Home›Species›Ecosystem›SahelEcosystemSahelSavanna and GrasslandReference and ClassificationVerifiedA semi-arid acacia savanna belt roughly 5,900 kilometers long, running across North Africa from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea through parts of 15 nations including Mali, Niger, Chad and Burkina Faso, between the more humid Sudanian savannas to the south and the Sahara Desert to the north. Drought-tolerant acacia trees and annual grasses support camels, horses, gazelles, oryx and migratory birds, though large grazing mammal populations here were greatly reduced by over-hunting and competition with livestock. Recurring drought, desertification and rapid population growth strain the Sahel's water and food supply; the Great Green Wall reforestation initiative and protected areas such as Waza National Park are among the responses. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/FactsSahelConnectionsIn the Other AtlasesSourcesTake a Related QuizComments (0)Reader Challenges (0)FactsClassificationBiogeographic RealmWell-attestedAfrotropic 1Area (sq km)Well-attested3,053,200 1SahelFilter Results12 entriesCommon GroupAllBirds Of Prey (Raptors) (1)Eels (Anguilliformes) (2)Grasshoppers And Crickets (Orthoptera) (1)Kingfishers And Allies (1)Mallows, Cottons And Baobabs (Malvales) (2)Monitor Lizards (1)Ratites And Flightless Birds (1)Shorebirds (Waders) (1)TaxonomyAllAves (1)Charadriiformes (1)Circus (1)Hyaenidae (1)Malvaceae (2)Mungos (1)Orthoptera (1)Sarcopterygii (2)Struthioniformes (1)Varanus (1)HabitatAllDesert (2)Estuary (1)Flooded Grassland and Savanna (1)Freshwater (2)Freshwater Marsh (1)Grassland (4)Lake (1)Salt Marsh (1)Savanna (2)Steppe (1)Tropical Dry Forest (1)Wetlands (2)Conservation StatusAllLeast Concern (8)Near Threatened (1)Not Evaluated (3)Everyday GroupAllBirds Of Prey (Raptors) (1)Eels (Anguilliformes) (2)Grasshoppers And Crickets (Orthoptera) (1)Kingfishers And Allies (1)Mallows, Cottons And Baobabs (Malvales) (2)Monitor Lizards (1)Ratites And Flightless Birds (1)Shorebirds (Waders) (1)DietAllCarnivore (2)Detritivore or Scavenger (1)Herbivore (2)Insectivore (3)Omnivore (2)Photosynthetic Autotroph (2)System (Realm)AllFreshwater (4)Marine (1)Terrestrial (9)Relationship to PeopleAllAgricultural or Structural Pest (2)Farmed or Commercially Raised (3)Hunted or Fished (2)Invasive or Introduced Species (1)Kept as Pets (2)Used in Traditional Medicine (3)Living or ExtinctAllYes (9)Where It LivesAllAfghanistan (1)Africa (11)Algeria (3)Angola (2)Australia (2)Bangladesh (2)Belgium (5)Benin (3)Botswana (4)Brazil (2)Cameroon (2)Central African Republic (2)Chad (3)China (2)Colombia (1)Comoros (2)Cyprus (1)Democratic Republic of the Congo (2)Denmark (3)Djibouti (2)Ecuador (1)Egypt (1)Eritrea (4)Eswatini (2)Ethiopia (3)France (1)Gambia (3)Ghana (3)Greece (1)Guinea (3)Guinea-Bissau (2)India (3)Iran (1)Iraq (1)Ireland (2)Italy (1)Kenya (3)Kuwait (1)Lesotho (1)Libya (1)Luxembourg (2)Madagascar (2)Malawi (2)Mali (3)Mauritania (3)Mexico (3)Morocco (1)Mozambique (5)Namibia (5)Nepal (1)Netherlands (1)Niger (3)Nigeria (3)North America (3)Norway (4)Oman (3)Pakistan (1)Palestine (1)Peru (1)Poland (1)Portugal (1)Russia (2)Saudi Arabia (2)Senegal (3)Seychelles (2)Sierra Leone (2)Somalia (3)South Africa (6)South Asia (4)Spain (4)Sri Lanka (2)Sudan (1)Sweden (2)Taiwan (2)Tajikistan (1)Tanzania (3)Togo (3)Tunisia (1)Turkmenistan (1)Uganda (2)Ukraine (3)United Arab Emirates (1)United Kingdom (2)United States (1)Uzbekistan (1)Vietnam (2)Western Sahara (1)Yemen (3)Zambia (2)Zimbabwe (4)Show ResultsBrowseCompareSelect all 12African BaobabSahelBanded mongooseSahelBaobabSahelCommon OstrichSahelDesert LocustSahelEurasian HoopoeSahelNile MonitorSahelPied avocetSahelProtopterus AnnectensSahelStriped HyenaSahelWest African LungfishSahelWestern marsh harrierSahelConnectionsDemonstratesDesertification, Natural Phenomena Well-attested The Sahel is the textbook case of desertification, where drought and land use pressure pushed the boundary between savanna and desert southward across the twentieth century.Source Encyclopaedia Britannicatier 1Drought, Natural Phenomena Well-attested Source National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrationtier 1HostsAfrican Baobab, Species Well-attested Source Adansonia digitata (Wikipedia)tier 2Banded mongoose, Species Well-attested Source Banded mongoose (Wikipedia)Baobab, Species Well-attested Source Adansonia digitata (Wikipedia)tier 2Common Ostrich, Species Well-attested Source Wikipedia: Common Ostrichtier 2Desert Locust, Species Well-attested Source Desert Locust (Wikipedia)tier 2Eurasian Hoopoe, Species Well-attested Source Eurasian Hoopoe (Wikipedia)tier 2Nile Monitor, Species Well-attested Source Nile Monitor (Wikipedia)tier 2Pied avocet, Species Well-attested Source Pied avocet (Wikipedia)Protopterus Annectens, Species Well-attested Source FishBase: Protopterus annectens (FishBase)Striped Hyena, Species Well-attested Source Wikipedia: Striped hyenatier 2West African Lungfish, Species Well-attested Source FishBase: Protopterus annectens (FishBase)Western marsh harrier, Species Well-attested Source Western marsh harrier (Wikipedia)In BiomeSavanna, Biomes Well-attested