Scottish botanist Isaac Bayley Balfour described this species in 1884 from material collected from the Yemeni island of Socotra, where he recorded it was common.[4] The species name is derived from the Latin adjective arbusculus "small tree".[5] Two subspecies are recognised.[6] Balfour had visited Socotra in 1880 and collected many plants.[7] Within the large genus Euphorbia it is classified in the subgenus Euphorbia section Tirucalli.[8]
The nominate subspeciesarbuscula has a tree-like habit, reaching 6m (20ft) tall. It has cylindrical greyish green branches. Subspecies montana is smaller, reaching 2m (7ft) in height.[6] There are leaves only on the newest shoots, the plants' other greener branches photosynthesise sunlight instead.[7]
The leaflets are eaten by goats, both when the leaves are dried out and when they are green and fresh.[9] For that reason, this species is often planted near settlements.[1] Herders who seek to harvest food for their herd should avoid chopping off whole branches, or violently beating the branches to knock off the leaflets, in which case the plant is less likely to recover.[9] This plant flowers during the hot, dry season and is able to survive severe drought, assuming it is not abused by herders.[1] Its pores close during the day, to minimize transpirational water-loss, as part of its crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM).[10]
When cut or injured, this plant exudes a caustic latex that can burn the skin of a human who is not adequately protected.[9] The latex from this plant is useful for veterinary, medicinal, and other purposes such as for fishing.[9]
Euphorbia is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae, not just to members of the genus.
Susan Carter Holmes is a botanist and taxonomist. She discovered and catalogued more than 200 plants of the family Euphorbiaceae. Her plants and articles are published under her maiden-name Susan Carter.
Euphorbia maritae is a species of perennial flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It takes its name from the discoverer, Marita Specks, who collected the first known specimen in Tanzania with her husband Ernst Specks in 1999.
Euphorbia abdelkuri is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Abd al Kuri, an island south of Yemen. Its natural habitat is rocky areas. The Latex of the plant is toxic.
Euphorbia alfredii is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and rocky areas. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Euphorbia kischenensis is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Yemen. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Euphorbia kuriensis is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Yemen. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Euphorbia leistneri is a species of succulent plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to northwest-Namibia and southwest-Angola near the Kunene river. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss. Euphorbia leistneri is closely related to Euphorbia monteiri.
Euphorbia obcordata is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Yemen. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and rocky areas.
Euphorbia sakarahaensis is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. It is threatened by habitat loss. It was described by Werner Rauh in 1992.
Euphorbia schweinfurthii is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Yemen. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Euphorbia socotrana is a species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is endemic to Yemen. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Secamone socotrana is a species of plant in the family Apocynaceae. It is endemic to the Socotra Islands in the Republic of Yemen. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Euphorbia candelabrum is a succulent species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae, one of several plants commonly known as candelabra tree. It is endemic to the Horn of Africa and eastern Africa along the East African Rift system. It is known in Ethiopia by its Amharic name, qwolqwal, or its Oromo name, adaamii. It is closely related to three other species of Euphorbia: Euphorbia ingens in the dry regions of southern Africa, Euphorbia conspicua from western Angola, and Euphorbia abyssinica, which is native to countries including Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia.
Euphorbia canariensis, commonly known as the Canary Island spurge, Hercules club or in Spanish cardón, is a succulent member of the genus Euphorbia and family Euphorbiaceae endemic to the Canary Islands. It is the plant symbol of the island of Gran Canaria.
Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of a genus in the family. Most spurges, such as Euphorbia paralias, are herbs, but some, especially in the tropics, are shrubs or trees, such as Hevea brasiliensis. Some, such as Euphorbia canariensis, are succulent and resemble cacti because of convergent evolution. This family has a cosmopolitan global distribution. The greatest diversity of species is in the tropics; however, the Euphorbiaceae also have many species in nontropical areas of all continents except Antarctica.
Euphorbia ingens is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is native to dry areas of southern Africa. It is popularly known as the candelabra tree or naboom. Its milky latex can be extremely poisonous and is a dangerous irritant.
Dracaena cinnabari, the Socotra dragon tree or dragon blood tree, is a dragon tree native to the Socotra archipelago, part of Yemen, located in the Arabian Sea. It is named after the blood-like color of the red sap that the trees produce.
Dendrosicyos is a monotypic genus in the plant family Cucurbitaceae. The only species is Dendrosicyos socotranus, the cucumber tree. The species is endemic to the island of Socotra in Yemen, and is the only species in the Cucurbitaceae to grow in a tree form. The species name was originally spelled D. socotrana, but this is corrected to masculine grammatical gender according to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants.
Euphorbia caducifolia is a subtropical succulent species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is found in India where it is known as the leafless milk hedge.
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