Getting to know the regions of Africa
Directions
Part I: Use the website Exploring the Regions of Africa (http://www.pbs.org/wnet/africa/explore/index_flash.html) to
complete the chart
below. Click on each region first, and then click on Overview and Eco-Info links.
Sahara
Animals
Countries
Eco-Alert
Rainfall
Temperature
Topography
Vegetation
Sahel
Savanna
Rainforest
Part II:
Using the information in the chart, make predictions about life in the four regions.
Sahara
1. What is the greatest challenge to living there?
Heat, size, cycle of drought and rainfall
2. Why has the Sahara mesmerized outsiders for centuries?
Amazed by the size of the desert
3. What types of jobs do people have there?
Salt trade, guides for tourists, oil and gas operations
4. What are the major environmental issues there?
Loss of vegetation which creates unfavorable
atmospheric conditions
Savanna
1. What is the greatest challenge to living there?
Sporadic drought, soil erosion, overpopulation
2. When most non-Africans think of Africa what, region do they
picture?
Savanna
3. What types of jobs do people have there?
Animal herders, hunters, guides for tourists
4. What are the major environmental issues there?
Too much or too little water, poaching/disease of
animals
Sahel
1. What is the greatest challenge to living there?
Lack of ability to produce food due to poor soil
2. What has Sahel boasted about for centuries?
Some of Africa's most influential civilizations
3. What types of jobs do people have there?
Animal herders, farmers, jobs in cities
4. What are the major environmental issues there?
Loss of 30% of its trees which causes soil erosion,
desert creeping in on farming land
Rainforest
1. What is the greatest challenge to living there?
Not enough farmland for growing population
2. What is happening to Africa's vast rainforests?
Growing silent
3. What types of jobs do people have there?
Logging, farmers
4. What are the major environmental issues there?
Deforestation of rainforests, poaching of animals
Answers to part I:
Sahara
Animals Fennec Fox, Jerboa Addax, Horned Viper, scorpions, camels
Countries Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Malia, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Sudan, Tunisia, Western
Sahara
Eco-Alert! Dry spells, overgrazing of livestock, underground aquifers holding billions of gallons of
water
Rainfall More than 75 % of Sahara receives less than 4 inches of rain per year
Temperature Holds record for heat, daytime highs reach 109, but night-time can reach freezing or lower
Topography Sand, flat plains of rock, mountains, Nile River
Vegetation Rainforests, coastal forests, savanna, dry and fertile grassland, bushland, tropical forests
Sahel
Animals: Elephants, rodents, Zebu, giraffe, warthog, gerbil
Countries: Guinea-Bassai, Senegal, The Gambia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Sudan
Eco-Alert!: Drought, deforestation, soil erosion
Rainfall Moderate rainfall
Temperature Ranges between 77 and 86 degrees
Topography Flat, barren plains, sandy soil, fertile delta of Niger, several lakes and bodies of water
Vegetation Rainforests, coastal forests, savanna woodland, bushland, semi-desert, desert, dry, fertile
grassland, tropical mountain forests
Savanna
Animals African lions, wildebeest, elephants, Kirks dikdik, Topi, gazelle, zebra, Gerenuk
Countries Kenya, Tanzania
Eco-Alert! Too much or too little water, poaching and disease of wild animals, cattle diseases decimating wild and domestic herds
Rainfall Fluctuates between 20 and 47 inches annually
Temperature Semi-arid climate, mid to upper 80s and lows in the 60s
Topography Large in size, vast unending plains
Vegetation Rainforests, coastal forests, savanna woodland, bushland, semi-desert, desert, dry, fertile
grassland, tropical mountain forests
Rainforest
Animals Elephants, gorillas, monkeys, hippopotamus, Driver Ants, parrots, Okapi, Spiny Lizard
Countries Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Congo Brazzaville, Equatorial
Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Congo Kinshasa, Rwanda, Sierra Leone
Eco-Alert! Deforestation, poaching of animals
Rainfall West and central coast rainforests receive between 63 to 79 inches a year
Temperature A humid 80 degrees with lows around 73 degrees
Topography Most of West Africa's rainforests destroyed, 80% of rainforests located in Central Africa,
second longest river in Africa located in area (Congo)
Vegetation Rainforests, coastal forests, savanna woodland, bushland, semi-desert, desert, dry, fertile
grassland, tropical mountain forests