life in desert essay

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Paragraph On Desert

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The desert is the driest area on the planet. It has very little water and is a difficult place for organisms to survive. The moment we hear the word ‘desert’, the first thing that comes to our mind is sand and camels. Camels are majorly found in sandy areas or deserts because they are blessed with such a body structure that can resist heat for long periods of time without water and food. This article has sample paragraphs on deserts you can refer to. Check them out.

Paragraph on desert in 100 words, paragraph on desert in 150 words, paragraph on desert in 200 words, paragraph on desert in 250 words, frequently asked questions on desert paragraph.

A desert is a large area of land which is covered by sand. It has very little water, and only a few plants grow in the area. When we think of deserts, the first thing that comes to our minds is vast areas of sand. Almost all the deserts are covered with sand. Deserts are hot and dry areas where rainfall occurs very rarely. Since there are fewer trees, the rainfall is also less. Therefore, there is always a scarcity of water in the deserts. It is a place where the evaporation of water is more than the amount of rain it receives. People residing in such areas used to travel very long distances to fetch water.

A desert is a large area of sand. Deserts are dry and hot areas which receive very less rainfall throughout the year. Deserts are places which have very few plants and trees. Due to fewer trees, the amount of rainfall is also very less. Due to the unfavourable conditions, no agriculture is possible in the deserts. The world’s largest polar desert is Antarctica, and the largest non-polar desert is Sahara. Deserts are places where evaporation is more than the amount of rainfall. Therefore, the scarcity of water is always a matter to be worried about. There are small places of water called oases which are covered with a few trees around them. Oases are formed from underground rivers. Not many animals are found in deserts. Camels are known as the ship of the deserts because they are the only means of transportation to go from one place to another in a desert.

A desert is a vast area of dry, barren land. Deserts are either hot or cold environments with relatively little rainfall throughout the year. Deserts are characterised by a lack of vegetation and trees. Plants like cactuses and shrubs that are thorny and woody are found in the deserts. Because there are fewer trees, the amount of rainfall is likewise reduced. Agriculture is not possible in the deserts due to harsh circumstances. Antarctica is the world’s largest polar desert, while the Sahara is the world’s largest non-polar desert. Deserts are areas where the amount of evaporation exceeds the amount of rainfall. As a result, water scarcity is constantly an issue to be concerned about. People of the deserts used to travel long distances to fetch water, but with time and civilization, water is now being supplied to the houses. There are small pools of water known as oases, which are surrounded by a few trees. Underground rivers give rise to oases. Camels are known as the “ship of the deserts” because they can live and roam in deserts for long periods of time without water or food. Camels are blessed with a hump on their backs which stores food and water that can be used when needed.

A desert is a vast, dry area characterised by sand or rocks that receives little rainfall. It has adverse growing conditions for crops and agriculture and poses difficult living conditions for human beings and animals. Deserts cover one-third of the Earth’s land surface. Antarctica is known as the world’s largest polar desert. The Sahara Desert is the world’s biggest non-polar desert. Deserts are those land areas where life is difficult. These areas receive less rainfall as compared to the amount of evaporation. Plants like cactuses, shrubs, and thorny or woody plants are found in the deserts. The scarcity of water is a major concern in these areas. People used to travel long distances for water, but with time, this has changed, and water is being supplied to people. Due to unfavourable conditions, agriculture is not possible in the deserts. Camels can ingest the bitter or salty water available in the waterholes. Around the water sources in deserts, there are small places of water called oases which are formed from underground river water. Camels are known as the “ship of the deserts” because they can live and roam in deserts for long periods of time without water or food. They are mostly the only mode of transportation in the deserts. Camels are blessed with a hump on their backs which can store food and water that can be used when needed.

Which is the largest desert in the world?

The largest polar desert in the world is Antarctica, and the largest non-polar desert is the Sahara desert.

What kind of plants are found in the deserts?

Cactuses, shrubs, and thorny or woody plants are mostly found in deserts.

How do camels survive in the desert?

Camels survive in the desert because they are blessed with a hump on their backs which can store water and food in the form of fat for a long period of time.

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ENCYCLOPEDIC ENTRY

Deserts are areas that receive very little precipitation.

Biology, Ecology, Earth Science, Geology, Meteorology, Geography, Human Geography, Physical Geography, Social Studies, World History

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Deserts are areas that receive very little precipitation . People often use the adjectives “hot,” “dry,” and “empty” to describe deserts , but these words do not tell the whole story. Although some deserts are very hot, with daytime temperatures as high as 54°C (130°F), other deserts have cold winters or are cold year-round. And most deserts , far from being empty and lifeless, are home to a variety of plants, animals, and other organisms . People have adapted to life in the desert for thou sands of years. One thing all deserts have in common is that they are arid , or dry. Most experts agree that a desert is an area of land that receives no more than 25 centimeters (10 inches) of precipitation a year. The amount of evaporation in a desert often greatly exceeds the annual rainfall. In all deserts , there is little water available for plants and other organisms . Deserts are found on every continent and cover about one-fifth of Earth’s land area. They are home to around 1 billion people—one-sixth of the Earth’s population. Although the word “ desert ” may bring to mind a sea of shifting sand , dunes cover only about 10 percent of the world’s deserts . Some deserts are mountainous. Others are dry expanses of rock, sand , or salt flats . Kinds of Deserts The world’s deserts can be divided into five types—subtropical, coastal, rain shadow , interior, and polar. Deserts are divided into these types according to the causes of their dryness. Subtropical Deserts Subtropical deserts are caused by the circulation patterns of air masses . They are found along the Tropic of Cancer , between 15 and 30 degrees north of the Equator , or along the Tropic of Capricorn , between 15 and 30 degrees south of the Equator . Hot, moist air rises into the atmosphere near the Equator . As the air rises, it cools and drops its moisture as heavy tropical rains. The resulting cooler, drier air mass moves away from the Equator . As it approaches the tropics, the air descends and warms up again. The descending air hinders the formation of clouds , so very little rain falls on the land below. The world’s largest hot desert , the Sahara, is a subtropical desert in northern Africa. The Sahara Desert is almost the size of the entire continental United States. Other subtropical deserts include the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa and the Tanami Desert in northern Australia. Coastal Deserts Cold ocean currents contribute to the formation of coastal deserts . Air blowing toward shore , chilled by contact with cold water, produces a layer of fog . This heavy fog drifts onto land. Although humidity is high, the atmospheric changes that normally cause rainfall are not present. A coastal desert may be almost totally rainless, yet damp with fog . The Atacama Desert , on the Pacific shores of Chile, is a coastal desert . Some areas of the Atacama are often covered by fog . But the region can go decades without rainfall. In fact, the Atacama Desert is the driest place on Earth. Some weather stations in the Atacama have never recorded a drop of rain. Rain Shadow Deserts Rain shadow deserts exist near the leeward slopes of some mountain ranges . Leeward slopes face away from prevailing winds . When moisture-laden air hits a mountain range , it is forced to rise. The air then cools and forms clouds that drop moisture on the windward ( wind -facing) slopes. When the air moves over the mountaintop and begins to descend the leeward slopes, there is little moisture left. The descending air warms up, making it difficult for clouds to form. Death Valley , in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, is a rain shadow desert . Death Valley , the lowest and driest place in North America, is in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Interior Deserts Interior deserts , which are found in the heart of continents , exist because no moisture-laden winds reach them. By the time air masses from coastal areas reach the interior, they have lost all their moisture. Interior deserts are sometimes called inland deserts . The Gobi Desert , in China and Mongolia, lies hundreds of kilometers from the ocean. Winds that reach the Gobi have long since lost their moisture. The Gobi is also in the rain shadow of the Himalaya mountains to the south. Polar Deserts Parts of the Arctic and the Antarctic are classified as deserts . These polar deserts contain great quantities of water, but most of it is locked in glaciers and ice sheets year-round. So, despite the presence of millions of liters of water, there is actually little available for plants and animals. The largest desert in the world is also the coldest. Almost the entire continent of Ant arctica is a polar desert , experiencing little precipitation . Few organisms can withstand the freezing, dry climate of Ant arctica . Changing Deserts The regions that are deserts today were not always so dry. Between 8000 and 3000 BCE, for example, the Sahara had a much milder, moister climate . Climatologists identify this period as the “ Green Sahara .” Archaeological evidence of past settlements is abundant in the middle of what are arid , unproductive areas of the Sahara today. This evidence includes rock paintings, graves , and tools. Fossils and artifacts show that lime and olive trees, oaks, and oleanders once bloomed in the Sahara. Elephants, gazelles, rhinos, giraffes, and people used stream-fed pools and lakes. There were three or four other moist periods in the Sahara. Similar lush conditions existed as recently as 25,000 years ago. Between the moist periods came periods of dryness much like today’s. The Sahara is not the only desert to have dramatic climate change . The Ghaggar River , in what is now India and Pakistan, was a major water source for Mohenjo-daro , an urban area of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization . Over time, the Ghaggar changed course and now only flows during the rainy monsoon season. Mohenjo-daro is now a part of the vast Thar and Cholistan deserts . Most of Earth’s deserts will continue to undergo periods of climate change . Desert Characteristics Humidity —water vapor in the air—is near zero in most deserts . Light rains often e vaporate in the dry air, never reaching the ground. Rainstorms sometimes come as violent cloudbursts . A cloudburst may bring as much as 25 centimeters (10 inches) of rain in a single hour—the only rain the desert gets all year. Desert humidity is usually so low that not enough water vapor exists to form clouds . The sun’s rays beat down through cloudless skies and bake the land. The ground heats the air so much that air rises in waves you can actually see. These shimmering waves confuse the eye, causing travelers to see distorted images called mirages . Temperature extremes are a characteristic of most deserts . In some deserts , temperatures rise so high that people are at risk of dehydration and even death. At night, these areas cool quickly because they lack the insulation provided by humidity and clouds . Temperatures can drop to 4°C (40°F) or lower. In the Chihuahuan Desert , in the United States and Mexico, temperatures can vary by dozens of degrees in one day. Daytime temperatures in the Chihuahua can climb beyond 37°C (100°F), while nighttime temperatures can dip below freezing (0°C or 32°F).

