Journal ArticleDOI
Plant species diversity and ecological districts of the Sinai desert
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TLDR
It is suggested that the high gamma diversity of Sinai is primarily due to its environmental heterogeneity, being a meeting place of three phytogeographical regions and to past climatic changes.Abstract:
Lists of vascular plant species for each of the 12 ecological districts of Sinai were prepared. In all 78,000 observations on altogether 812 species were analyzed. The number of districts where each species occurred was also counted. Linear regressions were calculated for the log-transformed values of species/area, species/altitude and multiple regression of species on both area and altitude. The regression of species on area for the 12 ecological districts of Sinai gave the equation: log S = 1.0309+0.3 log A
The value of z=0.3 is higher than 0.222—the measured overall value for the continents and higher than the values for the Sahara, California mainland, the British Isles, and the Netherlands. However, it is lower than the values for the Galapagos Archipelago and the California Islands. The number of species supported in districts characterized by fissured limestone, gravel plains, chalk, marl, sandstones, sands or fissured magmatic and metamorphic rocks is close to the regression of species on area, whereas large outcrops of smooth-faced rocks are relatively richer in total number of species as well as in stenotople species. It is suggested that the high gamma diversity of Sinai as compared with other parts of the world is primarily due to its environmental heterogeneity. Sinai being a meeting place of three phytogeographical regions and to past climatic changes. The effect of smooth-faced rock outcrops as conducive to providing refugia must also be taken into account.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Journal ArticleDOI
Soil–vegetation relationships in a coastal desert plain of southern Sinai, Egypt
TL;DR: In this article, an analysis of soil, vegetation types as well as structure and species distribution in 19 sites in El-Qaa plain along the Gulf of Suez (south Sinai, Egypt), and focuses on the environmental factors that control the species distribution.
Journal ArticleDOI
The distribution of Raunkiaer life forms in Israel in relation to the environment
Avinoam Danin,Gideon Orshan +1 more
TL;DR: The distribution of Raunkiaer life forms along rainfall and temperature gradients was determined for the floras of 27 geomorphological districts in Israel, and hemicryptophytes and geophytes show a negative correlation with mean annual temperatu- re and withmean annual minimal temperature.
Journal ArticleDOI
Diversity Components in a Species-Rich Area of the Cape Floristic Region
Journal ArticleDOI
Spatial variations in vegetation as related to the soil moisture regime over an arid limestone hillside, northern Negev, Israel
A. Yair,Avinoam Danin +1 more
TL;DR: Data obtained indicate that the best water regime and a high diversity of plant species are characteristic of a massive limestone rock unit; whereas worse water regimes characterize densely jointed and thinly bedded limestones.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Book
The Theory of Island Biogeography
TL;DR: The Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201
Journal ArticleDOI
The Limiting Similarity, Convergence, and Divergence of Coexisting Species
TL;DR: The total number of species is proportional to the total range of the environment divided by the niche breadth of the species, which is reduced by unequal abundance of resources but increased by adding to the dimensionality of the niche.
Book
The geology of Egypt
TL;DR: Scholars from Egypt, Germany and the US review and analyze the results of work carried out on the geology of Egypt as mentioned in this paper, including geomorphology and evolution of landscape, tectonics, geophysical regime, volcanicity, Precambrian geology, geologic history and paleogeography, paleontology of selected taxa.