• Yemen, home of endangered wildlife.yemen flag icon. (with clipping path) image by Andrey Zyk from Fotolia.com
  
  Yemen is a country on the southernmost tip of the Arabian peninsula. Covering an area of 204,634 square miles, it is largely desert with scattered oases and over 200 islands. Wildlife in Yemen is very diverse with 71 species of mammal and 3,000 species of plant, 300 of which are endemic, according to the Earth Day Network. Socotra, the country's largest island, is home to over 250 endemic plant species and many rare aquatic animals.
  
  

Arabian Gazelle

• The Arabian gazelle (Gazella arabica) is a critically endangered species native to the Arabian peninsula. It is now extinct in Saudi Arabia but it persists in the mountainous regions of Yemen, Palestine and the Sinai peninsula. It is a small, slender animal with a long neck and proportionally long hind legs, which are geared for leaping. It has a dark brown coat with light underparts and a short black tail. Adult males weigh approximately 50 pounds and females are much smaller, but both have horns. Arabian gazelles prefer light forest and desert plateaus with an abundance of forage, such as shrubs and grass. Despite efforts to preserve the species, habitat loss and exploitation continue to be a threat.
  
  

Black-Tufted Gerbil

• Found predominantly in southern Yemen, the black-tufted gerbil (Gerbillus famulus) is a large, desert-dwelling rodent known for its elegant black markings. Gerbils grow to nearly a foot in length and have large, black-rimmed eyes and a characteristic black tuft of hair at the tip of the tail. Supremely adapted to living in harsh desert environments, the black-tufted gerbil constructs large, labyrinthine dens that are occupied by an extended social group. Generally nocturnal, they emerge to hunt insects at night, using their well-developed sense of smell. The species is rare and threatened by habitat loss.
  
  

Caracal

• Caracals (Caracal caracal) are medium-sized wild cats found throughout the savanna and sparse woodlands of Yemen. They are slender, agile cats that seldom exceed 40 pounds in weight, with a tawny, reddish or gray coat tipped in black. They are known for the long tufts that top their large ears and for their proportionally long hind legs. As largely nocturnal animals, caracals hunt other night-loving creatures such as hares and other rodents.
  
  

Khat

• Khat (Catha edulis) is a flowering shrub native to the Arabian peninsula, found across northern Yemen. Depending on precipitation, it can grow between four and 60 feet in height with small, evergreen leaves. It is traditionally used as a mild stimulant throughout the region, where the leaves are chewed to produce a euphoric, excited state. Although widely available and legal in Yemen, it is outlawed in many parts of the Middle East.
  
  

Yemen White Lily

• Yemen white lily (Crinum yemense) is a perennial flower found in coastal areas and wet mountain elevations throughout Yemen. It has handsome, dark-green, strap-like leaves at its base and produces 10 to 20 large, satiny-white flowers with dramatically recurved petals that are strongly fragrant. Yemen white lily is becoming increasingly scarce as cultivation overtakes its native habitat.
  
  

Desert Rose

• Sometimes called bottle tree, desert rose (Adenium obesum) is a dramatic and unusual-looking plant found on the Yemeni island of Socotra. It is a succulent, evergreen shrub with a barrel-like, swollen trunk, leathery leaves and tubular pink flowers that emerge in spring and during the month of September. The flowers are pinkish-white and resemble flowers of the oleander, to which it is related.