The Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets cover most of the Horn of Africa east and south of the Ethiopian Highlands, reaching across eastern Ethiopia, Somalia, Somaliland, and northeastern Kenya and extending along the East African Rift into Eritrea and Sudan. The vegetation is dry deciduous woodland and scrub dominated by Acacia and Commiphora, grading into grassland and near-desert in the driest places over a low herbaceous understory. The climate is hot and semi-arid to desert, with rainfall ranging from below 100 mm a year in the Ogaden to roughly 600 mm on the lower slopes bordering the highlands. It is a remarkable center of endemism, holding an estimated 2,500 plant species of which around half are found nowhere else, alongside arid-adapted antelopes such as the dibatag, beira, hirola, and Speke's gazelle. The region is also the historic source of two prized aromatic resins, frankincense from the tree Boswellia rivae and myrrh from the endemic Commiphora guidottii.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 5.0°N, 42.6°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
12a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
12a-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +4.0°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.
About the tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands biome
Warm grasslands and savannas where grasses dominate and trees are scattered, maintained by seasonal rainfall, grazing, and fire. They support large herbivore communities and respond sharply to wet–dry cycles.
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 · 4
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 tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands ecoregions to explore: