Romero marino (Campylanthus salsoloides)

Woody shrub to 2 m, erect and highly branched, ascending branches but drooping at the tip, under the weight of leaves and flowers. Leaves are succulent and evergreen, linear, up to 4 cm long and glossy green. Inflorescences are terminal and many-flowered; flowers are pink or purple-blue, but one variety has all white flowers (var. leucantha). This native of the Canary Islands is found in Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife and La Gomera, but its existence in La Palma is doubtful. It is part of the Euphorbia communities and rupicolous vegetation in low-lying and mid-altitude areas, from sea level to 600 m, although locally it can ascend a little further through the ravines. Very abundant in malpaíses or badlands, certain ravines and rocky outcrops, but much less common in the eastern islands (Lanzarote and Fuerteventura). It is related to species found in Cape Verde, East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, which points to a significant geographical disjunction.