Africa's Climate & Vegetation Reading Notes (Ch. 18.2)
Oasis
A place where water from an aquifer has reached the surface.
Serengeti plain
An area of East Africa, containing some of the best grasslands in the world and many grazing animals.
Aquifer
An underground layer of rock that stores water.
Why is Africa considered "a warm continent"?
Because almost all of it lies between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Tropic of Cancer
Why does tropical grassland, like the Serengeti Plain, cover most of Africa?
Because even though there is hard soil and it's a dry climate grass can still grow
. Why does Africa's west coast, ex. Monrovia, Liberia, receive heavy rainfall during the year
Because they are on the coast
What area of Africa are its tropical rainforests located?
Congo Basin
Where do most of the animal species of a rainforest live?
In the canopy
What is an example of a city in Africa with a Mediterranean climate?
Johannesville
What is the largest desert in the world located in North Africa?
The Sahara
Canopy
The area encompassing the top of the trees in a rain forest that's about 159 feet above the ground
Most of Africa has one or two rainy seasons per year lasting up to six months. What determines how long a rainy season lasts?
The closer an area is to rainforests
Sahara
The largest desert in the world, that stretches 3,000 miles across the African continent.
Where does oasis water originate? Why is an oasis important to living things in the Sahara?
The oasis water comes from aquifers. It supports vegetation and wildlife and is a critical resource for people living in the desert.
Variations in rainfall have impacted which area of Africa particularly hard
The rainforest in central Africa
Only about 20% of the Sahara is made of sand. What makes up the remaining 80%?
The rest of the Sahara is made of mountains, rock formations, and gravelly plains.
What human practice is most responsible for destroying the rainforest
The slash and burn farming method
Why is the mangrove tree of West Africa useful to the land and animal species of that region?
They the breeding grounds for fish and they help build up dry land by holding silt
What are the TWO deserts of southern Africa?
Two deserts in South Africa are Nambib and Kalahari
