Chapter 3.2

CLIMATE ZONE #3 - Deserts (3.2)

*40% of Africa *Sahara (means desert in arabic) = NORTH *Kalahari and Namib = SOUTH

Population Patterns (3.2)

*763 million population; growing rapidly *climate, water, resources, soil help people figure where to live *some areas do not have any people b/c climate, water, resources, soil are bad *southern part of west africa are where people live

Tropics (3.2)

*80% of Africa is this b/c the equator the tropic of cancer and tropic of capricorn run this *generally warm throughout the year

Climate and Health (3.2)

*affects people's health 1.*disease carrying insects breed in tropic climates; malaria carried by mostiquos kill 1 million kids 2. *savannah - sleeping sickness carried by tsetse fly; affects livestock/people - do not have alot of meat - affects protein - more likely to get more diseases b/c they don't have protein 3. *river blindness- (savanna regions -Senegal to Kenya) from flies caused people to lose sight; but there was a cure 4. *bilharzia - transmitted by snails that carry parasitic worms; from streams (wash or swim)

Highlands (3.2)

*coolest region of Africa b/c temp drops as elevation increases *temps in high lands lying area are much lower than low lying reaches

Aswan Dam (3.1) Nile River

*created by Eypgtians in 1970 *supplies hydroelectric power *created a lake that is for irrigation *dam is a mixed blessing; traps the rich silt

Why is rainfall important in Africa??? (3.2)

*determines the climate on the continent *rainfall varies from place to place

Adapting to the Land (3.2)

*has a lot of different cultures (religion, speech, values, traditions *people migrated across continent and then settled and developed 5 basic types of societies 1. farming 2. herding 3. fishing 4. hunting 5. food gathering/urban *they continue today in Africa *most Africans live in the savanna/most are farmers *free from tseste fly are cattle herding societies in the savanna *rivers/lakes = fishing *not many hunting or gathering societies exist today *cities have flourished in Mediterrean Coast/North Africa, Savanna West, Coast of East Africa

Kalahari and Namib Deserts (3.2)

*it is in the South *not as dry as Sahara *grasses grow; antelopes graze *trees get water from mists drifts from the mid Atlanic ocean

Sahara Desert (3.2)

*larger than the USA *extends from Norther Altantic to the Red Sea *wind swept rock, gravel, shifting sand dues - this is the land *temperatures 130 *no rain (can happen for 10 years) *no grasses *less than 10 inches of rain a year *short rain, grasses will spout, people plant crops *in the PAST --> it is a place of crossing over to get somewhere and it is a barrier (keeps people away) *trading - carried goods and ideas between the people of North Africa and savannah; this help make Africa's regions more diverse

CLIMATE ZONE #2 - Tropical Wet and Dry Climate Region (3.2)

*largest climate zone in African *wet and dry season *savannah (grasslands) covers 1/2 continent *home to most Africans *always hot *summer -hot/wet winter -dry/hot/no rain *Rainfall - 20-80 inches per year *closer to Equator has many grasses/more rain *outer edges of savannah semi arid (dry) short rainy season, scattered grasses/small trees *Always ask when will rain come??? Hard to predicate when it will come! *drought - prolonged periods of little or no rainfall *rainfall important for people - heavy rains, wash away the soil and cause flooding; little rain few grasses grow *herders - slaughter livestock b/c of no rain *farmers -watch their crops die

Languages (3.2)

*more than 1,000 language *people who live close may have different languages *some areas have common languages for trading and business purposes *several language families but within the families can be different, they share a common root; we can learn about the African history *when groups came in contact with one another after traveling - they blended their languages together *Swahili - this is language blended arabic words with east african bantu words; still spoken today

Rainfall (3.2)

*pattern of alternating wet and dry seasons *seasons are different north and south of the equator ex -when it rains in the south, dry in the north than it is reversed *farther north or south of the equator - the shorter the rain period/longer dry season *rain is distributed unevenly *the inconsistent rain causes problems for farmers *less than inch in desert and 80 inches by equator (annually)

CLIMATE ZONE #2 - Tropical Wet and Dry Climate Region (DESERTIFICATION) (3.2)

*population grow creates problems *when it rains they go to drier parts of the savannah and chop down trees to clear farmland/used for fuel/cooking/eating. Graze their cattle on the grasses *this is bad for the land b/c when droughts happen crop ruin, grazing animals ruin the roots of the grasses and the thin layer of top soil turns to dust. SAHEL -separates the savannah from the Sahara; not much rain and affects the population, trying to fix it by planting trees and limit grazing

CLIMATE ZONE #1 - Tropical Wet Climate Region (3.2)

*rain forests *this is a narrow belt by the equator *hot/humid all the time *average temp 80 *60-180 inch rainfall *produce lush plant growth *thousands of species of birds/animal here *soil is poor here (rain ruins it) - leaching -rain washes away the soil's nutrients, unsuitable for farming *problems - insects can carry disease, insects can attack wood buildings (terminates), mold *fix problem - use steel instead of wood

CLIMATE ZONE #4 - Mediterranean climate zones (3.2)

*southern tip/northern coast (top and bottom of African) *climate is like LA *summer -hot/dry *winters -cooler/moist *good soil *supports farming and mild climate *Europeans wanted to come and settle there b/c it is pleasant

4 major climate zones (3.2)

1. tropical wet climate region 2. tropical wet and dry climate region 3. deserts 4. Mediterranean climate zones *b/c Africa is huge, every type of vegetation/climate can be found there *what makes climate zones different is the amount of rain

Tributary (3.1) rivers

A river or stream flowing into a larger river or lake