Fagonia arabica – the desert’s thorny herb and camel’s food of choice

Series about the desert flora and ecology with the livestock connection

Livestock or the whole group of herbivores are the primary users of the foliage. Humans domesticated the animals for food and agriculture keeping some specific goals in consideration, the most important was breeding in captivity followed by the thriftiness of the grasses/foliage. My main thematic idea is to document the flora of the drylands, especially the desert with a special connection with livestock consumption. The herbal value of the flora is another attraction to me and I document the traditional knowledge regarding the flora in dry ecosystems. I hereby introduce a small herb with high nutritional and herbal value and the camels and goats like it the most. The Desert Ecotherapy

Fagonia arabica (Dhamasa, Dhamana, Sachi booti and Shoka’a) and Khar Oshtur in Balochi/Farsi and Shinazghi in Pashtu

Grow near the irrigated strips, browse by camel, goats, sheep, gazals, and Oryx. Fagonia is highly liked by the camels and therefore I call it camel icecream species. I have compiled some of my desert flora documentation work under the category of camel icecream species. Plants that are Liked such as Icecream by the Camels. Part 2

Herbal value

Fagonia has very high herbal values and is used by traditional healers for the treatment of parasitic and infectious diseases. One can find many references about the chemical composition and claims as a remedy for certain health complexes. https://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=rjmp.2011.531.546. Fagonia arabica plant has been reported to have a wide range of traditional uses in sore mouth, smallpox, hematological, neurological, endocrinological, inflammatory, and cooling agents in stomatitis, vertigo, and endothermic reaction in the body. Several bioactive constituents including glycosides, flavonoids, terpenoids, saponins, alkaloids, and trace elements were recorded from the Fagonia arabica plant. The isolation and identification of two flavonoid glycosides (kaempferol-7-O-rhamnoside and acacetin-7-O-rhamnoside) were also reported. Fagonia arabica has been studied for its wide range of biological activities, which include antioxidant, antimicrobial, cardioprotective, and anticoagulant. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34554901/

Magnet leaf to attract sand and fibers to hide from animals and slower transportation

Fagonia arabica has unique leaves, beautiful and shiny but works as a magnet for sand and fibrous material. This way, they hide from the animals and make it unpalatable for the animals. It is a magnet and has adapted very unique strategy to conserve its race from extinction.

Zygophyllaceae is an important desert flora family, many species fall in this family, i.e. Zygophyllum qatarenses, Tribulus, Fagonia, and some others. Gallery of Zygophyllum qatarenses