Namibia’s plants
What’s so special about our plants?
The Namibian flora – an overview
Incredible diversity!
Namibia has 195 plant families, with over 4,300 species, subspecies and varieties. Areas of particularly high diversity include the Succulent Karoo, Kaokoveld, Otavi/Karstveld area, Okavango Basin and Khomas highlands.
Photo: B Curtis. Mass display of flowers near Aus in the winter rainfall area after good rains.
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The Plant Information Page on the EIS contains a practical, workable list of the indigenous plants of Namibia with associated downloadable information files for each species, checklists, and other resources.
Learn about Namibia’s biomes and vegetation types here.
Unique species
Over 1,000 species are endemic or near-endemic to Namibia or the Namib. Many are adapted to arid conditions, with 500 succulent and 300 geophyte species. ‘Endemic’ to an area means a species is only found in that area.
Photo: J Pallett. Aloe erinacea, endemic to south-western Namibia, can be seen in the mountains around Rosh Pinah.
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You can see which species are endemic or near-endemic on the Plant Information Page on the EIS.
39 designated “Important Plant Areas”
These are globally important areas that can be protected and managed. They have species or habitats of conservation concern and/or are botanically rich or special habitats.
Photo: C Mannheimer. Namuskluft, in the Succulent Karoo.
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Read more in this Spotlight on Agriculture. It includes sections on:
Where to from here?
How did the concept of important plant areas come about?
What are IPAs?
What are we doing about IPAs in Namibia?
Why do we need IPAs?
Where are Namibia’s preliminary IPAs?
Poaceae is one of the largest families
The largest families are grasses (Poaceae), daisies (Asteraceae), legumes (Fabaceae), vygies/mesembs (Aizoaceae) and oleanders (Apocynaceae). Trees and large shrubs make up about 10% of the flora.
Photo: A Jarvis
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The Plant Information System on the EIS provides comprehensive information on the plant families and species present in Namibia.
Many Namibians depend directly on plants
Many Namibians depend directly on plants for their day-to-day subsistence. More than 1,000 species are used traditionally for construction, food, medicine, craft etc., of which many have been commercialised.
Photo: D Cole
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Namibia’s plants play an important role in many aspects of life in the country, providing food for people, livestock and game, medicinal products and multiple ecosytem services. Learn more about the varied uses of Namibia’s plants on this BotSoc page and in the Atlas of Namibia.
Pressure on indigenous plants is growing
Pressure on indigenous plants is growing as population and development increases. Over 1,000 have been assessed as endangered in some way (IUCN 2001) and over 500 are protected.
Photo: T Robertson
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The Plant Information Page on the EIS indicates which species are protected under Namibia’s Forestry Act No. 12 of 2001; the Nature Conservation Ordinance 4 of 1975 and CITES I, II and III.
Toxic species
About 100 species are poisonous to people or animals and cause considerable stock losses each year worth thousands of dollars. If farmers have knowledge of the plants, and how to diagnose and remedy their effects, some of these deaths are preventable.
Photo: B Curtis. Adenium boehmianum, Bushman Poison has toxic glycosides in the sap
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The book Toxic Plants of Veterinary Importance in Namibia covers 69 species of indigenous and exotic toxic plants known to affect livestock in Namibia. For each species/group there is a distribution map and a brief description as well as a short overview of clinical symptoms.
Invasive alien plants pose a serious threat
Many indigenous species are threatened by habitat loss, invasive aliens and/or illegal collecting/over-harvesting. Nearly 300 alien (non-native) plants have been introduced to Namibia.
Photo: B Curtis
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Learn about alien plants in Namibia here.
BotSoc’s Invasive alien plant awareness project.
BotSoc’s Invasive alien plants biocontrol project.
Section on alien plants in the Atlas of Namibia.
Record the presence of alien plants in the Atlasing in Namibia alien plants atlas.
Acacias in Namibia
In keeping with the decision by Namibia’s National Botanical Research Institute, Botsoc is retaining the use of the name Acacia, rather than changing to Vachellia and Senegalia.
Photo: B Curtis