Regions of Africa – AnswersName ______

THE SAHARA

  1. The largest desert on earth. It is arid, and very hot, with very little rainfall. The average temperature can be over 100 Degrees Fahrenheit. It has very little vegetation, which supports few animals.
  1. A nomad is someone who travels from place to place, following water and/or food sources. The few people who do live in the Sahara are nomadic because water and food are so scarce.
  1. Not many. There used to be large caravan trade in gold and salt across the desert, but now there are only a few
  1. Camels have been the most reliable way to travel across the Sahara. Their wide feet, and natural ability to go long distances without much water made them ideal desert vehicles.
  1. An oasis is usually a small area in the desert that has some vegetation and water. Desert travelers know these spots and travel between them for water and grazing for their animals.

THE SAHEL

  1. The word Sahel means “border”. It is relatively flat with few mountains. It is the region just south of the Sahara Desert. Some animals that can be found there are gazelles, cheetahs, and buffalo.
  1. The climate is hot and arid. The precipitation is not consistent enough to support agriculture on a large scale.
  1. Traditional ways of living are still practiced in the Sahel. Herding animals, subsistence farming, and semi nomadic ways of life are still common.
  1. Soil erosion is a major problem in the Sahel due to people cutting down trees and overgrazing their animals. This has also led to desertification as a major problem.
  1. The Sahel is a wide band that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean on the West coast to the Red Sea on the East coast of Africa. It is 1.8 million square miles.

THE SAVANNA

  1. The savanna is a grassland with some trees and even forests. The savanna supports many Africa wildlife including lions, elephants, buffalo, giraffes, and zebras.
  1. The increasing population is the greatest threat to the African savanna. More and more savanna is destroyed for crop land and home building each year.
  1. Some countries are setting large areas of the savanna aside to create national parks to try to save it.
  1. Grasses, wheat, oats, and sorghum all grow naturally in the savanna.

THE RAINFOREST

  1. The rainforest has rich plant life and plentiful water that support thousands of different animal species. The trees are layered, providing shelter for the wide variety of animals found there.
  1. The Congo River Basin makes up the largest section of the African rainforest.
  1. Deforestation is the biggest threat to the African rainforest. The cutting down of trees for timber, building of roads, farming, and mining all lead to the destruction of the rainforest and the extinction of many animal species.
  1. Due to European imperialism, many of the people who lived traditional lives in the rainforest were forced to work on large rubber plantations cleared out of the rainforest. As a result of poor farming practices, more and more land has to be cleared to maintain farms. This leads to soil erosion and desertification.