Winds at speeds of about 100 kilometers per hour (60 miles per hour) sweep through some deserts . With little vegetation to block it, the wind can carry sand and dust across entire continents and even oceans. Windstorms in the Sahara hurl so much material into the air that African dust sometimes crosses the Atlantic Ocean. Sunsets on the Atlantic coast of the U.S. state of Florida, for example, can be tinted yellow. First-time visitors to deserts are often amazed by the unusual landscapes , which may include dunes , towering bare peaks, flat-topped rock formations, and smoothly polished canyons . These features differ from those of wetter regions, which are often gently rounded by regular rainfall and softened by lush vegetation . Water helps carve desert lands. During a sudden storm, water scours the dry, hard-baked land, gathering sand , rocks, and other loose material as it flows. As the muddy water roars downhill, it cuts deep channels, called arroyos or wadis . A thunderstorm can send a fast-moving torrent of water—a flash flood —down a dry arroyo . A flash flood like this can sweep away anything and anyone in its path. Many desert regions di scourage visitors from hiking or camping in arroyos for this reason. Even urban areas in deserts can be vulnerable to flash floods . The city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, sits in the Arabian Desert . In 2011, Jeddah was struck by a sudden thunderstorm and flash flood . Roads and buildings were washed away, and more than 100 people died. Even in a desert , water and wind eventually wear away softer rock. Sometimes, rock is carved into tablelike formations such as mesas and buttes . At the foot of these formations, water drops its burden of gravel , sand , and other sediment, forming deposits called alluvial fans . Many deserts have no drainage to a river , lake, or ocean. Rainwater, including water from flash floods , collects in large depressions called basins . The shallow lakes that form in basins eventually e vaporate , leaving playas , or salt-surfaced lake beds. Playas , also called sinks, pans, or salt flats , can be hundreds of kilometers wide. The Black Rock Desert in the U.S. state of Nevada, for instance, is all that remains of the prehistoric Lake Lahontan. The hard, flat surface of desert salt flats are often ideal for car racing. In 1997, British pilot Andy Green set the land speed record in Black Rock Desert —1,228 kilometers per hour (763 miles per hour). Green’s vehicle, the ThrustSSC, was the first car to break the sound barrier . Wind is the primary sculptor of a desert ’s hills of sand , called dunes . Wind builds dunes that rise as high as 180 meters (590 feet). Dunes migrate constantly with the wind . They usually shift a few meters a year, but a particularly violent sandstorm can move a dune 20 meters (65 feet) in a single day. Sandstorms may bury everything in their path—rocks, fields, and even towns. One legend holds that the Persian Emperor Cambyses II sent an army of 50,000 men to the Siwa Oasis in western Egypt around 530 BCE. Halfway there, an enormous sandstorm swallowed the entire group. Archaeologists in the Sahara have been unsuccessfully looking for the “Lost Army of Cambyses” ever since. Water in the Desert Rain is usually the main source of water in a desert , but it falls very rarely. Many desert dwellers rely on groundwater , stored in aquifers below the surface. Groundwater comes from rain or other precipitation , like snow or hail. It seeps into the ground, where it can remain for thou sands of years. Underground water sometimes rises to the surface, forming springs or seeps. A fertile green area called an oasis , or cienega , may exist near such a water source. About 90 major, inhabited oases dot the Sahara. These oases are supported by some of the world’s largest supplies of underground water. People, animals, and plants all surround these oases, which provide stable access to water, food, and shelter. When groundwater doesn’t seep to the surface, people often drill into the ground to get to it. Many desert cities, from the American Southwest to the Middle East , rely heavily on such aquifers to fill their water needs. Rural Israeli communities called kibbutzim rely on aquifers to furnish water for crops and even fish farming in the dry Negev Desert .

Drilling into aquifers provides water for drinking, agriculture , industry , and hygiene . However, it comes at a cost to the environment. Aquifers take a long time to refill. If desert communities use groundwater faster than it is replenished, water shortages can occur. The Mojave Desert , in southern California and Nevada, for instance, is sinking due to aquifer depletion . The booming desert communities of Las Vegas, Nevada, and California’s “ Inland Empire ” are using water faster than the aquifer is being refilled. The water level in the aquifer has sunk as much as 30 meters (100 feet) since the 1950s, while the land above the aquifer has sunk as much as 10 centimeters (4 inches). Rivers sometimes provide water in a desert . The Colorado River , for instance, flows through three deserts in the American Southwest: the Great Basin , the Sonoran, and the Mojave. Seven states—Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, and California—rely on the river for some of their water supply. People often modify rivers to help distribute and store water in a desert . The Nile River ecosystem dominates the eastern part of the Sahara Desert , for instance. The Nile provides the most reliable, plentiful source of freshwater in the region. Between 1958 and 1971, the government of Egypt constructed a massive dam on the Upper Nile (the southern part of the river , near Egypt’s border with Sudan). The Aswan Dam harnesses the power of the Nile for hydroelectricity used in in dustry . It also stores water in a manmade lake, Lake Nasser, to protect the country’s communities and agriculture against drought . Construction of the Aswan High Dam was a huge engineering project. Local desert communities can divert rivers on a smaller scale. Throughout the Middle East , communities have dug artificial wadis , where freshwater can flow during rainy seasons. In countries like Yemen, artificial wadis can carry enough water for whitewater rafting trips during certain times of the year. When deserts and water supplies cross state and national borders, people often fight over water rights . This has happened among the states in the Colorado River Basin , which have negotiated for many years over the division of the river ’s water. Rapidly expanding populations in California, Nevada, and Arizona have compounded the problem. Agreements that were made in the early 20th century failed to account for Native American water rights . Mexican access to the Colorado, which has its delta in the Mexican state of Baja California, was ignored. Desert agriculture , including cotton production, demanded a large portion of the Colorado. The environmental impact of dams was not considered when the structures were built. States of the Colorado River Basin continue to negotiate today to prepare for population growth, agricultural development , and the possibility of future droughts . Life in the Desert Plants and animals adapt to desert habitats in many ways. Desert plants grow far apart, allowing them to obtain as much water around them as possible. This spacing gives some desert regions a desolate appearance. In some deserts , plants have unique leaves to capture sunlight for photosynthesis , the process plants use to make food. Small pores in the leaves, called stomata , take in carbon dioxide . When they open, they also release water vapor . In the desert , all these stomata would quickly dry out a plant. So desert plants typically have tiny, waxy leaves. Cactuses have no leaves at all. They produce food in their green stems. Some desert plants, such as cactuses , have shallow, wide-spreading root systems . The plants soak up water quickly and store it in their cells . Saguaro cactuses , which live in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona and northern Mexico, expand like accordions to store water in the cells of their trunks and branches. A large saguaro is a living storage tower that can hold hundreds of liters of water. Other desert plants have very deep roots. The roots of a mesquite tree, for example, can reach water more than 30 meters (100 feet) underground. Mesquites , saguaros, and many other desert plants also have thorns to protect them from grazing animals . Many desert plants are annuals , which means they only live for one season. Their seeds may lie dormant for years during long dry spells. When rain finally comes, the seeds sprout rapidly. Plants grow, bloom, produce new seeds, and die, often in a short span of time. A soaking rain can change a desert into a wonderland of flowers almost overnight.

Animals that have adapted to a desert environment are called xerocoles . Xerocoles include species of insects, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Some xerocoles avoid the sun by resting in scarce shade. Many escape the heat in cool burrows they dig in the ground. The fennec fox, for example, is native to the Sahara Desert . Fennec fox communities work together to dig large burrows , some as large as 93 square meters (1,000 square feet). Dew can collect in these burrows , providing the foxes with fresh water. However, fennec foxes have adapted so they do not have to drink water at all: Their kidneys retain enough water from the food they eat. Most xerocoles are nocturnal . They sleep through the hot days and do their hunting and foraging at night. Deserts that seem desolate during the day are very active in the cool nighttime air. Foxes, coyotes, rats, and rabbits are all nocturnal desert mammals. Snakes and lizards are familiar desert reptiles. Insects such as moths and flies are abundant in the desert . Most desert birds are restricted to areas near water, such as river banks. However, some birds, such as the roadrunner, have adapted to life in the desert . The roadrunner, native to the deserts of North America, obtains water from its food. Some xerocoles have bodies that help them handle the heat. A desert tortoise’s thick shell insulates the animal and reduces water loss. Sand lizards, native to the deserts of Europe and Asia, are nicknamed “dancing lizards” because of the way they quickly lift one leg at a time off the hot desert sand . A jackrabbit’s long ears contain blood vessels that release heat. Some desert vultures urinate on their own legs, cooling them by e vaporation . Many desert animals have developed ingenious ways of getting the water they need. The thorny devil, a lizard that lives in the Australian Outback , has a system of tiny grooves and channels on its body that lead to its mouth. The lizard catches rain and dew in these grooves and sucks them into its mouth by gulping. Camels are very efficient water users. The animals do not store water in their humps, as people once believed. The humps store fat. Hydrogen molecules in the fat combine with inhaled oxygen to form water. During a shortage of food or water, camels draw upon this fat for nutrition and moisture. Dromedary camels, native to the Arabian and Sahara deserts , can lose up to 30 percent of their body weight without harm. Camels, nicknamed “ships of the desert ,” are widely used for transportation, meat, and milk in the Maghreb (a region in Northwest Africa), the Middle East , and the Indian Sub continent . People and the Desert About 1 billion people live in deserts . Many of these people rely on centuries-old customs to make their lives as comfortable as possible Civilizations throughout the Middle East and Maghreb have adapted their clothing to the hot, dry conditions of the Sahara and Arabian deserts . Clothing is versatile and based on robes made of rectangles of fabric. Long-sleeved, full-length, and often white, these robes shield all but the head and hands from the wind , sand , heat, and cold. White reflects sunlight, and the loose fit allows cooling air to flow across the skin. These robes of loose cloth can be adjusted (folded) for length, sleeves, and pockets, depending on the wearer and the climate . A thobe is a full-length, long-sleeved white robe. An abaya is a sleeveless cloak that protects the wearer from dust and heat. A djebba is a short, square pullover shirt worn by men. A kaffiyeh is a rectangular piece of cloth folded loosely around the head to protect the wearer from sun exposure, dust , and sand . It can be folded and unfolded to cover the mouth, nose, and eyes. Kaffiyehs are secured around the head with a cord called an agal . A turban is similar to a kaffiyeh , but wrapped around the head instead of being secured with an agal . Turbans are also much longer—up to six meters (20 feet)! Desert dwellers have also adapted their shelters for the unique climate . The ancient Anasazi peoples of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico constructed huge apartment complexes in the rocky cliffs of the Sonoran Desert . These cliff dwellings, sometimes dozens of meters off the ground, were constructed with thick, earthen walls that provided insulation . Although temperatures outside varied greatly from day to night, temperatures inside did not. Tiny, high windows let in only a little light and helped keep out dust and sand .

