, Cicer judaicum Boiss, Crambe hispanica L, Diplotaxis tenuifolia (L.) DC, Hyoscyamus boveanus (Dunal) Asch & Schweinf, Muscari longipes subsp Longipes, Phagnalon nitidum Fresen, and Plantago sinaica (Barneoud) Decne.

The new plant species have since been documented at the National Herbarium within the Seed Center and Plant Genetic Resources Bank in Riyadh