The Desert Hot, hot, hot! Dry, dry, dry!

In General Deserts cover nearly 30 percent of Africa. They are located in the north and the south, which isolates the interior from the coasts. In order to reach the coast by crossing the desert, people have to endure very harsh conditions. Temperatures exceed 100 F in the summer, even as high as 140 degrees. Rainfall less than 10 inches a year, evaporates quickly.

The Kalahari Hearty plants that need little moisture Trees and brush at rare water holes Some animals are nocturnal (cooler temperatures) Move between scattered water sources

Kalahari Life In pics: A Bantu-speaking settlement in the Kalahari (Botswana), the area of Africa populated by Bantu-speakers, a Bantu-speaking tribesman There are about 80,000 Bantu speaking people living throughout the Kalahari’s 100000sq.mi. These people inhabit towns of 20 to 1000 people, living in mud homesteads constructed with thick walls around wooden frames. The thickness of the walls provides some relief from the scorching heat. (117 F) During the winter, when temperatures can fall up to 8 F at night, desert inhabitant heat their homes by burning brush wood and animal dung. Many Kalahari people herd livestock that can withstand long periods w/o water. In the north is the vast Okavango swamp, and some shepherds graze there.

The Bushmen A traveler in the Kalahari would have better luck crossing with a bushman as a guide. Bushmen are hunters and gatherers who inhabit the Kalahari. The men hunt animals such as gazelles, wildebeest, and zebra with bows and arrows, while the women collect food from up to 34 different plants. These plants have a short growing season, so the women have an extensive knowledge of where to find different foods at different times of the year. The Bushmen have developed remarkable ways of collecting water. In the mornings they drain precious drops of dew from the plant leaves, and they know what types of plants store water in their roots or leaves.

The Namib and the Kenya Somali Deserts The Namib Desert (Namibia) Only about100 people 1200 mi long, 80-120 mi wide Enormous sand dunes and rocky wasteland (upto 800’/20mi) Means “place where there is nothing” Not as hot Coastal fisheries, major port at Walvis Bay The Kenya-Somali Most densely populated Largely nomadic herders

The Sahara…hah,hhh,hrrr Name is an Arabic word that comes from the sound a parched traveler makes in the desert An enormous expanse of sand androck wasteland Few water holesa t oases Crossing is key to Mediterranean-African contact and trade. Harsh conditions and size explain limited influence of these 2 cultures on each other. Few people have mastered living tin the Sahara. The Tuareg (featured in Mansa Musa) are one of the few groups that have, and they continue to lead camel caravans from Morocco to Niger and Mali