Source World Wildlife FundIn the Other AtlasesFound InBurkina FasoAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.ChadAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.EritreaAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.MaliAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.MauritaniaAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.NigerAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.SenegalAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.SudanAlso in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.Sources1. Sahel (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaFlora and Fauna sectionThe Sahel was formerly home to large populations of grazing mammals, before the larger species were greatly reduced due to over-hunting and competition with livestock.Lead section, area figureIt covers an area of 3,053,200 square kilometers (1,178,850 sq mi).Biogeographic realm: afrotropic (derived from location stated in entity description)View the SourceWorld Wildlife FundWorld Wildlife FundIn Biome: SavannaView the SourceNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrationtier 1National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationDemonstrates: DroughtView the SourceEncyclopaedia Britannicatier 1Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Demonstrates: DesertificationView the SourceBanded mongoose (Wikipedia)Hosts: Banded mongoose, Wikipedia intro: "The banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) is a mongoose species native from the Sahel to Southern Africa. It lives in savannas, open forests and grasslands and feeds p..."View the SourceAdansonia digitata (Wikipedia)tier 2Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Baobab, Distribution and habitatThe northern limit of its distribution in Africa is associated with rainfall patterns; only on the Atlantic coast and in the Sudanian savanna does its occurrence venture naturally into the Sahel.Hosts: African Baobab, Distribution and habitatThe northern limit of its distribution in Africa is associated with rainfall patterns; only on the Atlantic coast and in the Sudanian savanna does its occurrence venture naturally into the Sahel.View the SourceEurasian Hoopoe (Wikipedia)tier 2Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Eurasian Hoopoe, Distribution and habitatQuote, Hosts: Eurasian Hoopoe, Distribution and habitatThose breeding in Europe usually migrate to the Sahel belt of sub-Saharan Africa.View the SourceWikipedia: Common Ostrichtier 2WikipediaHosts: Common Ostrich, Distribution and habitatQuote, Hosts: Common Ostrich, Distribution and habitatToday common ostriches prefer open land and are native to the savannas and Sahel of Africa, both north and south of the equatorial forest zone.View the SourceNile Monitor (Wikipedia)tier 2Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Nile Monitor, Species complexQuote, Hosts: Nile Monitor, Species complexThe other clade includes the monitors of the Sahel (Mali to Ethiopia) and Nile regions.View the SourceDesert Locust (Wikipedia)tier 2Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Desert Locust, 2019-2021 desert locust upsurgeQuote, Hosts: Desert Locust, 2019-2021 desert locust upsurgeAs of 1 April 2022 there are no locust crises anywhere in the world but swarms are expected in October in the Sahel, Yemen and on the India-Pakistan border.View the SourceWikipedia: Striped hyenatier 2WikipediaHosts: Striped Hyena, Distribution and habitatQuote, Hosts: Striped Hyena, Distribution and habitatThe striped hyena's historical range encompassed Africa north of and including the Sahel zone, eastern Africa south into Tanzania, the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East up to the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey, Iraq, the Caucasus (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia), Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan (excluding the higher areas of Hindukush), and the Indian subcoView the SourceWestern marsh harrier (Wikipedia)Hosts: Western marsh harrier, Distribution and habitatQuote, Hosts: Western marsh harrier, Distribution and habitatSome birds winter in milder regions of southern and western Europe, while others migrate to the Sahel, Nile basin and Great Lakes region in Africa, or to Arabia, the Indian subcontinent, and Myanmar.View the SourcePied avocet (Wikipedia)Hosts: Pied avocet, DistributionQuote, Hosts: Pied avocet, DistributionIn Africa, it occurs along the Mediterranean coast of North Africa, the Red Sea, and Atlantic coast to Senegal and northern Guinea, covering parts of the Sahel, East Africa, and southern Africa.View the SourceFishBase: Protopterus annectens (FishBase)FishBaseHosts: West African Lungfish, DistributionAfrica: large Sahelian basins, Comoé River, Bandama River and some basins of Sierra Leone and GuineaHosts: Protopterus Annectens, DistributionAfrica: large Sahelian basins, Comoé River, Bandama River and some basins of Sierra Leone and GuineaView the SourceTake a Related QuizWetlands, Reefs and Deltas: New EcosystemsCovers this kind of entry.Comments (0)No comments yet. 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