The need to find food and water has led many desert civilizations to become nomadic . Nomadic cultures are those that do not have permanent settlements. In the deserts of the Middle East and Asia, nomadic tent communities continue to flourish . Tent walls are made of thick, sturdy cloth that can keep out sand and dust , but also allow cool breezes to blow through. Tents can be rolled up and transported on pack animals (usually horses, donkeys, or camels). Nomads move frequently so their flocks of sheep and goats will have water and grazing land. Besides animals like camels and goats, a variety of desert vegetation is found in oases and along the shores of rivers and lakes. Figs, olives, and oranges thrive in desert oases and have been harvested for centuries. Some desert areas rely on resources brought from more fertile areas—food trucked in from distant farmlands or, more frequently, water piped from wetter regions. Large areas of desert soil are irrigated by water pumped from underground sources or brought by canal from distant rivers or lakes. The booming Inland Empire of southeastern California is made up of deserts (the Mojave and the Sonoran) that rely on water for agriculture , in dustry , and residential development. Canals and aqueducts supply the Inland Empire with water from the Colorado River , to the east, and the Sierra Nevada snowmelt to the north. A variety of crops can thrive in these irrigated oases. Sugar cane is a very water-intensive crop mostly harvested in tropical regions. However, sugar cane is also harvested in the deserts of Pakistan and Australia. Water for irrigation is transported from hundreds of kilometers away, or drilled from hundreds of meters underground. Oases in desert climates have been popular spots for tourists for centuries. Spas ring the Dead Sea, a saline lake in the Judean Desert of Israel and Jordan. The Dead Sea has had flourishing spas since the time of King David . Air transportation and the development of air conditioning have made the sunny climate of deserts even more accessible and attractive to people from colder regions. Populations at resorts like Palm Springs , California, and Las Vegas, Nevada, have boomed. Desert parks, such as Death Valley National Park, California, attract thou sands of visitors every year. People who migrate to the warm, dry desert for the winter and return to more temperate climates in the spring are sometimes called “ snowbirds .” In rural areas, hot days turn into cool nights, providing welcome relief from the scorching sun. But in cities, structures like buildings, roads, and parking lots hold on to daytime heat long after the sun sets. The temperature stays high even at night, making the city an “island” of heat in the middle of the desert . This is called the urban heat island effect. It is less pronounced in desert cities than cities built in heavily forested areas. Cities like New York City, New York, and Atlanta, Georgia, can be 5 degrees warmer than the surrounding area. New York was built on wetland habitat , and Atlanta was built in a wooded area. Cities like Phoenix, Arizona, or Kuwait City, Kuwait, have a much smaller urban heat island effect. They may be only slightly warmer than the surrounding desert . Deserts can hold economically valuable resources that drive civilizations and economies. The most notable desert resource in the world is the massive oil reserves in the Arabian Desert of the Middle East . More than half of the proven oil reserves in the world lie beneath the sands of the Arabian Desert , mostly in Saudi Arabia. The oil in dustry draws companies, migrant workers, engineers, geologists , and biologists to the Middle East . Desertification Desertification is the process of productive cropland turning into non-productive, desert -like environments. Desertification usually happens in semi- arid areas that border deserts . Human activities are a primary cause of desertification . These activities include overgrazing of livestock , deforestation , overcultivation of farmland, and poor irrigation practices. Overgrazing and de forestation remove plants that anchor the soil. As a result, wind and water erode the nutrient -rich topsoil . Hooves from grazing livestock compact the soil, preventing it from absorbing water and fertilizers . Agricultural production is devastated , and the economy of a region suffers.

The deserts of Patagonia , the largest in South America, are expanding due to desertification . Patagonia is a major agricultural region where non-native species such as cattle and sheep graze on grassland . Sheep and cattle have reduced the native vegetation in Patagonia , causing loss of valuable topsoil . More than 30 percent of the grasslands of Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia are faced with desertification . People often overuse natural resources to survive and profit in the short term, while neglecting long-term sustainability . Madagascar, for instance, is a tropical island in the Indian Ocean. Seeking greater economic opportunities, farmers in Madagascar engaged in slash-and-burn agriculture . This method relies on cutting and burning forests to create fields for crops . Unfortunately, at the time farmers were investing in slash-and-burn agriculture , Madagascar experienced long-term droughts . With little vegetation to anchor it, the thin topsoil quickly eroded . The island’s central plateau is now a barren desert . Rapid population growth also can lead to overuse of resources , killing plant life and depleting nutrients from the soil. Lake Chad is a source of freshwater for four countries on the edge of the Sahara Desert : Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria. These developing countries use Lake Chad’s shallow waters for agriculture , in dustry , and hygiene . Since the 1960s, Lake Chad has shrunk to half its size. Desertification has severely reduced the wetland habitats surrounding the lake, as well as its fishery and grazing lands. Desertification is not new. In the 1930s, parts of the Great Plains of North America became the “ Dust Bowl ” through a combination of drought and poor farming practices. Millions of people had to leave their farms and seek a living in other parts of the country. Desertification is an increasing problem. Every year, about 6 million square kilometers (2.3 million square miles) of land become useless for cultivation due to desertification . The Sahara Desert crept 100 kilometers (39 miles) south between 1950 and 1975. South Africa is losing 300-400 million metric tons (330-441 short tons) of topsoil each year. Many countries are working to reduce the rates of desertification . Trees and other vegetation are being planted to break the force of the wind and to hold the soil. Windbreaks made of trees have been planted throughout the Sahel , the southern border region of the Sahara Desert . These windbreaks anchor the soil and prevent sand from invading populated areas. In China’s Tengger Desert , researchers have developed another way to control wandering dunes . They anchor the drifting sand with a gridlike network of straw fences. Straw is poked partway into the sand , forming a pattern of small squares along the contours of the dunes . The resulting fences break the force of the wind at ground level, stopping dune movement by confining the sand within the squares of the grid. New technologies are also being developed to combat desertification . “ Nanoclay ” is a substance sprayed on desert sands that acts as a binding agent. Nanoclay keeps the sand moist, clumping it together and preventing it from blowing away. Deserts Get Hotter Rising temperatures can have huge effects on fragile desert ecosystems . Global warming is the most current instance of climate change . Human activities such as burning fossil fuels contribute to global warming . In deserts , temperatures are rising even faster than the global average. This warming has effects beyond simply making hot deserts hotter. For example, increasing temperatures lead to the loss of nitrogen , an important nutrient , from the soil. Heat prevents microbes from converting nutrients to nitrates , which are necessary for almost all living things. This can reduce the already limited plant life in deserts . Climate change also affects rainfall patterns. Climate scientists predict that global warming will lead to more rainfall in some regions, but less rainfall in other places. Areas facing reduced precipitation include areas with some of the largest deserts in the world: North Africa (Sahara), the American Southwest (Sonoran and Chihuahuan), the southern Andes ( Patagonia ), and western Australia (Great Victoria). In literature and in legend, deserts are often described as hostile places to avoid. Today, people value desert resources and biodiversity . Communities, governments , and organizations are working to preserve desert habitats and increase desert productivity.

Devil of a Storm Dust devils are common in hot deserts. They look like tiny tornadoes, but they start on the ground rather than in the sky. When patches of ground get very hot, the heated air above them begins to rise and spin. This whirling column of hot air picks up dust and dirt. These spinning columns of dirt can rise hundreds of feet in the air.

Freak Floods Deserts are defined by their dryness. However, flash floods take more lives in deserts than thirst does.

Hot and Cold Deserts The largest hot desert in the world is the Sahara, which is 9 million square kilometers (3.5 million square miles). It isn't the hottest place on Earth, though. That distinction belongs to Death Valley, in California's Mojave Desert. The highest temperature on Earth was recorded there: 56.7 C (134.1 F). The largest polar desert is Antarctica, at 13 million square kilometers (5 million square miles). Antarctica boasts the lowest official temperature recorded on Earth: -89.2 C (-128.6 F), recorded on July 21, 1983.

Rising from the Ashes The desert city of Phoenix, Arizona, is named for the mythical desert bird that burns to death only to be reborn, rising from its own ashes. The city of Phoenix was built on top of the ruins of canals built by the Hohokam people between 500 and 1450 CE. The Hohokam used the canals to irrigate their crops. Modern-day residents also rely on an extensive canal system to provide irrigation.

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What Is Life Like In Deserts?

Adaptation of plants in deserts, adaptations of animals in deserts, adaptations of humans in deserts.

Life in deserts is hard due to the scarcity of food and water. However, plants, animals and humans have adapted in various ways to survive a life in deserts.

Can you imagine living in the scorching heat of a desert? If you’ve ever spent any time in one, it feels like it can’t sustain any life due to its arid climatic conditions. So how do certain plants and animals survive in such weather?

Yes, there are living things apart from camels and cacti in the desert! In fact, there is a history of thriving civilizations in our planet’s deserts with a total population of nearly 1 billion people!

If you think deserts are a waste of land and lack any useful resources, think again! Deserts have massive oil reserves, especially in the Arabian Desert (Middle East), which is a very economically useful resource.

By the end of this article, your view will be forever changed about the utility of deserts. More specifically, let’s dig into the adaptations of plants, animals and humans that call these challenging realms “home”.

Camel caravan going through the sand dunes in the Sahara Desert, Morocco(Steve Photography)s

Nomadic – Nature

The scarcity of food and water in the desert led many civilizations to live as nomads. This means they have no permanent settlements. They make tents from thick cloth to keep dust and sand out, but this still allows a cool breeze to pass through the cloth. The tents are portable and can be carried on pack animals, such as camels, donkeys and horses. These nomads graze animals like sheep and goats.

So, do you still feel like deserts are lifeless? I’m sure your opinion has changed since the top of this article… Although life in deserts is undeniably tough, it has led to magnificent adaptations by both plants and animals, which shows us that once again, life will always find a way!

Also Read: Why Do Deserts Get Cold At Night?

Desert Plants and Adaptations - Earth Floor: Biomes. cotf.edu
Deserts guide for KS3 geography students - BBC Bitesize. BBC Online
Desert - National Geographic Education. National Geographic

Anupriya is an English and Social Studies teacher at Jamnabai Narsee School, Mumbai. Besides her interest in Literature and Social Sciences, she spends her time reading finance articles and binge watching historical drama series on Netflix. She aspires to be an author.

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Paragraph On Desert: A Fascinating World Of Extreme Conditions And Adaptations

Paragraph On Desert: Deserts are fascinating, unique, and challenging ecosystems that cover approximately one-third of the earth’s surface. Despite their harsh conditions, deserts are home to a diverse range of plants and animals that have adapted to survive in such a challenging environment. In this article, we will take a journey through the world’s harshest landscape and discover the secrets of the desert.

Paragraph On Desert

In this blog Paragraph On Desert, we include Paragraph On Desert, in 100, 200, 250, and 300 words. Also, cover the Paragraph On Desert belonging to classes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and up to the 12th class and also for kids, children, and students.

You can read more Essay writing in 10 lines, and about sports, events, occasions, festivals, etc… Paragraph On Desert is also available in different languages. In Paragraph On Desert, the following features are explained in the given manner.

Characteristics Of The Desert

Deserts are defined by their extreme climate, with high temperatures during the day and low temperatures at night. The lack of water is another defining feature of the desert, with most deserts receiving less than ten inches of rainfall per year. The topography of the desert can vary from flat and sandy to rocky and mountainous. Despite the harsh conditions, deserts are home to a surprising variety of plants and animals that have adapted to the harsh environment.

Types Of Deserts

There are four main types of deserts: hot and dry, semi-arid, coastal, and cold. Hot and dry deserts are characterized by extremely high temperatures during the day and cold temperatures at night. They are also known for their sand dunes, which can reach over 300 meters in height.

Semi-arid deserts have slightly more precipitation than hot and dry deserts, and are home to a variety of plant species. Coastal deserts are found along the coasts of continents and are characterized by their moderate temperatures and foggy conditions. Cold deserts are found in high altitudes and are characterized by their cold temperatures and harsh conditions.

Desert Adaptations

Plants and animals that live in the desert have developed unique adaptations to survive in the harsh conditions. Animals such as camels have developed the ability to store water in their humps, while other animals such as the kangaroo rat can survive without drinking water at all. Desert plants such as cacti have evolved thick stems and spines to reduce water loss, while other plants such as the creosote bush have adapted to the desert’s high temperatures by producing a waxy coating on their leaves to reduce water loss.

