Purple Zoegea

Zoegea purpurea

Zoegea purpurea currently grows
only in the southern Negev and Elat Mountains regions, at four sites, but there
may be seven sites in Israel. The three sites in the southern Negev are located
in the Mount Karkom- Wadi
Shazar area. In the past,
it was collected from other sites in the southern Negev around Mount Arif and Wadi
Hayun, but apparently, it has disappeared from there. Dudi Rivner and Mori
Chen observed Z. purpurea in the Elat Mountains between Mount Neshef and Wadi
Etek in 2007. M. Zohari
collected the species in the Arava in 1962, north of Yotvata, but it is no
longer found there.

Rocky slopes and wadis in the desert.

Zoegea
purpurea was described in 1835 from Petra in southern Jordan. The
genus Zoegea
is a small genus that
consists of three species, found mainly in the Irano-Turanian region. Morphologically,
the Zoegea
species are isolated from genera close to them, and this is supported by molecular
analysis, according to which the Zoegea species appear separately from other close
genera such as Centaurea, Carthamus and Jurinea (Susanna
and Garcia-Jacas 2009).

·        
According to
existing collections and records, the number of Zoegea purpurea sites has decreased compared to the past. In one region (the Arava),
it has not been found in recent decades. However, since the plant is an annual species
of extreme deserts, its appearance is subject to extreme fluctuations and possibly
in rainy years additional sites will be discovered.

·        
The small
numbers of Z. purpurea populations and the great fluctuations
in its appearance make a verified assessment of its population size difficult.

·        
The evaluation
of Z. purpurea risk factors and threats is not simple
because of its rarity, the scarcity of observations and their fluctuations. Z.
purpurea sites are not easily accessible and the species is
not threatened by humans. It is however possible to assume that the desiccation
trend becoming apparent in the southern Negev and the decline in the number of
effective floods reduces the species' chances of survival.

·        
Z. purpureasites
are protected in the Negev Highlands and Elat Massif reserves.

·        
According to
data from Egypt, the plant species is classified as “Vulnerable” (VU) in
southern Sinai.

The region of Mount Karkom and nearby wadis should be
carefully surveyed in rainy years, to obtain an updated picture of the species
range and populations, which can serve as a basis for a protection program in
case of need.

Zoegea purpurea is found in the Middle East in the Irano-Turanian geographic region
and penetrates Saharo-Arabian regions in Egypt, southern Israel, southern
Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran.

Zoegea purpurea
is a small herbaceous species of the extreme desert in the southern Negev,
which according to existing documentation is in decline. It is necessary to
expand the information regarding its distribution and short and long-term
population trends.

Susanna, A. and N. Garcia-Jacas. 2009. Cardueae. in: Systematics, Evolution, and Biogeography of Compositae (eds. V.A. Funk, A. Susanna, T.F. Stuessy and R.J. Bayer). IAPT. pp. 306.