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. Type of herb that grows on its own, year after year, in diverse habitats including wadi beds, pastures, deserts, and even saline environments
Scientific Name: Erodium glaucophyllum
Common Name: Roundleaf Stork’s Bill
Dimensions: Plant grows to a height of 10 to 20 cm, rarely up to 50 cm high
Medium: model
Registration Number: RPN.2018.0381
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The roundleaf stork's bill is a perennial herb with bluish-green, shallowly lobed leaves arranged alternately. It has terminal inflorescences with deep pink or violet petals and white stamens containing initially deep purple pollen that turns orange later. The fruit contains five seeds covered in white bristles, and its long beak splits into five twisted, plumose beaks upon maturity.
Habitat and Biology
Roundleaf stork’s bill grows in wadi beds, pastures and desert, also in salty habitat, but especially on gypsum soil. It flowers in March and April and is pollinated by insects
ECO System Qatar
Rocky desert ecosystem:The Qatar peninsula's interior consists of flat, rocky plains with hardy life forms surviving and offering hunting spaces for predators. Stony deserts with sand, pebbles, and limestone emerge at the center, featuring gravel plains and eroded limestone formations. Three stony desert types are noted: Hamada, tough exposed zones prone to surface fracturing due to extreme summer heat; Hofuf, plains with a light gravel layer; and Wadis, dry channels filling after heavy rains.
PUBLICATIONS AND RESEARCH
Abdel Bary, Ekhlas M. M. (2012). The Flora of Qatar. 2 volumes (700 pages, 199 pages) : color illustrations, maps ; 28 cm. Doha: Qatar University Environmental Studies Center. OCLC: 875112803. MMS ID: 991000252609706691. English. Volume 1: The Dicotyledons -- Volume 2: The Monocotyledons
UNESCO Office in Doha. (n.d.). An Illustrated Checklist of the Flora of Qatar. Authors: John Norton, Sara Abdul Majid, Debbie Allan, Mohammed Al Safran, Benno Böer, & Renee Richer. [Unpublished manuscript]. Richer, R., Knees, S., Norton, J., & Sergeev, A. (2022). Hidden Beauty: An Exploration of Qatar’s Native and Naturalised Flora. Hardcover. April 30, 2022.