Unique Features Of Deserts

Deserts are home to unique geological formations such as sand dunes, oasis, canyons, and rock formations. Sand dunes are formed by wind and are constantly shifting and changing shape. Oasis are areas in the desert where water is available, and are often surrounded by lush vegetation. Canyons are formed by erosion and are often home to a variety of wildlife. Rock formations in the desert can take on unique shapes and colors due to the extreme weathering and erosion caused by the harsh environment.

Challenges Faced By The Desert

Deserts are facing a number of challenges, including water scarcity, climate change, and human impact. The lack of water in the desert is a significant challenge, and many areas are experiencing water shortages as a result of climate change and human activity. Climate change is also causing temperatures in the desert to rise, which can have a devastating impact on desert ecosystems. Human activities such as mining, oil drilling, and urbanization are also threatening the delicate balance of desert ecosystems.

The Future Of Deserts

Despite the challenges facing deserts, there are a number of conservation efforts underway to preserve these unique ecosystems. Sustainable development and advancements in technology are also helping to mitigate some of the challenges facing deserts. For example, desalination technology is being used to provide fresh water in areas where water is scarce. In addition, sustainable tourism is providing economic opportunities for local communities while also promoting conservation efforts.

Deserts are fascinating and complex ecosystems that are home to a diverse range of plants and animals that have adapted to survive in the harsh conditions. Despite the challenges facing deserts, there are a number of conservation efforts underway to preserve these unique ecosystems. It is important that we recognize the importance of preserving the desert and take steps to mitigate the challenges they face.

FAQ’s On Paragraph On Desert

Question 1. What is the desert class 7 paragraph?

Answer: Deserts are hot and dry regions that receive very little rainfall, and are characterized by sand dunes, rocky terrain, and sparse vegetation. The desert ecosystem is fragile and can be easily disturbed by human activity. Many desert plants and animals have adapted to the harsh conditions and developed unique survival mechanisms. Deserts are home to several indigenous communities who have developed their own cultures and traditions based on the environment.

Question 2. How do you describe a desert?

Answer: A desert is a barren, arid land characterized by extreme temperatures, scarce precipitation, and a sparse vegetation cover. It is usually comprised of sand dunes, rocky terrain, and gravel plains. Deserts are often inhospitable places with limited resources, but are also home to a variety of unique flora and fauna that have adapted to the harsh conditions.

Question 3. What is desert class 8?

Answer: In class 8, students learn about deserts as part of their Geography curriculum. They study the physical characteristics, climate, and vegetation of different types of deserts around the world, such as hot and cold deserts. They also learn about the unique adaptations of plants and animals in desert ecosystems, and the challenges faced by the indigenous communities who live in these harsh environments. Additionally, students explore the impact of human activity on desert ecosystems, including the effects of desertification and the need for conservation efforts.

Question 4. What is desert for Class 2?

Answer: For a Class 2 student, a desert can be described as a very hot and dry place where there is very little water and few plants and animals. They might learn about the sandy and rocky terrain of deserts, as well as the different types of animals that live there, such as camels and snakes. Simple concepts like the importance of conserving water and the need to protect desert habitats can also be introduced at this level.

Question 5. What is desert short summary?

Answer: A desert is a dry and barren region with little rainfall and extreme temperatures. It is usually characterized by sandy or rocky terrain, sparse vegetation, and unique adaptations of plants and animals. Deserts are found all over the world and pose significant challenges for human habitation and conservation.

Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children

We are Sharing an Essay on Desert in English for students and children. In this article, we have tried our best to provide a Short Desert Essay for Classes 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 in 100, 200, 300 words.

Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children

Deserts are areas where the rainfall is less than 25 cm, The soil over some areas of desert land is rich in minerals where plants grow. Other areas are covered with alkaline soil that prevents plants from growing.

People live in deserts in places called oasis. These are fertile spots where water is available for plants to grow and provide food for animals. In Africa and Asia, oases produce fruit, sugar, cotton. dates and some crops.

Deserts are usually areas of clear, cloudless skies. It is hot in the day and cools at night. Animals and plants that survive in a desert adapt to this environment. Plants here, normally have a short life cycle.

In spite of the difficult conditions, many animals live in the desert. The most commonly known is the camel. Most of the other animals are only active at night and rest during the day in burrows and under rocks. Desert animals are often light coloured to blend with their surroundings and they conserve water by using very little by way of evaporation.

# composition | Paragraph on Desert

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Deserts as Ecosystems and Why They Need Protecting

What is a Desert?

Deserts conjure up specific ideas about topography: typically, that they are dry and sandy dunes or rock, or a mixture of both. But deserts are far more than this and there are multiple types. How we define the desert biome are not about the types of rock, or the amount of sand, or even the temperature because there are both cold and hot deserts. The simple explanation is that deserts are topographic landscapes that receive little precipitation in a typical year. The threshold is 10 inches, or 25cm. But more than simply having low rainfall, a desert is “arid”. This means a high rate of water loss through plant reclamation (called transpiration) and through evaporation. These two aspects are combined into something called evapotranspiration. This is the amount of water that the landscape would lose when available (1) . For deserts, evapotranspiration ratio exceeds average annual rainfall by anything from 2:1 to 33:1. The higher the ratio, the less available moisture there is. The coarse nature of the soil means most moisture seeps through the top soil rapidly.

Furthermore, what precipitation a desert does experience is erratic. The average rainfall is just that. A desert may receive far more than the “average” in one year and not experience any rainfall the year before and the year after. Deserts will differ depending on their climate and location and their overall aridity can influence many things, not least of all the ecology, food chain, plant and animal types. High evaporation leaves behind higher salt levels, affecting further which plants can grow and the individual size and the numbers of herbivores that may feed on them and, in turn, carnivores. Some experience vast temperature fluctuations, especially hot deserts which may reach unbearable heat during the day and extreme cold at night (2) . This is because the rock and sand absorb heat during the day and releases it at night. There may also be an extreme variation between warm and cool seasons, including extreme winds and storms due to the mixing of cold and warm air.

Types of Desert

There are four broad types of desert: coastal, cold, hot & dry, and semi-arid.

Coastal Deserts

These are generally hospitable and don't have the extreme temperature fluctuation that other types experience. Life is more abundant here, the soil less acidic, and tend to be arid due to adjacent topography such as mountain ranges or lakes and waterway networks that draw off most of the precipitation that they would otherwise experience (4) . Coastal deserts experience a brief winter of moderate average temperatures of 5�C/41�F for winter while summer typical reaches an average of between a mild 13�C/55�F to warmer 24�C/75�F. The precipitation is lower, and this type of desert is better at retaining what little moisture it harnesses - on average around 5 inches or 13cm annually.

What isn't drawn off by mountains drains away from the porous soil to find its way into waterways a little farther away. An example of the coastal desert is the Namib.

Cold Deserts

Not the first thing that comes to mind when we think about deserts but located in the most extreme latitudes, they fall into two broad types:

A long way from coastal areas and in a cold zone, receiving low precipitation
In proximity to mountain ranges which draw away precipitation that might otherwise have created tundra or plains

Its annual precipitation falls as snow which may sometimes remain on the ground until the summer before it melts. If the temperatures don't rise sufficiently, it may remain for over a year. Their winters are extremely cold, typically between -2 and 4C (28.4F to 39.2F). Summer temperatures are pleasant and surprisingly warm, typically on average between 21 and 26C which is between 69 and 79F. Precipitation is relative and although fall and winter receives most of it, it is generally lower than other landscape types and it is insufficient to support too much life - hence why they are considered deserts.

An example of a cold desert is the Gobi (5) . Some feel that Antarctica's interior is a desert due to low precipitation.

Hot & Dry Deserts

What we think of as the “typical” desert, usually indicated with the sand dunes of North Africa and the Middle East, isn't quite as empty, hot or bleak as we might think. While they do have hot summers (43-48C or 110-120F), the annual average is a much cooler 20-25C or 68-77F. Night temperatures are an average 10C or 50F. They also experience cold winters, a season in which the low levels of precipitation usually fall to -18C. Summer night-time temperatures drop considerably which is why the annual averages are so extreme. Surface albedo is high - heat acquired during the day is radiated at night. This type experiences no more than 11” (28cm) of rainfall annually while many experience even less than that. Evidence from The Atacama Desert, for example, suggests that some areas have never experienced precipitation. Their barren appearance is broken by the occasional tree; shade and coverage is rare, and this is where you are most likely to see sand dunes.

The Sahara is a hot and dry desert (6) .

Semi-Arid Deserts

Semi-arid deserts have, by definition, higher levels of precipitation compared to the other three types featured here, although not a great deal more. They are also not limited by temperature. They are milder generally, but they can exist farther to the north, meaning there are colder and warmer types. Daytime and nighttime temperatures are not as extreme, and neither are the divisions between summer and winter. There is some debate over whether they should be considered deserts at all but a type of plain or “steppe”. However, others argue that the other topographical features - of low precipitation (1-2” or 2-4cm annually) and high evapotranspiration leave them firmly in the desert category. Examples of colder semi-arid deserts include the Nearctic zones which incorporate Newfoundland and Greenland. Warmer examples are the Sagebrush of Montana and the Great Basin, and much of Australia's Outback (7) . Summer average temperatures are between 21 and 27C while rarely going above 38C as the hot & dry types of desert often do.

A Brief History of the Use, Study, and Conservation, of Deserts

In antiquity.

Deserts, despite a reputation in some quarters as a barren and useless wasteland or as problems to be solved, have been a way of life for many different peoples. Ancient Egyptian society began along the fertile banks of the River Nile which is buffered on both sides by hot & dry desert (8) which they saw as vital to their culture. Some attribute the arid environment of the Egyptian interior to the development of their complex culture and especially their rituals and cults surrounding death. It is particularly believed that the desiccated nature of bodies as found in the desert dying of exposure or from natural causes provided inspiration for their experiments and developments leading to the mummification process. Certainly, the dry environment of western Egypt where the pyramids are located would have been the perfect environment to prevent the sort of cadaver degradation seen in biomes with higher precipitation and humidity. Similar theories have been expressed about the development of mummification in the South American culture of the Chinchorro who lived in the Atacama Desert, quite possibly the driest desert on the planet (9) .

Even before this, the deserts have provided useful environments for resources and hunter-gathering. Various tribes of Native Americans made their homes in the deserts of North and Central America, as did the Kalahari Bushmen and Australian aborigines. Deserts are ideal for tracking animals and provide enough food in the right volumes to support hunter-gathering communities. It's no wonder we find so much archaeological remains in deserts. Firstly, they were well-used by people of the ancient past and secondly, the lack of humidity increases the chances of survival of organic material. Other cultures quickly adopted semi-nomadic lifestyle and took livestock with them on long journeys across the desert, learning locations of water and living off the animal produce, using animal skins as tents for shelter, and utilizing other parts of the animal such as milk, bones, and meat. Even today, peoples such as the Bedouin still roam the deep deserts of the planet although their lifestyle is more semi-nomadic (10) .

