The Gibson Desert is an arid ecoregion of Western Australia, set within the continent's vast interior between the Tropic of Capricorn's salt lakes and dunefields. Its broad gravel and red sand plains, lateritic uplands, and dunes are clothed mainly in spinifex (Triodia spp.) grasslands and hummock shrublands, dotted with scattered eucalypts, Acacia, Hakea, and Grevillea along with mulga parklands. The climate is harsh and dry, with annual rainfall of only about 200 to 250 millimetres and summer temperatures that exceed 40 degrees Celsius. Despite this aridity, the desert supports one of the world's most diverse reptile communities, including the woma snake and the thorny devil, and is a stronghold for birds such as the Major Mitchell's cockatoo and princess parrot. Around 58 percent of the ecoregion lies within protected areas, much of it overlapping Aboriginal lands. For gardeners in hot, dry climates, the region's native Acacia, Hakea, and Grevillea are widely grown ornamentals prized for drought tolerance.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 24.4°S, 126.0°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
11a-12a
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
11a-12a
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.9°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Deserts & Xeric Shrublands
Realm
Australasia
Approximate area
60,480 sq mi
Conservation tier
Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 1)
About the deserts & xeric shrublands biome
Arid and semi-arid lands where low, erratic rainfall and high evaporation limit vegetation to drought-adapted shrubs, succulents, and sparse grasses. Day-to-night temperature swings are large, and life is finely tuned to water scarcity.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 52
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other deserts & xeric shrublands ecoregions to explore: