Fumana arabica, Arabian cistus,
Hebrew: לוטמית ערבית, Arabic: ورد الشمس

Scientific name:		Fumana arabica (L.) Spach
Synonym name:		Helianthemum arabicum Pers.
Common name:		Arabian cistus
Hebrew name:		לוטמית ערבית
Arabic name:		ورد الشمس
Plant Family:		Cistaceae, לוטמיים

Location: Betah Mountain, Western Galilee

Life form:		Chamaephyte
Stems:		25 cm in height, prostate, ascending, much branched
Leaves:		Alternate, ovate- to oblong-lanceolate, stipulate
Inflorescence:		Solitary or loose racemes
Flowers:		5 Yellow petals; corolla 20-30mm
Fruits / pods:		Capsules 6-8mm
Flowering Period:		March, April, May
Habitat:		Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:		Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Chorotype:		Mediterranean
Summer shedding:		Perennating

Derivation of the botanical name: Fumana, Latin fumus, smoke, presumably referring to the nitrous odor of the roots when pulled from the ground. arabica, of Arabia. The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy. The standard author abbreviation Spach is used to indicate Édouard Spach (1801 – 1879), a French botanist. Fumana thymofolia is up to 25cm, leaves opposite, stipulate; the petals are lemon-yellow, and corolla is 10-15mm; the pedicels are much longer than the subtending bracts; the capsule is 4-4mm, 4-6 seeded.