The Age of Exploration to the Modern Age

Successive civilizations harnessed the resources available in deserts for millennia, from mining to harnessing water supplies from springs into irrigation to grow crops, and stone, deserts have generally been seen as a resource. It wasn't until the early Middle Ages and the explorations the likes of Marco Polo that we begin to see wonder and observation in the desert biomes, particularly the Gobi (11) . This was part of the Silk Road, the trade route between the Far East and Europe which was vitally important to the Eastern Roman Empire and the Alexander's Greek Empire before it. By Marco Polo's time, the journey was well-established, but his writing was the first volume. Polo and his father were the first westerners to visit China's modern capital. He was famously appointed to the Chinese Royal Court. Today, Marco Polo is one of the world's most famous early explorers, inspiring the likes of Christoper Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan.

It would take several hundred years and the travels of Charles Montagu Doughty before any more important works were to come; his two-volume book Travels in Arabia's Deserts was published in 1888. He would later prove to be one of the most inspirational early travel writers to the modern age (12) . The work included many observations about deserts and their uses, functions, and the sense of wonder. It is valued as much for its vivid descriptions and beautiful writing as it is for its content. Slightly later Antoine de Saint-Exupéry utilized the new transport of flight to bring a new dynamic to travel over deserts; a plane crash in the Sahara almost killed him but he was found by Bedouins (13) . His travels in the Arabian deserts were extensive, as were those of Gertrude Bell - one of history's most famous female explorers. Yet her work could not hold a candle to the phenomenal work of Freya Stark (14) who published 20 books featuring the deserts of the Middle East. Other important figures in the early 20 th century include naturalist Uwe George who lived in several deserts for part of his life and poet Robert Frost who also explored them.

Eremology: Preservation of Deserts as Ecologies and Cultures

Until the early-mid 20 th century, interests in deserts was one purely of exploration and travel, as highlighted in the previous section. The birth of the science of eremology (the study of the desert biome) began in the mid-20 th century and with the dawning of the understanding of such environmental concepts as human geography, ecology, and, of course, conservation. It had been widely known thanks to various travel volumes that deserts were anything but lifeless wastes. One of the earliest remits of the United Nations was conservation. A growing problem in the 1960s concerning such issues as pollution and public health led to the development of a number of environmental standards and conservation issues for the assembly of world powers. UNESCO now has a chairperson dedicated to Eremology, such is the importance of the preservation of the desert biome for cultural and ecological reasons; as discussed previously, various peoples have lived in deserts for millennia and it remains an important part. This role has been in place since 1994. Today, researchers into the desert biome understand the importance of their conservation for these reasons, but also for biodiversity (15) and the unique biological makeup of such landscapes. Many species that live and thrive in desert environments do not exist in other biomes.

Yet eremology is also the study of how deserts are formed. As well as preserving the deserts that we have, it is also dedicated to ensuring that human activity such as climate change, agricultural practices, intensive resource use and other activity does not create deserts in other landscapes, ecosystems and biomes. The UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification) (16) now has a delicate balancing act between preservation and holding back desertification.

The Academic, Functional, and Ecological Importance of Deserts

Deserts as rich archaeological sources.

Some of our greatest archaeological finds have come from desert environments. As with anaerobic conditions of wetlands where organic material is cut off from microbes, such material survives in deserts due to the lack of moisture and bacteria that can eventually break it down. This is the reason for the survival of many pre-dynastic Ancient Egyptian bodies from shallow graves in the desert. Without the low humidity and desiccation, they are unlikely to have survived so well (17, p60) . These bodies predate the mummification process and therefore, no embalming fluid or removal of organs that degrade quickly as seen in the later industrial process of the complex society. The same is true with the mummies of the Chinchorro peoples of the Atacama (a cold desert). What is most remarkable about these mummies is that they predate the Egyptian society by some 2,000 years and they used some of the same techniques at times (9) .

But the archaeology of deserts is about far more than simply the preservation of artefacts and their improved chances of survival. Various archaeological disciplines examine other areas of the desert.

Desert Phenomenology / Experiential Archaeology : This is an archaeological approach that seeks to understand how people live in the deserts, their life experiences, and how they perceive their local environment(s). It includes their sensory experiences of day-to-day living
Desert economy : Deserts have always been vital for resources and economy. Sand and stone have been used to build structures where wood is sparse as is the case with Ancient Egypt. But they are also sources of precious metal and gem mining
Water : Deserts are areas of low precipitation and low humidity which seems in direct conflict to the requirement of water for all living things. It's a great source of examining technologies from the simple to the complex, of acquiring, harnessing, storing and preserving water and its supply. But more than that - what importance (practical or spiritual) do those people place on water?
Deserts landscape archaeology and human geography : Particularly of the routes crossing deserts and the links between cultures within them, at the borders of deserts, and further afield. The study of routes can include migrations of people, when and how they move, the logistics of movements and regular pathways such as the Silk Road

Water engineering and mechanics are also of interest to archaeologists of desert areas. It's an interesting area of study that shows both human ingenuity and human potential for self-destruction. The irrigation of Mesopotamia during the first civilizations is one of the most remarkable feats of both. In the first instance, filtering water from the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers to the desert interior allowed for the building of enormous cities. The region, despite having lush valleys around and between the rivers, had much lower precipitation than Egypt which relied on annual Nile flooding (18) . Yet the irrigation that allowed for the civilization to develop was also its downfall as over-irrigation led to consistent crop failure as water evaporated, leaving behind salts that would eventually saturate the land (19) .

Desert Ecology and Biodiversity

The reputation of deserts as cold and lifeless is unfounded and it has arguably led to desert biomes being ignored in research literature compared to others (20) . Many certainly seem bereft of life, certainly during the day in summer in hot deserts when temperatures are potentially scorching, and winter in some cold deserts where subzero temperatures make life difficult. However, they are abundant with both flora and fauna. What is so great about deserts as biomes, is their unique biological profile. Species exist in these environments that simply do not appear elsewhere. The Mojave Desert is a case in point; it's one of the harshest environments on the planet with a humidity level that rarely goes higher than 40%, yet it maintains abundant biodiversity throughout the seemingly barren topography (21) . All species have adapted to live in this harsh environment and many are protected because of their geographical limitations and delicate ecological requirements of coping with the high temperatures and dry environment.

Typical botany include succulents such as cacti which do not have leaves like other species, but spines to protect the fleshy body of chloroplasts adapted to store water, and shallow roots to quickly absorb the little moisture that makes it into the topsoil before evaporating away or soaking through. Similar specialization is also true of fauna which have high water retention, do not have the capability to perspire, and tend to be cold-blooded and small. Larger animals and mammals are rare although this is not always the case.

Kangaroos, for example, which live in the hot desert climate of Australia are warm-blooded mammals and must find shelter during the hottest part of the day to avoid overheating. They have, however, developed a great defense mechanism against extreme heat in that they lick their bodies and the saliva cools the blood (22)
Camels survive well in deserts because of their high water retention and survive quite happily in temperatures up to 48C / 120F.

These are two rare examples of both warm-blooded and larger animals that live in hot desert environments.

But what about cold deserts? They have received less attention than their hotter or semi-arid counterparts. We do understand that as they are in the extreme latitudes, that means most cold deserts tend to experience periods (months) of continual dark in the winter and periods of continual sunshine in the summer. This too has an impact on local biodiversity. Like their hotter counterparts, plants must be drought resistant. But succulents do not survive in these environments because of the cold. The most common type of plant in cold deserts are grasses and they form in clumps on rocks and in areas where the little moisture is most abundant. Shrubs occur in some places and the types of plant you might see on scrubland, but this is rare. Trees are also rare with only a handful of species such as the camel thorn acacia in the Gobi (23) and the pistachio tree which grows in the cold deserts of Iran.

Animals in cold deserts are warm-blooded and larger than their hot desert counterparts. Typical examples include types of deer and antelope present in most cold deserts, sheep and goats likewise, and in South America llamas and alpacas. As far as carnivores are concerned, this is the realm of the wolf, the snow leopard, and jackals, depending on where in the world the desert is located. Small mammals are much more abundant and cold blooded reptiles are less abundant. In fact, scorpions appear in just one cold desert - the Iranian Desert.

Deserts as Climate Indicators

Desert is one biome type that researchers and conservationists do not want to expand all the while ensuring that the deserts we presently have do not disappear. The major reason for this is that desert is of low agricultural quality, low biodiversity, and an extreme environment. Climate change presents a risk of desertification of present marginal landscapes. We know this occurs from paleoenvironmental data (24) . Many of our deserts contain the remnants of ancient lakes, indicated by former water channels and preserved biotic and abiotic materials indicative of previous presence of water. As deserts are the most extreme environments on the planet, they are prone to the most change. Radiation is intense - both in terms of how much deserts receive and how much they reflect back into the environment. The expansion of desert can directly impact global average temperatures further, increasing water evaporation in adjacent areas. Even though the plant and animal species that exist in hot deserts are well-adapted to those environments, we know from studies that such organisms are treading a fine line over environmental tolerance; some are even at their limits, according to the IPCC (25) .

Both The Sahara and The Namib are extremely hot deserts and in recent years have experienced some of the hottest temperatures to date. Pakistan and Iran have also experienced record dry spells and high temperatures in the last decade. Even semi-arid desert climates are experiencing an increase in hot and dry spells, becoming more parched and experiencing wildfires in areas where scrub, brush and tree cover is more abundant. California, for example, has always experienced summer wildfires but the season for the fires is getting longer with the increased drought the state is experiencing. Continued drought, lowering precipitation and a dropping of the water table means plants cannot grow as abundantly. This creates a high risk of expanding desertification. The risks are highest in the 50�S-50�N range which is the latitudes within which the hottest and driest desert climates presently are (26) . Evidence demonstrates that the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula alone show increased water vapor feedback, much higher sensitivity, and increased sensitivity in deserts to greenhouse gas emissions. Simply, deserts become hotter and drier during a warming climate with wider implications for the warming climate. That makes this type of biome one of the most useful types for understanding and tracking climate change now and for the future.

Desert Resources

As well as biodiversity and their cultural significance, deserts are also useful economically due to their unique geological profiles or their environmental formation processes. The desert biome is one of the most important. There are 15 mineral deposit types on our planet and 13 of them are found in deserts. This makes the desert an important place for mineral resources and for local and global economy. The reason this is the case is how water leaches through the ground or through evaporation so quickly that mineral deposits are left behind. We discussed the problem with irrigation in Mesopotamia in the archaeology section where increased salt deposits made agriculture more difficult. This is a similar but natural process and it leads to the formation of large metal deposits in particular. Typical mineral resources found in desert regions (both hot and cold) include salt and borates, and gypsum. Borates occurred in high density in the Great Basin Desert here in the US. From there, borate was taken to Death Valley to the emerging railroads and all over the country (27) . This special kind of salt is used to manufacture glass, enamel and other ceramics, and in the pharmaceutical and agrichemical industries. All of it was mined from the dried beds of paleolakes that once existed in the region. It is estimated that the value to the US economy of borates alone has topped $1 billion. The US deserts are also home to copper.

Salts have also proven a great resource for the Chilean economy although today its lithium resources have also taken prominence on the world stage as battery development increases for better power storage and production in the new generation of electric cars (28) . No other desert has as much abundant salt as this desert. It is estimated that during the First World War alone, some 3 million metric tons were mined. Like the US deserts, copper is present in Chile. Australia's deserts are a source of lead and zinc, uranium, gold and silver. As far as non-metal resources are concerned, deserts are also home to clay, beryllium, pumice (where there was past volcanic activity), nitrates and lithium. It is also no great surprise that some of our most abundant oil deposits are found in desert regions, particularly the Middle East, central and South America, in the driest places on Earth. These were once marine environments, but the lakes and seas dried up, allowing for the chemical processes that turn organic material into crude oil to create enormous deposits. Oil is not unique to dry environments though and the most important process is the presence of organic material and the right chemical conditions.

Deserts as a Way of Life

There is some debate whether the Bedouin tribes of the Middle East are true nomads in the traditional sense. They certainly perceive their lifestyle in this way although technically they live a semi-nomadic life. In summer, they settle on lands bordering deserts where agriculture is possible and food crops for livestock is abundant. They tend to move around a lot more in the fall and winter time during the rainy season (29) . There are different groups of Bedouin tribe who name and classify themselves based on the types of livestock and animals that they rear. For example, there are camel Bedouins which comprise the largest tribes and are distributed over the widest areas of the Middle East, incorporating most of the Levant (Jordan, Syria, Iraq) the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa including Egypt, Libya and Sudan.

Much of their lifestyle is unchanged since the Bedouins first roamed the lands although not completely. They have adapted to many aspects of modern life including motor vehicles to move around where possible. Just as the technologies of Bedouin tribes have changed, so have the concept of a home which can be a tent, a stone building or even the desert land (30) . They are ethnically Arab, and most are now Muslim. Relationships between other ethnic Arabs and Bedouins has always been mixed. They have sometimes suffered horrifically at the hands of national governments while some Arab people perceive the Bedouin as “pure” or romantic much in the same way that other countries romanticize other lost traditions such as the Roma travelers of Eastern Europe or the Amazonian “lost” tribes who have only had limited contact with the outside world. At the end of the 20 th century, less than 1% of the population in countries where Bedouins still roam maintain that lifestyle.

The Bedouin are not the only nomadic or semi-nomadic life. The Marsh Arabs so brutally oppressed by Saddam Hussein in the early 1990s were semi-nomadic, as are some elements of the Kurdish peoples of southeastern Turkey. Some aspects of Mongolian life in the Gobi Desert, and the Sami people of northern Scandinavia and the arctic islands such as Svalbard continue in their semi-nomadic traditions. Like their counterparts to the south, they too are increasingly moving to permanent settlement.

Desert Topographical Functions

Deserts are vital in many ways ecologically. Firstly, they are home to 17% of the human population who have adapted or adapted to the various desert biomes. Water is vital to life and although they lack this necessary resource, their unique ecosystems provide survival and resources for the plant and animal species that live there (31) . Deserts carry out vital planetary environmental functions too. Most of these species have adapted to the uniquely harsh environments of both hot and cold deserts and everything in between. Often, these species do not exist in other types of environment. For that reason alone, it's necessary to conserve desert spaces and to avoid encroaching on them unnecessarily or altering them for other purposes. They are home to various livestock such as camels, goats, and antelope that provide food and livelihood for people. Desert shrubs and trees that produce fruit such as dates, figs, and olives (32) , are important food crops globally.

Many are not aware that deserts are a net carbon sink, providing some relief from the increase in greenhouse gases. This will be problematic while carbon emissions continue to increase, and world governments will need to do something about it in the future. The discovery was made when researching bacteria in the desert. Research suggests that bacteria located in massive aquifers beneath the sand and in the sands itself, are capturing carbon from the air. In theory, the aquifers could hold more than the entire global population of plant material at present at 20 billion metric tons (or 22 billion imperial/US tons) (33) .

Finally, deserts, due to their location, are important sources of generating renewable energy . It is no coincidence that the world's solar arrays are located in the hottest places on the planet. Smaller solar panels convert light into energy, but the large arrays in the deserts work differently. They harness the heat and use mirrors to reflect and divert into the array, to generate much more energy per square foot. Deserts are also useful sources of wind power. There are always desert winds, but at certain times of the year wind is much higher which can also generate energy (34) .

Leisure and Tourism

Deserts attract millions of visitors every year. From the deserts of the Middle East and North Africa where visitors may see the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, to Jordan's city of Petra, Carthage and others, they are great places to see well-preserved archaeological ruins of the past. Here in the USA, there are plenty of other examples of ancient cultures in the desert. The Chaco culture, Pueblo peoples such as the Anasazi and Hohokum lived in the deserts of modern New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona. The Anasazi houses at Mesa Verde is incredible site, as is the Casa Grande monument in Arizona, built by the Hohokum Culture. In South America there are many sites and artefacts recovered from the Atacama. In short, people have settled deserts for hundreds of thousands of years and the dry nature makes such remains attractive to visitors (35) .

Not that culture and history is the limit of desert leisure and tourism. Some visit to see natural wonders such as Grand Canyon in Arizona, the great salt plains of the Atacama Desert or take a 4x4 vehicle or a hot air balloon ride across the sand dunes of the Arabian deserts. The semi-arid Monegros Desert in northeastern Spain plays host to an annual music festival called Monegros Desert Festival while the cold and arid landscapes of Greenland and Iceland draw visitors from all over the globe. The wide-open spaces of deserts can host great numbers of people without putting too much of a strain on local infrastructure. Despite the strain that tourism can put on these delicate ecosystems, they are providing much-needed money and jobs to areas. Ecotourism is helping developing nations especially find ways of preserving those landscapes (36) when historically, deserts have been neglected both in the conservation debate, and the funding and planning.

Seven Continents: Seven Deserts

Africa: namib (coastal).

Geological data suggests that at 43 million years, the Namib Desert in southwestern Africa is the world's oldest desert, but by no means its largest (that would be the Sahara). Most remarkably, nothing has changed there for some 2 million years, surviving multiple Ice Ages (37) . It consists almost entirely of sand dunes and gravel plains and is one of the most inhospitable places in the world and it runs right up to the South Atlantic coast. It takes up almost half the surface area of Namibia. It's long history and dry environment makes it a perfect searching ground for archaeologists and anthropologists; it's home to some of the oldest cave art in the world, preserved almost perfectly due to the desiccated conditions. Twyfelfontein is overshadowed by Brandberg for cave art, but the richness and diversity attract tourists and researchers alike (38) . It's hardly surprising that people settled here; Twyfelfontein contains one of the deserts few natural springs. The Namib Desert contains several national parks and reserves which home several species of zebra, jackals, and hyena. These warm-blooded mammals are in a precarious position due to the heat and dryness of the environment. Yet not all the Namib is desert. While the north is dry and sandy, the south is more like a semi-arid region with succulents, and the central region is full of gravel and gypsum plains.

Antarctica (Cold)

The world's last continent is subject to international treaties that no single country can claim it. Yet most developed nations have scientific settlements on the cold, dry and mostly inhospitable land (38) . What little life there is clings to the boundaries of where the land meets the sea and a few rocky outcrops. This includes penguins, albatrosses, seals, some species of gull and tern, and many types of insect . The interior is a different matter entirely. Covered in year-round snow and ice which is, in places, nearly 2km thick (1.2 miles) it is surprisingly one of the driest places on Earth. There is little precipitation and the snow and ice present has built up over hundreds of thousands of years. Rather than four seasons, it has just two: summer where it is always sunny where the sun never sets, and winter where it is always dark and the sun never rises. It's at the pole, so experiences the most extreme conditions of the planet. This especially means the temperatures. In 1983, the Russian Vostok Station recorded the coldest ever temperature on planet Earth at -89.2 �C (which is -129�F). In 2010, satellite data appeared to suggest a lower temperature than this was recorded but it was never confirmed or backed up by other data (39) .

Asia: Gobi (Cold)

Straddling China and Mongolia, the Gobi Desert is Asia's largest. There are steppe and mountains to the north, more desert to the west, plateau and plain to the south. Its fame lies in the being the center of the Mongolian Empire which conquered much of Asia and into Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages. It's creation as a desert is largely one of unfortunate topography; it's formed by something called “rain shadow” (40) . The plateau and plains to the south draw off moisture from that direction. The Indian Ocean is a hotbed of rainwater during monsoon season but the Gobi sees none of it. It is a cold desert, but it is largely sandy. This creates a striking and unusual sight during the coldest periods of frost-covered sand dunes. It experiences most of its moisture in the winter which arrives in the form of snow run off. Its summer is hot: hotter than most other cold deserts with temperatures reaching up to 37C (or 99F) while the coldest temperatures recorded are around -32C (-27F).

The Gobi is useful for archaeologists as with any desert, but it's also been one of the richest sources of fossil findings for paleontology including the first evidence of dinosaur eggs (41) . It's home to many modern protected species including snow leopards, wolves, multiple species of camel, gazelles, and polecats amongst others. The Gobi is home to some of the world's largest copper mines, some of which have been steeped in controversy. There are few better examples of the ecological dangers of desertification in the 21 st century. Its continued expansion has been put down to increased carbon emissions, agricultural activity and deforestation. The Gobi formed naturally, but it is humanity fueling its expansion (42) .

Australasia: Gibson Desert (Semi-Arid)

Not the largest of Australia's deserts (that's Great Victoria Desert), Gibson Desert is considered one of the most interesting because it is largely pristine (43) . It's amongst the purest deserts in the world. The semi-arid landscape is located between a giant lake of salt (Lake Disappointment) and two other deserts (Great Victoria and Little Sandy). It's largely a gravel bedrock base and the most abundant plant is grass, typical of semi-arid deserts. The red sandy plains of the desert are often held up as the typical topography of the Australian Outback although in reality, the interior of Australia is a mix of desert types. Several other notable facts about the Gibson Desert include the belief that it was the home to the last indigenous tribe to make contact with western civilization (the Pintupi). During a drought in the 1980s, they left their desert home to search for help. Increasing urbanization and urban landscape infrastructure on the border with neighboring deserts means its of conservation interest to prevent habitat loss of many species that call the Gibson home.

In 2015, researchers were surprised to find an extensive oasis in which was a new type of snail that has made a home there (44) . Deserts, like other biomes, continue to remain a source of the discovery of new species as well as presenting new problems for conservation and ecology in balancing out increased desertification against the preservation of existing deserts.

Europe: Tabernas (Semi-Arid)

Spain is home to several deserts, most of them semi-arid as Europe's climate is simply not hot enough for the kind of hot and dry deserts seen in North Africa and the Middle East. Covering 200sqkm, the Tabernas has slightly higher rainfall and cooler temperatures than its neighbors and most typical semi-arid deserts but it maintains the criteria that determines what is and is not a desert. What little precipitation it receives usually falls in the form of torrential rains. Its interesting climate does not end there; the Tabernas is a microcosm of several types of desert in such a small area. Some of the areas of the southern lowlands are hot desert, the bulk of it is semi-arid, but the highest uplands to the north have signs of cold desert (45) .

This precipitation means it has more abundant biological life than most other deserts. It's a haven for species such as sea lavender which are threatened in other parts of Spain but thriving in the Tabernas. In winter, toadflax flowers, creating a vivid white appearance to the desert. Animal species include the peregrine falcon which is an internationally protected bird of prey, jackdaws (a common type of corvid - related to crows - seen across Europe), ladder snakes, and North African hedgehogs. Yellow scorpions, tarantulas and a spider called Black Widow which is related to the deadlier spider of the same name make up the arachnids.

