A Discriptive presentation on the Major Desserts and its Flora and fauna of Australia.

1. DESERTS OF AUSTRALIA
Presentation by Manpreet Kour
www.imkaur.com

2. WHAT IS A DESERT?
Desert is a dry region which lacks precipitation and
has little or no plants and animals.

3. CLIMATE CLASSIFICATION
OF AUSTRALIA

4. v
FACTS
OF
DESERTS
IN
AUSTRALIA
• Deserts make up about
18% of this continent,
but a full 35% of Australia
receives so little rainfall, it is
classified as desert.
• That makes Australia the
driest inhabited continent
on Earth. Only Antarctica is
drier.
• Only 3% of the Australian
population live in those
dry 70% of the continent,
the rest of our people is
concentrated on the coasts.
• Hot moist air rises at
the equator. It cools as it
moves north or south, the
moisture condenses and
falls as abundant rain onto
the tropical regions. The
now dry air sinks over the
subtropical regions, warming
as it sinks, which encourages
evaporation, causing more
evaporation than rain, perfect
conditions for the formation of
a desert.

5. The Outback of Australia is the vast, remote interiors of Australia which form the Desert
region.
The Outback is unified by a combination of factors, most notably a low human population
density, a largely intact, natural environment and, in many places, low-intensity land uses such
as pastoralism (livestock grazing) in which production is reliant on the natural environment.
THE OUTBACK
OF AUSTRALIA

6. 10 MAJOR
DESERTS
THAT MAKE UP ALMOST A 1/5
OF AUSTRALIA

7. THE GREAT VICTORIA DESERT
The Great Victoria is the largest
desert in Australia and consists of
many small sandhills, grassland
plains, areas with a closely packed
surface of pebbles (called desert
pavement or gibber plains) and salt
lakes.
It is the part of Australia with the
most populous and most healthy
indigenous population. Aboriginal
populations have been increasing in
this region.
Human activity has included some
mining and nuclear weapons
testing.

8. GREAT SANDY DESERT TANAMI DESERT
It is the second largest desert in Australia after the
Great Victoria Desert.
Desert contains large ergs, often consisting of
longitudinal dunes. At the border of the desert (North
East), is the Wolfe Creek.
The region is sparsely populated. The main
populations consist of indigenous Australian
communities and mining centers.
Wolfe Creek is located at the border, the well-known
meteorite impact crater.
The desert has a rocky terrain with small hills.
The Tjurabalan community live at the edge of the
desert.
It is uniquely one of the most important biological
areas to be found as it provides refuge for several
rare and endangered species.

9. It is the fourth largest Australian
desert. The Desert is an erg
which contains the world’s
longest parallel sand dunes.
One of the popular landmarks
inculde the Poeppel Corner
where Queensland, South
Australia and Northern Territory
meet.
New Year’s Eve occurs three
times in Poeppel Corner, because
it is at the intersection of three
time zones.
The desert is underlain by the
Great Artesian Basin.
It is the largest and deepest
artesian basin in the world.
The basin provides the only
source of fresh water through
much of inland Australia.
Water from the basin rises to
the surface at numerous natural
springs, including Dalhousie
Springs, and at bores drilled
along stock routes, or during
petroleum exploration.
SIMPSON DESERT

10. LITTLE SANDY DESERT
STRZELECKI DESERT
Indigenous Australians were dwelling in the desert, however in 1984,
due to a severe drought a group of the Pintupi people who were living a
traditional semi-nomadic desert-dwelling life, walked out of the Gibson
Desert and made contact for the first time with Australian
society. They are believed to have been perhaps the last
uncontacted tribe in Australia.
It is named because it is relatively close and similar to the Great Sandy
Desert, but is much smaller. Its landforms, fauna and flora are all similar to
the Great Sandy Desert. Both deserts are crossed by the Canning Stock
Route.
Indigenous groups that have identified with the region
include the Mandilara.
It is the seventh largest desert in Australia.
It is part of the continental anti-clockwise whorl of
dunesthat characterise the central and south Australian
dunefields.
GIBSON DESERT

11. STURT STONY DESERT
TIRARI DESERT
Much of the desert is covered
by gibber.
Both circular and stepped
gilgai have been found here.
The Tirari Desert features salt
lakes and large north-south
running sand dunes.
Cooper Creek runs through
the centre of the desert.
It is a small Australian
desert, with deep-
red sands and it is
vegetated by dense mulga
woodlands.
PEDIRKA DESERT

12. OF THE AUSTRALIAN DESERTS.
FLORA
AND FAUNA

13. SPINIFEX GRASS
KANGAROO PAW ACACIAS
STURT’S DESERT PEA FUCHSIA
GHOST GUM
Most common trees native to Australian
deserts.
Evergreen trees, native to Central
Australia
The emblem of southern Australia.Occupy 22% of Australian deserts.
The floral emblem of Western
Australia, where it is endemic.
Can regrow from dead-looking
branches once a drought breaks.

14. Survive of the
Tanami, the
Gibson and the
Great Sandy
deserts.
Inhabits the
driest parts of
Australia, the
central deserts
Integral part of
the Outback
environment.
Establish a big
and healthy
population in
the Australian
Outback
RED KANGAROO SPINIFEX HOPPING MOUSE
DESERT DINGOCAMEL

15. Lives in the arid scrubland and desert
that covers most of central Australia.
Found mainly in the central desert
regions of Australia.
Top predators in the Australian deserts.
THE THORNY DEVIL
THE BEARDED DRAGON
THE PERENTIE

16. TOURISM

17. ULURU
Lieing west of the Simpson Desert, It is a natural landmark made of
sandstone with most of its bulk lying underground.It is notable for
appearing to change colour at different times of the day.
KATA
TJUTA
The 36 domes that make up Kata Tjuṯa are composed of conglomerate, a
sedimentary rocks.
MYTH- Wanambi, the snake, with long teeth, a mane and a long beard, was
said to be able to transform a breeze into a hurricane in order to punish
those who did evil deeds. Some of the domes considered giants who fed on
Aboriginies.

18. LAKE EYRE COOBER PEDY
Australia’s largest salt lake lies close to the
Simpson Desert.
The lake takes on a pink hue when
saturated due to the presence of beta-
carotene pigment caused by the algae
Dunaliella salina.
Coober Pedy is a small town in northern
South Australia, near The Sturt Stony
Desert.
Known as ‘The Opal Capital of the World’,
around 80% of the world’s opals are mined
here, also known for its underground
dwellings and the landscape.
Possibly world’s first non - denominational
church was dug here.

19. THE BUNGLE BUNGLE
Bungle Bungle Range is the landform that
is a major component of Australia, north of
the Tanami Desert.
The distinctive beehive-shaped towers are
made up of sandstones and conglomerates.
It was only in 1983, after a widespread
media promotion, that this hidden jewel of
the Kimberley was exposed to the rest of
the world.

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