Nature Atlas

How Nature Works
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Ecosystem

Kalahari Desert

Desert

Despite its name, the Kalahari is not a true desert. It is a large semi-arid sandy savanna covering about 900,000 square kilometers of southern Africa, with a broader basin extending past 2.5 million square kilometers across several countries. Its denser ground cover supports far more plant and animal life than a genuine desert such as the neighboring Namib. The name likely derives from the Tswana word for the great thirst, or a waterless place. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Classification
Biogeographic Realm
Afrotropic 1
Area (sq km)
900,000 1
Connections

Demonstrates

Source National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Hosts

Meerkat, Species
Source Kalahari Research Centre
Springbok, Species
Source World Wildlife Fund

In Biome

Savanna, Biomes
Source Kalahari Desert (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Kalahari Desert (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • lead section
    The Kalahari Desert is a large semiarid sandy savanna in Southern Africa covering 900,000 km2
  • Biogeographic realm: afrotropic (derived from location stated in entity description)
View the Source
Kalahari Research Centre
Kalahari Research CentreHosts: Meerkat, Home page, About
Quote, Hosts: Meerkat, Home page, About
located in Kuruman River Reserve in Northern South Africa
View the Source
World Wildlife Fund
World Wildlife FundHosts: SpringbokView the Source
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationDemonstrates: DroughtView the Source

Take a Related Quiz

Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.