North America: Mojave (Hot)

Like the Gobi in Asia, the Mojave was also created and is maintained by rain shadow meteorology . The phenomenon has created the driest environment in the North American continent and straddles the states of Nevada and California, while edging across the Utah and Arizona borders too. Of all the deserts on the continent, the Mojave is the smallest; winter temperatures are comfortable (25C/80F) in the valleys and much colder on the mountains. They rise quickly through the spring and summer, rarely falling below 32C/90F, sometimes topping 38C/100F in the highest part of the summer season (46) . Its most associated with the Joshua Tree; the desert's border is said to end where the Joshua is no loner present. This is the desert on which Las Vegas is located, bordered by the Great Basin Desert and the Tehachapi Mountains. Geologically, it is simple to trace these borders because both the Garlock and San Andreas Faults have created the mountain ranges that enclose it to the west and south - the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains.

Economically, the Mojave is the most important desert tourist destination in the US due to the presence of Las Vegas to the east and organized tourism into the desert's interior. This generates money for the local economy and especially for conservation issues in the State Parks, National Parks and National Preserves that have been established within its boundaries. Finally, the Hoover Dam is within its boundaries, preserving water for the settlements in the Mojave and providing hydroelectric power although this has not been without controversy or damage to the ecosystem (47) .

South America: Atacama (Cold)

We have already described Atacama as potentially the driest place on Earth. This is not a title granted lightly. Its precipitation is so negligible that it's considered virtually zero. It's possible that parts of the Atacama Desert have never experienced rain. Its age is likely to exceed 200 million years. If this is true, then it is far older than the Namib which has a confirmed 43-million-year history. Some of the weather monitoring stations which have been in place for decades have certainly never registered rainfall. Elsewhere in the desert, the average annual rainfall is about 15mm (about half an inch) while some areas experience around 1mm. The highest peaks have year-round snow cover which may have been there for decades having fallen and never melted away. Medium height mountains have no glaciation even in the coldest months of the year. Due to its aridity and alien environment, the Atacama has been used as location filming for recent Hollywood productions set on Mars.

It is home, perhaps surprisingly, to some striking flora and fauna that make use of the limited moisture available. The most arid areas - those that may never have experienced rate - are unable to support many forms of life, although a study showed some microbial life in those areas (48) . Thyme and saltgrass are abundant in some areas, the pimiento tree, and some succulents. In those areas where rainfall does occur, flowering seasons are short and colorful, presenting the notion that the desert is lusher than it appears. There are few lizards or amphibians, and the wettest areas on the Pacific Coast are home to humboldt penguins, flamingoes, while the limited mammals include chinchilla and American grey foxes.

Future Challenges for Deserts and Ecological Researchers

Loss of desert through increased precipitation.

As more rain falls, as more moisture is retained from meltwater run off, more water passes through any rivers and lakes that might form seasonally in these deserts, this will change the environment over time. Far from being a good thing, it puts the biome at risk, changing it from a desert into something else. The biodiversity is at risk and potentially threatened species could die out in those areas or become extinct; this is a particular concern for species that exist in just one desert on the planet. An example of this is the increased rates of desert songbirds in the US experiencing dehydration (49) . Such birds , because they are warm blooded and because they fly at elevations to which warm air rises (plus a lack of suitable shade), are far more susceptible to dehydration and as the climate gets hotter, some deserts are getting drier. This is a risk for all desert-dwelling warm-blooded creatures, but especially birds.

Increased Desertification of other Biomes

the encroachment of existing desert into nearby grasslands and forest as those environments because hotter and drier, and partly through direct interference by humans for deforestation and encroachment of agricultural land for both crops and for grazing land. Roots of such plants bind soil together; it's critical at the best of times but when it comes to marginal landscapes (areas prone to flooding, drought, mineral leaching and subject to even minor fluctuations in weather patterns) the situation is even more precarious and more care needs to be taken to prevent desertification. When those root systems are removed, the quality of the soil decreases. It becomes difficult for native species to continue to thrive and desertification risk increases. A good example of this is The Dust Bowl when the great plains of the central states of the US were hit by overintense agriculture and natural drought at the same time (50)

Politics of Conservation

Bison and buffalo numbers in North and Central America were in a precarious situation a century ago, but recent conservation efforts are seeing their numbers increase. Yet belief in the restoration of bison to certain environments has not met with universal approval. Sometimes, local politics gets in the way. This is certainly the case with the northern end of the Chihuahua Desert where efforts to re-introduce bison along the US-Mexico border has met with hostility. Documentary evidence from pre-Columbian peoples in what is modern Mexico suggests that bison were common along the borders of the desert and the grasslands to the north. But this is not confirmed; nor is it accepted on all sides where the validity of ranching is being challenged in Mexico and the US (51) .

Balancing Sustainability Against Conservation

Deserts have always been centers of mining activity. As discussed above, they naturally develop oil and precious metals and gem resources through their unique geology . This industrial mining and prospecting can have multiple negative effects on the surrounding desert which present multiple sustainability challenges . If oil spills, it is an ecological disaster that could cause long-term or even permanent damage to the landscape. Even when safety is observed 100% and in sites where there has never been such an ecological disaster, the infrastructure of the mine can create problems. Human settlements at the site will include roads to get to and from the mine, carbon emissions from the vehicles, roads causing environmental degradation (52) . These are all problems that need to be addressed when planning and building a mine. If it is placed in an area where there are threatened species, this too can create problems for those species. In the Sahara, potassium-cyanide poisoning is an ongoing problem around the gold mines (53) .

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Ever wondered about the natural world in this desert environment we live in? Ecologist Dr Aspa shares with us her intimate knowledge of, and the surprising beauty found in, this unique ecosystem and how important it is to protect it.

Many people view the desert as a barren place, tell us about life here

It is true that the Qatari desert looks dusty, empty and quiet.

But actually, she hosts 2,000 species of organisms, not counting microbes, half on land and the rest in her coasts and seas. Their activity is imperceivable, because most animals lead a cryptic existence, camouflaged to blend in with the desert colors, or hiding in their burrows in daytime.

Much of my understanding of her inhabitants comes from spending endless hours roaming the desert, imprinting the surroundings and seasonal changes. Reading signs of activity, and tracking footprints, the ancient art of indigenous people, I have “seen” the fox chasing a desert hare, the dhub living peacefully next to a jird’s burrow, Arabian horned vipers side winding down sandy patches, and camels sand bathing.

The rains and cooler temperatures of the winter and spring, bring the growth of annuals, painting the desert green and signaling reproduction cues for animals. Chances of live sightings during this time increase, and explorers who sit still and quiet, are rewarded by the European Hoopoe, the blue-headed agama, the Egyptian hedgehog and many others.

How do these organisms cope with extreme heat?

Life in the desert is all about maintaining a balance of thermal energy and water. For example, to avoid over-heating the fox releases heat from her long ears, and stays mostly in her burrow during daytime to avoid the scorching rays of the sun.

Many animals exhibit this behavior of avoidance to the extremes. Water conservation is a physiological adaptation. Animals obtain most of their water from prey or plants, and are more efficient at retaining it in their bodies than we are. This is why the dhub’s poop and urine are solid and dry.

When it comes to plants, perennials have an amazing capacity at extracting scarce nutrients from the soil, and annuals are very fast in their response to rain, going from seed to vegetative state to seed dispersal, a full life cycle, in just a matter of a few months.

What is your personal favourite desert inhabitant?

All the desert inhabitants are my favorite because as an ecologist I have an innate sense of how important each one is to the healthy functioning of nature.

If I had to choose, I would deem cyanobacteria my top favourite, because they are what brought me to the desert, and although tiny, they revolutionised biological life as we know it by oxygenating the atmosphere about 3.5 billion years ago. As we speak, they are working on providing many ecosystem services to keep our world turning like keeping our soil fertile, and removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere to fight climate change.

How critical is it to know and understand this environment?

It is critical to understand the local environment, wherever we reside. This is the way we come to have vested interest in the local nature, becoming more eager to protect and be her respectful stewards.

You can think of this “local knowledge” as a sister movement to “buy local produce” and “support local businesses”. I am very happy and proud to work with many organizations, including Qatar Natural History Group, on building up and sharing this knowledge base on local wildlife and ecology.

Finally, our desert environment is even more critical to understand, because it is very fragile and sensitive to disturbance. This is why we always give best practice guidelines for exploration which include: always drive on desert highways, never step on plants and never destroy burrows; keep your distance and marvel animals from afar because they distress in our presence.

Our moto is “pick up your trash, keep nature clean”.

Dr Aspa D. Chatziefthimiou is Talks Coordinator for the Qatar Natural History Group . This article first appeared in the March 2021 QNHG Newsletter. Follow QNHG @qnhg_official

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55 Desert Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best desert topic ideas & essay examples, 🎓 interesting topics to write about desert, 🔍 good essay topics on desert.

Desert Ecosystem In deserts like the Baja desert, the major consumer of this vegetation is the Mule deer. This is especially true in the California desert of Baja.
The Desert Ecosystem’s Complex Interrelationships A desert’s is divided into abiotic and biotic components by structure; this in lay terms refers to non-living and living components of the ecosystem. This may lead to the destruction of the soil structure and […]
The Slave Trade Across the Sahara Desert The trans-Saharan slave trade was driven by the increased demand for slave labor, the use of slaves as legal tender, and the decline in gold and other products in sub-Saharan Africa.
Marco Polo’s Journey to the Taklamakan Desert Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant and traveler who presented the story of his travels in Asia in the famous Book of the Diversity of the World.
Desert: Facts & Characteristics The largest desert on the Earth is the Sahara which is located in the northern part of Africa. One of the key characteristics in the formation of deserts is the temperature and the distribution of […]
The Desert War: Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia The majority of coalition forces were from the US, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Egypt. The latter became a place of military buildup and the main base of operations for the coalition.
The Environment Conditions in the Desert The tribes that were large in size, as per the traditional practices of the early people in UAE, had the power of ruling.
Desert, Glaciers, and Climate Change When the wind blows in a relatively flat area with no vegetation, this wind moves loose and fine particles to erode a vast area of the landscape continuously in a process called deflation.
Kuwait’s Desert Pollution Obviously, the given problem might seem not that important if to observe the general environmental situation of the country, which is extremely close to that of the environmental catastrophe, but as an ordinary citizen, who […]
Overview of California Desert Protection Act
Climatic Warming Shifts the Soil Nematode Community in a Desert Steppe
Concentric Structures and Hydrothermal Venting in the Western Desert, Egypt
Considering the Serious Limitations of Desert Climates
Contrasting Urban Landscapes and Reduced Irrigation Engender Water Conservation in Desert Environments
Overview of Coral Reefs, Desert Habitats, and Convergent Evolution
Sweet Taste of Adapting to the Desert: Fructan Metabolism in Agave Species
Crossing the Western Desert of Iraq
Desert Biome and Species Dwelling in It
Different Climatic Conditions for Marine Desert Areas
Desert: Circulatory System and Body Adapts
Correlation of Biome Desert and Food Chains
Desert Land Reclamation Programs and Family Land Dynamics in the Nile Delta
Bringing Water Markets Down to Chile’s the Atacama Desert
Desert Microbes for Boosting Sustainable Agriculture in Extreme Environments
Dubai Encroaching Upon Its Own Desert
Energy Flow Among Organisms of a Food Chain in the Desert
Environmental Factors Driving Spatial Heterogeneity in Desert Halophile Microbial Communities
Estimating Economic and Environmental Benefits of Urban Trees in Desert Regions
Excerpts From Natural History of Sonoran Desert
How the Fennec Fox Has Adapted to the Desert Environment
Increased Precipitation and Nitrogen Alter Shrub Architecture in a Desert Shrubland
Manifold Destiny: Migrant Deaths and Destinations in the Arizona Desert
Mass Balance and Climate History of a Desert Andes of Chile
Microbiome Dynamics Associated With the Atacama Flowering Desert
Short-Run Costs of Changes in Water Availability in a Desert City
Phylogeography and Genetic Diversity in a Southern North American Desert
Plant Physiology, Morphology, and Ecology in the Sonoran and Saharan Desert
Preserving Nature Through Desert Solitaire and Being Caribou
Price and Expenditure Elasticities for Vegetables in an Urban Food Desert
Programmed Versus Stimulus-Driven Antiparasitic Grooming in a Desert Rodent
Radical Environmental Differences Between Orlando and a Chinese Desert
Re-Imagining the Future for Desert Australia: Integrated Pathway for Enhancing Liveability
Overview of Sahara Desert Dunes Dry Climate
Analysis of Soil Formation Under Desert Pavements
Surface Irrigation Management for Guayule Rubber Production in the Us Desert Southwest
Sustainable Desert Traditional Architecture of the Central Region of Saudi Arabia
The Desert Biome: One of the Most Interesting Biomes on Earth
Analysis of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan
The Great Green Wall of the Sahara Desert
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Desert Habitat

