2. TYPE OF PEOPLE IN DESERT
Inhabitants of the Kalahari
Desert
The San people who inhabit the Kalahari
Desert in southern Africa have lived on
this mostly red-soiled desert for
thousands of years. Although most now
live as farmers and cattle raisers, a small
number of nomads still subsist by
gathering wild plants and fruit from the
sparse vegetation of the region and by
hunting for meat.
3. PEOPLE IN NAMIB DESERT
The Namib Desert, stretching
over 1900 km (1200 mi) along
the coast of Namibia in
southwest Africa, receives less
than two inches of rain a year,
as a result of the effects of the
cold Benguela Current. This
region has sparse vegetation
and few people. The Namib
Desert extends along the
Atlantic Coast in Africa for 1,500
km (930 mi), mostly in Namibia.
4. PEOPLE IN SAHARA DESERT
Most of Niger’s population avoids
the desolate Sahara Desert in the
north of the country, opting to live
in the semiarid central region or the
wetter, more fertile southern
region. Many people engage in
subsistence farming, despite the
country’s mostly arid terrain.
Groups of straw huts, such as the
community seen here, dot the
landscape, and their residents
usually raise livestock or maintain
small farm plots.
5. PEOPLE IN GOBI DESERT
The largest desert in Asia, the Gobi
straddles the border between
Mongolia and China. It contains a
series of basins that are divided by
low, flat-topped ranges and isolated
hills, as pictured here. The Gobi
Desert, located in Mongolia and
northern China, is a windswept,
nearly treeless wasteland. It covers
more than 1,300,000 sq km (500,000
sq mi) and ranks as the coldest,
most northern desert in the world.
The terrain consists mostly of dry,
rocky, sandy soil. Only 5 percent of
the desert is covered with sand
dunes.
