''Aloe squarrosa'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the

Asphodelaceae Asphodelaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Asparagales. Such a family has been recognized by most taxonomists, but the circumscription has varied widely. In its current circumscription in the APG IV system, it includes about 4 ...

family. It is from the island of

Socotra Socotra or Soqotra (; ar, سُقُطْرَىٰ ; so, Suqadara) is an island of the Republic of Yemen in the Indian Ocean, under the ''de facto'' control of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council, a secessionist participant in Yemen’ ...

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

Distribution and habitat

''Aloe squarrosa'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the island of

. It is one of three Aloe species that are indigenous to this island, the other two being ''

Aloe perryi ''Aloe perryi'' (syn. ''Aloe forbesii'' Balf.f.; ''Aloe socotrina'') is a species of plant in the genus Aloe. It is endemic to the island of Socotra in Yemen, and is often known by its common name, Socotrine aloe.''Western Arabia and the Red Sea' ...

'' and '' Aloe jawiyon''. The natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

of ''Aloe squarrosa'' is limestone cliff-faces and rocky areas. It is threatened by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

and is destroyed by goat herding.

Identification

''Aloe squarrosa'' has smooth, green, spotted leaves that curve backwards. These recurved leaves are kept only around the head or top of each stem, with dead leaves falling off the lower parts of the stem. The inflorescence is short and simple, and the flowers are light orange with green tips. It is relatively rare in cultivation. It is frequently confused with '' Aloe juvenna'' from Kenya. However the more common ''Aloe juvenna'' has shorter, straight, non-recurved triangular leaves and grows long stems, with the leaves retained all along the stems.

References

squarrosa Endemic flora of Socotra Vulnerable plants Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by John Gilbert Baker Taxa named by Isaac Bayley Balfour {{Asphodelaceae-stub