Rema Sheikh1*, Wafaa Rajab1 and Abeer Ibrahem1
1 Environmental Prevention Department, Higher Institute for Environmental Research, Latakia University, Latakia- Syria.
(*Corresponding author: Rema sheikh, Email: rema.sheikh@latakia-univ.edu.sy)
Received: 21/10 / 2025 Accepted: 24/02 / 2026
Abstract:
Plant biodiversity at the Ras Shamra archaeological site in Latakia Governorate was investigated during 2023 and 2024 through botanical surveys conducted across five environmentally homogeneous sectors, representing the site as comprehensively as possible. In each of these five sectors, a large sample plot of 100 m² was delineated and subdivided into 10 small subplot samples with an area 1 m², comprising five vegetation and five wall samples. Compositional biodiversity was assessed using quantitative indices (species richness, Shannon index, Simpson index) and analyzed statistically with the Kruskal–Wallis (KW) and Mann–Whitney (MW) tests at a 5% significance level. Functional biodiversity was estimated by studying the plant life forms (growth forms) representing the biological characteristics of the recorded species, alongside an analysis of the species’ uses at the site. The study revealed that the archaeological site exhibits high species richness, with 72 plant species recorded belonging to 38 plant families. Asteraceae was the most represented family, followed by Fabaceae, Rosaceae, and Poaceae. The results of the statistical analysis of biodiversity indices indicated no significant differences among the vegetation samples, whereas significant differences were found among the wall samples. The dominant life form was herbaceous plants, constituting 42%, followed by shrub species (24%), tree species (18%), and Gramineae plants (7%). Climbing plants and bulbous species were the least represented life forms, forming 5% and 4%, respectively. The study recorded 55 medicinal species, 30 ornamental species, 11 toxic species, 6 edible species, and 9 grazing species, representing 42%, 23%, 20%, 8%, and 7%, respectively of the total species count (131 species) in site.
Keywords: Biodiversity, Compositional diversity, Functional diversity, Plant uses, Medicinal Plants, Archaeological Site, Ras Shamra.
Full paper in Arabic: PDF