Bryophytes from Azraq National Park, Jordan

Abstract

In 1963 a party of British biologists and photographers under the leadership of the noted ornithologist Guy Mountfort visited a number of sites in Jordan with a view to investigating their possibilities as National Parks, for the conservation of wild life, archaeological sites, etc., and as attractions for a possible tourist trade. The three chief areas visited were Petra, Wadi Rum, and the Azraq area of E. Jordan, the only area of permanent water in 12,000 square miles of subdesert. As a result of the findings of this team, a further expedition to Azraq was organized, under the same leadership, in the spring (roughly mid-April to mid-May) of 1965, the writer accompanying this expedition as botanist. On the basis of recommendations made by Mr Mountfort and Mr E. M. Nicholson, Director-General of the Nature Conservancy, His Majesty King Hussein took rapid action and in July 1965 declared the opening of the Azraq National Park Project, which is now under way. During the course of the exPedition, the writer kept a special watch for bryophytes, which were not expected to be numerous in an arid area of semi· desert; in fact, almost two-thirds of the time of the expedition passed without a single moss or hepatic being seen. Few cryptogams of any sort were observed apart from a few crustaceous saxicolous and terricolous lichens and odd specimens in sandy depressions of the fungus PhelloriM hercu/eana (Pillas ex Pers.) Kreisel (del. D. M. Dring). The lichens have been presented to the British Museum (Natural History) and are as yet unnamed. The topography of the Azraq area is of three chief types: (I) The permanent water area, with the area of drying mud (08) left by the receding water level as evaporation increases in spring and early summer. The Qa is highly saline, and no bryophytes were encountered here. (2) The hamada or flint desert, comprising the great bulk of the area around Azraq except to the north. This consists of a finely divided calcareous soil more or less thickly overlaid with flints, the limestone rock beneath occasionally coming very near the surface or outcropping. (3) The lava desert, comprising much of the land to the north of Azraq, and consisting of a great expanse of basalt boulders laid upon calcareous soil, which apart from this surface deposit would be similar in nature to the hamada. Along the surface of both hamada and lava desert run innumerable large and small watercourses or wadis, almost or totally dry in summer, and thus providing a soil consisting mainly of calcareous washdoWD 'sand' often almost free of flints. In order to avoid undue repetition, descriptions are given below of the few