Lower Tamgak Valley, Niger Photograph by © WWF-Canon/John E. NEWBY   North central Africa: Eastern Chad and small area of western Sudan Deserts and Xeric Shrublands   10,800 square miles (27,900 square kilometers) -- about the size of Maryland and Rhode Island combined Critical/Endangered

· Mountain Oasis
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Mountain Oasis

For a variety of animals--from sheep to lions--the rugged mountains of this ecoregion are a true oasis in one of the largest deserts in the world. Surrounded by the Sahara Desert on one side and the vast, arid trans-African Sahel on the other, this ecoregion supports a variety of life that normally could not exist in the dry surrounding regions. Precious freshwater collects in the steep and narrow canyons, attracting numerous animals. These permanent pools of life-giving water quench the thirst of leopards, ostriches, and gazelles.

Special Features

The mountainous plateau that makes up this ecoregion is capped by sandstone. Narrow, deeply eroded canyons called wadis run along the sides of the mountains and form rare freshwater habitats after torrential rains. Dry woodlands found here are isolated in a sea of sand and sun and provide much needed shade and water for a variety of species. This region is also the northernmost range of many sub-Saharan species such as the cheetah and gazelle.

	The addax is an antelope that is well adapted to life in the desert. It can live most of its life without taking a drink. Instead, an addax gets most of the water it needs from the plants it feeds on.

Wild Side

The permanent pools of water that exist in the Eastern Saharan Montane Xeric Woodlands ecoregion draw an amazing variety of animals from near and far. With long curved horns and shaggy beards, Barbary sheep drink alongside majestic ibex. Leopards prowl among stunted trees in the sparse acacia forests, searching for prey such as addax. Often called desert lynxes, small, long-eared cats called caracals move about quietly on the ground, seeking birds and baby antelope. Occasionally, a swift cheetah races by in pursuit of one of the three gazelle species found in this area.

Cause for Concern

Fortunately, this remote ecoregion is mostly uninhabited, with infrequent visits by nomadic people. However, the landscape is littered with land mines following years of civil war and political strife. In addition, poaching has become all too efficient with the introduction of modern firearms to the area.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.