Aloes and Lilies of Ethiopia and Eritrea

66 ALOACEAE
Habitat and
distribution
Aloe benishangula
Fig. 29. Aloe
benishangulana,
from Beni-
Shangul in
Wellega floristic
region.
The species grows in wooded grassland at around 1800
m in Kefa region. It is so far not known anywhere else.
The specimen from Gonder, which was thought to belong
to this species when the ‘Flora of Ethiopia and Eritrea’
was written, is now confirmed to belong to another
species, A. tri gon antha. The main flowering period is
from September to November, occasionally also from
February to June.
12. Aloe benishangulana Sebsebe & Tesfaye
The species epithet, ‘benishangulana’ refers to the
“Benishangul­Gumuz Region” from where the species is
known from.
This species and A. ghibensis are unique among the
Ethiopian Aloes growing in Combretum-Terminalia
woodland and adapted to occasional fire burning.
The species is recognized from a related species, A.
schweinfurthii Bak. known from Southern Sudan, N
Uganda and N Zaire extending to west Africa (Ghana) by
the leaves without spots, weak whitish marginal spines
1–15 mm long, bracts c. 10 × 4 mm, pedicel 10–11
mm long and capsule 25–27 mm long. In contrast, A.
schweinurthii has spotted leavesspines 3–5 mm long
pedicel c. 13 mm long and capsule 17–20 mm long. It is
described in Kew Bull. in 2010.