Chapter 5: Life in the Deserts

Introduction

Water is essential for life, and its absence poses challenges for plants, animals, and people. In places where water is scarce, life becomes difficult. Deserts are characterized by extreme temperatures, low rainfall, and scanty vegetation. In this chapter, we will explore two types of deserts: hot deserts and cold deserts, and how people have adapted to living in these harsh environments.

The Hot Desert – Sahara

• Location: The Sahara Desert, covering a large part of North Africa, is the world’s largest desert, spanning approximately 8.54 million square kilometers. It touches eleven countries: Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Sudan, Tunisia, and Western Sahara.

• Physical Characteristics: The Sahara is known for vast stretches of sand, gravel plains, and elevated plateaus with bare rocky surfaces, some of which may rise over 2500 meters high.

• Climate: The climate of the Sahara is scorching hot and parched dry. It experiences a short rainy season, but overall, the sky is cloudless and clear. Daytime temperatures can soar as high as 50°C, heating up the sand and rocks, while nights can be freezing cold, with temperatures nearing zero degrees Celsius.

• Flora and Fauna: Despite its harsh conditions, the Sahara supports some vegetation, including cactus, date palms, and acacia. Oasis, green islands with date palms, can be found in some areas. Animal species include camels, hyenas, jackals, foxes, scorpions, snakes, and lizards. Cave paintings in the Sahara indicate that it used to be a lush green plain, inhabited by elephants, lions, giraffes, ostriches, sheep, cattle, and goats.

• People: The Sahara has been inhabited by various groups of people, including nomadic tribes like the Bedouins and Tuaregs, who rear livestock such as goats, sheep, camels, and horses. Settlements around oases and the Nile Valley support agriculture, mainly the cultivation of date palms, rice, wheat, barley, and beans. The discovery of oil and other minerals is transforming the Sahara’s economic landscape. The culture of the Sahara is undergoing change, with traditional nomadic lifestyles giving way to modernization.

The Cold Desert – Ladakh

• Location: Ladakh is a cold desert located in the Great Himalayas, on the eastern side of Jammu and Kashmir. It is enclosed by the Karakoram Range in the north and the Zanskar mountains in the south. The Indus River is the most important river in the region, and several glaciers, including the Gangri glacier, are found here.

• Climate: Due to its high altitude, Ladakh experiences extremely cold and dry weather. Summer temperatures hover just above zero degrees Celsius during the day and well below -30°C at night. In winter, temperatures can drop below -40°C. The region receives minimal rainfall, as low as 10 cm per year, and experiences freezing winds and intense sunlight.

• Flora and Fauna: Vegetation in Ladakh is sparse, consisting of grasses, shrubs, and groves of willows and poplars in the valleys. Fruit trees such as apples, apricots, and walnuts bloom during the summers. Animal species include wild goats, wild sheep, yaks, and various birds. Some of these animals are reared for milk, meat, and hides.

• People: The people of Ladakh are either Muslims or Buddhists, with several Buddhist monasteries, or “gompas,” scattered across the landscape. In summer, people engage in agriculture, cultivating barley, potatoes, peas, beans, and turnips. Tourism is a major activity, with visitors attracted to gompas, treks, and cultural festivities. Despite modernization, the people of Ladakh have maintained a balance with nature, using resources like water and fuel with reverence and care.