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If you walked through the Eritrean Coastal Desert, chances are good that you'd think you were in a barren landscape where few species could survive. Sandy or gravelly plains, an occasional rocky outcrop, and scattered salt-loving grasses and shrubs would be all you'd view in the landscape around you. But amazingly enough, even this terrain supports some interesting wildlife species, including gazelles, sea turtles, and huge numbers of migrating birds of prey.
This ecoregion, which stretches along the coast of Eritrea and Djibouti where they border the Red Sea, lies along the flyway of one of the largest migrations of raptors in the world. The climate is hot and dry. An average of less than 4 inches (100 mm) of rain falls in the region, and average low temperatures are the highest in Africa--about 80° F (27° C). Sparse grasses and shrubs grow on most of this flat terrain. Sandy beaches lead to a few sheltered creeks on the coast, which are fringed with mangrove trees.
Each autumn, hundreds of thousands of Asian and European birds of prey cross over these shrublands on their way from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa. Steppe buzzards, steppe eagles, and 24 other birds of prey have all been recorded in the Djiboutian section of the ecoregion. In addition, swift terns and lesser crested terns breed on the Sept Frères Islands. Endangered green and hawksbill turtles nest in sheltered sandy coastal coves. And dorcas gazelles are still quite common throughout the region.
Few people live in this ecoregion, except in scattered fishing villages. However, some areas have been degraded as a result of overgrazing by livestock. Illegal hunting of gazelles, marine turtles, and nesting seabirds (for both meat and eggs) also has threatened some species. For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report. All text by World Wildlife Fund © 2001
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