An outlier of the Sarawat Escarpment in the Tihamah foothills, Jabal Shada al-A‘la is a granite massif made up of jagged spires and pinnacles. Jabal Shada’s location to the west of the ‘Asir escarpment coupled with its altitudinal range from 490 to 2,222 meters above sea level ensures high rainfall, a wide range of microclimates, and high level of biological diversity. This isolated mountain massif supports an exceptionally rich flora; with approximately 500 plant species recorded, including 63 key plant taxa including endemics and Afrotropical relicts, it is the single site of highest botanical diversity known in Saudi Arabia. The exceptional floral diversity of Jabal Shada al- A‘la, together with the presence of griffon vultures and endemic birds of the southwestern mountains and carnivores, including the rock fox, caracal, striped hyaena, wolf, genet, and reportedly the Arabian leopard, makes this small protected area a unique treasure of biological diversity. Small communities on the mountain grow a distinctive variety of coffee and other crops in terraced fields.