Description & Remarks

In recent years several populations of H. ovalifolium were recorded in shallow wet sandy-bed in drying Menashe water reservoirs in the Sharon Plain, as well as on nearby fragile sandstone ridges. Most of the growth is annual, as the drying reservoirs during summer month do not provide necessary conditions for the survival of the plants past seed dispersion. However, a limited number of perennial plants can be found in localized spots where, apparently, some residual wet soil exists. The site is about 2 km east of Or-Akiva (8 km N of Haderaq). The absence of specimens of H. ovalifolium in the local herbaria might indicate that these populations resulted from a recent dispersal event. Another explanation may be that the species is really rare and has not been collected before in these areas.
Simon Cohen-Sivan and Christian Braeuchler (Munich University)