Nama Karoo

Nama Karoo
Nama Karoo
	A map of South Africa showing the Nama Karoo ecoregion as defined by WWF
Ecology
Realm	Afrotropic
Biome	Deserts and xeric shrublands
Geography
Area	135,600 km2 (52,400 sq mi)
Countries	South Africa; Namibia;
Coordinates	30°S 21°E / 30°S 21°E

Nama Karoo is a xeric shrubland ecoregion located on the central plateau of South Africa and Namibia. It occupies most of the interior of the western half of South Africa and extends into the southern interior of Namibia.^[1]

Climate

The climate of the Nama Karoo tends to be volatile, unpredictable and rather harsh, with only the most specially-adapted organisms calling the region home. The annual ‘dry’ season—a time of blistering hot weather and drought—is long, often taking place over autumn and winter, and into early spring. Heavy rainfall primarily occurs in the spring and summer ‘wet’ season. This time of plenty can also vary, with total measured rainfall fluctuating between 100 and 520 millimetres (3.94 and 20.47 in) per year. Rainfall is also known to be highly seasonal, peaking between December and March. Precipitation tends to decrease from the east to west, and from north to south. As the climate changes, inter-annual rainfall trends become varied, and unpredictability comes to be expected, especially with increasingly prolonged periods of aridity.^[2] Temperature variations as large as 25 °C or 45 °F between day and night are common. Mean maximum temperatures in the mid-summer (January) exceeds 30 °C (86 °F), while mean minimum mid-winter (July) temperatures are below freezing.^[3]

References

^ "Nama Karoo". Ecoregions. Worldwildlife.org. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
^ Desmet, P.G., and R.M. Cowling, The climate of the Karoo – A functional approach: quoted in W.R.J. Dean and S.J. Milton, The Karoo. Ecological Patterns and Processes: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1999): 3-16
^ Werger, M.J.A., Biogeographical Divisions of Southern Africa: quoted in Biogeography and Ecology of Southern Africa. M.J.A. Werger and W. Junk, editors: The Hague, (1978): 231-299

External links

[1] "Nama Karoo". Ecoregions. Worldwildlife.org. Retrieved 18 December 2014.

[2] Desmet, P.G., and R.M. Cowling, The climate of the Karoo – A functional approach: quoted in W.R.J. Dean and S.J. Milton, The Karoo. Ecological Patterns and Processes: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1999): 3-16

[3] Werger, M.J.A., Biogeographical Divisions of Southern Africa: quoted in Biogeography and Ecology of Southern Africa. M.J.A. Werger and W. Junk, editors: The Hague, (1978): 231-299

[1]

[2]

[3]

Regions of Africa
Central	Guinea region Gulf of Guinea Cape Lopez Mayombe Igboland Mbaise Pool Malebo Congo Basin Chad Basin Cameroonian Highlands forests East Sudanian savanna Congolian rainforests Ouaddaï highlands Ennedi Plateau
East	African Great Lakes Albertine Rift East African Rift Great Rift Valley Gregory Rift Rift Valley lakes Virunga Mountains Kavirondo Zanj East African montane forests Eastern Arc Mountains Serengeti Horn of Africa Afar Triangle Al-Habash Barbaria Danakil Alps Danakil Desert Ethiopian Highlands Dahlak Archipelago Hanish Islands Gulf of Aden Gulf of Tadjoura Red Sea Indian Ocean islands Comoro Islands Lamu Archipelago Madagascar Central Highlands Northern Highlands Zanzibar Archipelago Swahili coast
North	Eastern Desert Maghreb Ancient Libya Atlas Mountains Barbary Coast Gibraltar Arc Ifriqiya Nile Valley Nile Delta Bashmur Cataracts of the Nile Darfur Lower Egypt Lower Nubia Middle Egypt Nile Delta Nuba Mountains Nubia The Sudans Upper Egypt Tibesti Mountains Western Sahara
South	Rhodesia North South Thembuland Succulent Karoo Bushveld Maputaland Highveld Fynbos Indian Ocean coastal belt Albany thickets Cape Floristic Region Skeleton Coast Kalahari Desert Okavango Delta Cape Peninsula False Bay
West	Pepper Coast Gold Coast Slave Coast Ivory Coast Cape Palmas Cape Mesurado Guinea region Guinean Forests of West Africa Upper Guinean forests Lower Guinean forests Guinean forest-savanna mosaic Guinea Highlands Gulf of Guinea Dahomey Gap Niger Basin Niger Delta Inner Niger Delta West Sudanian savanna Yorubaland
Macro-regions	Aethiopia Afromontane Arab world Commonwealth realm Equatorial Africa Françafrique Greater Middle East Guineo-Congolian region Islands of Africa List of countries where Arabic is an official language Mediterranean basin MENASA Middle East Middle East and North Africa Miombo woodlands Mittelafrika Negroland Northeast Africa Portuguese-speaking African countries Sahara Sahel Southeast Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Sudan (region) Sudanian savanna Tropical Africa Zambezian region

Climate

See also

References

External links