Deserts are the driest places on Earth—they get fewer than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain a year. Some deserts may get a lot of rain all at once. Then it might not rain again for months—or even years!

Shivering in the Desert

Many deserts were formed 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. Some are superhot in the day. In fact the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was 134°F (56.6°C) in California and Nevada's Death Valley in 1913. Even though many deserts can reach temperatures of well over 100°F (37.8°C) during the day in summer, they can get cold at night. Why? In most places, clouds and water vapor hold in heat, sort of like a blanket. But deserts don’t have enough clouds and water vapor to do this.

Some deserts are always cold—in fact the biggest desert in the world is Antarctica! Even though it’s covered in snow and ice, it rarely rains or snows in Antarctica, which makes it a desert.

Famous Deserts

Deserts can be huge spaces. For instance, the entire continental United States could almost fit inside Africa’s Sahara desert. The giant Gobi desert in Asia stretches across parts of China and Mongolia . North America has large deserts, too, including the Mojave in California and parts of Nevada , Arizona , and Utah . The Sonoran is a large desert located in Mexico and parts of the Southwestern United States. More than one-fifth of the continent of Australia is covered in desert. The Great Victoria Desert is the largest on the continent.

Look Closely

It may seem like nothing can live in a desert because it’s so dry. But most deserts are full of life, with plants and animals that have adapted to survive without much water. Some plants, like cacti, store enough water in their stems to last until the next rain. Other plants, like mesquite grass, have very small leaves that curl up in the daytime to conserve the water they have. Some desert plants sprout and bloom only when it rains.

Desert animals also have adaptations that help them survive without much water. Kangaroo rats in the Sonoran Desert get water from the seeds they eat. Some carnivores, such as desert foxes, get enough liquid from their prey.

Another trick? Most desert animals stay underground or beneath shady rocks during the day. Many of them come out to hunt for food at night, when it’s cool.

If you plan to explore a desert, be sure to pack water, sunscreen, and protective clothing. After all, you’re not a kangaroo rat!

Deserts 101

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Life in the Deserts

When anyone speaks of ‘Deserts’, what do you think of? Brownie, sands, sun, camels or maybe an ice-creams? Although both ‘desert’ and ‘dessert’ are different! What we’re talking about is a ‘desert’, sadly the one you cannot eat. To think of it, life in deserts might seem really tough, but is it really? Ali resides in a desert. And he has an interesting story to tell about various kinds of deserts. Let us join him and hear out his stories.

The Cold desert – Ladakh
The Hot Desert – Sahara

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Paragraph on Desert Life – by Jenny

Introduction:

On hearing the word Desert, dry barren land, which is totally isolated and too hot to be in, is what comes to our minds first.

However, that is not the complete or exact picture of a desert. Though deserts are barren lands where life is almost impossible, there are places where life does exist and is not that barren as it is anticipated.

What is a desert and life in a desert?

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Desserts are usually formed when some parts of the land does not receive rainfalls, which leads the land to be very dry and hot and almost difficult for life to sustain. There are almost two kinds of desert: the hot deserts and the semi deserts. Hot deserts are mostly found near to the equators and they are very hot places. These deserts are usually full of sand, like the one that you see in Egypt. The other kind of desert which is the semi desert is mostly like a scrubland and is commonly seen in the western side. Usually a dessert gets formed when there is no adequate amount of rainfall on that particular area.

Life at the desert:

Though it is presumed that only some certain species like the Camel, lizard and snakes are found in the deserts, the actual vary. Apart from these animals, there are many others too that live in deserts like the scorpions, antelopes, boars, mule deer, peccaries, foxes and many more. These animals that one finds in the deserts, have adapted themselves to live in there and have learnt to conserve food, water and energy to survive in there.

Apart from the animals, there are also some plants that are seen to grow in the deserts, of which the Cactus is the most common one. The other often seen plant is the ocotillo, which even bear flowers in the deserts. Plants are so well adapted that they know when to blossom, store water and keep themselves safe from this harsh weather.

Journey through deserts:

Though much is heard and learnt about deserts, travelling through a desert is one difficult job. A lot of preparations needs to done, or else, surviving the heat and scarcity of water is totally questionable. Dehydration, sunstroke, and worst of all snake bites are the common disasters faced while travelling through deserts. One needs to be well equipped to face these situations, if one has to cross a desert during a journey.

Conclusion:

Though deserts seems to be a lonely place, people now have started expedition down in these like desert safaris and more where large vehicles are used to drive in the great sand dunes and make a trip that is truly adventurous.

Though there are many places that have the deserts, one could get out from these barren, hot lands with proper planning and care and also understand on how to adapt oneself in such challenging situations.

Paragraph on Camel – by Anand
Paragraph on Deserts and Forests in India – by Rajan
Paragraph on Life without Water – by Rajan

Wandering in the Wild: a Deep Dive into ‘Into the Wild’

This essay about Jon Krakauer’s ‘Into the Wild’ explores the life of Christopher McCandless a young traveler who abandons societal comforts for a solitary existence in Alaska. The narrative intertwines interviews personal accounts and vivid descriptions of the Alaskan wilderness portraying McCandless’s quest for authenticity and spiritual fulfillment. It examines his interactions with various characters the balance between freedom and isolation and the risks of pursuing ideals that challenge societal norms. The essay reflects on McCandless’s journey as a profound exploration of individuality and the human spirit’s search for meaning.

How it works

Ion of Krakauer ‘In the Desert’ takes readers on a deep trip alongside Khrystofor Mccandless young traveller who casts aside the comfort of the conditioned life in behalf on solitary existence in the wilderness of Alaska. Search of Mccandless for authenticity and spiritual implementation philosophizes during the story of Krakauer offering magic research of indefatigable pursuit of spirit of man of freedom and self-discovery.

Krakauer skilfully weaves interviews together own limning of Mccandless and vivid descriptions of landscape of Alaska to dye the multifaceted portrait of the complicated individual.

From early disappointment of Mccandless with social norms to his final cuddles of untamed of wilderness a story opens up how the testament of power of loneliness what yields to transformation and to rough realities of stay of krat.

Central to the story – the collision of Mccandless has with different characters along his trip every remain deep operating on his evolving worldview. From sharp friendship with Ron Franz to the enigmatic charming of Tracy Tatro these co-operations serve as the sharp reflections of internal fight of Mccandless and universal search for a value on material possessions.

In addition ‘In the Wild’ readers of prompts to think over delicate balance between freedom and isolation also as well as by the consequences of pursuit of ideals that challenge social norms. Intent prose of Krakauer invites readers to grasp with difficulties of alternatives of Mccandless convincing the deeper understanding of motives behind his unconventional road.

Story Krakauer not only famous adventure spirit Mccandless and and serves cautionary story from risks and distinctions unknown scope. Through a lyric poet storytelling and deep self-examination ‘in the desert’ outstrips his family to become a high discussion on a charm country and ill-timed search wild patient for authentic personnels.

? conclusion ‘in the desert’ remains research melancholy condition man high for importance and complications hunt their true in the world that often adequacy values above individuality. Authority Krakauer and intuitional images narrative provide that walk Mccandless rings deeply with readers inspires them to do us their clean desires freedom and implementation in the world all and constrained.

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Essay on Alone On A Desert Island

Students are often asked to write an essay on Alone On A Desert Island in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Alone On A Desert Island

Introduction.

Imagine being alone on a desert island. It’s a place with no people, no buildings, and no noise. Just you, the sand, the sea, and the sky. It sounds scary, but it could also be an adventure.

Life on the Island

Life on a desert island would be tough. You would need to find food, water, and shelter. You might eat fruits, catch fish, and drink rainwater. You might build a hut from palm leaves.

Being alone means facing many challenges. You would have to be brave and smart. You would need to make fire, find a way to signal for help, and keep yourself safe.

Learning and Growing

Living alone on a desert island could teach you many things. You would learn to be independent, resourceful, and patient. You would also learn to appreciate the simple things in life.

250 Words Essay on Alone On A Desert Island

Stranded on an island.

Imagine finding yourself alone on a desert island. It is a place where no one else lives, only you. It can be scary but also exciting. You have nobody to talk to, but you also have the whole island to yourself.

Surviving on the Island

Surviving on an island is not easy. You need food, water, and shelter to live. You can find fruits and nuts on trees, and catch fish from the sea. You can drink rainwater or find a stream. For shelter, you can make a hut using branches and leaves.

Living with Nature

Living on an island means living with nature. You can see all kinds of plants and animals. You can watch the sun rise and set over the sea. You can hear the waves and the wind. It can be very peaceful.

Feeling Lonely

Being alone on an island can make you feel lonely. You can miss your family and friends. You can miss your home. But you can also learn to enjoy your own company. You can learn to be happy by yourself.

One day, a ship or a plane may see you and rescue you. They will take you back home. You will be happy to see your family and friends again. But you will also remember your time on the island. It will be an adventure you will never forget.

500 Words Essay on Alone On A Desert Island

Imagine being alone on a desert island. No people, no buildings, no internet, just you and nature. How would you feel? What would you do? This is a thought that many people find interesting and sometimes scary.

Feeling Alone

The first thing you might feel is loneliness. You are the only human on the island. There are no friends to talk to, no family to hug, no one to share your thoughts with. It’s just you and the sounds of nature. At first, this might be scary. But after some time, you might start to enjoy the peace and quiet. You could spend time thinking, dreaming, and exploring your own thoughts.

Exploring the Island

Exploring the island could be fun. You could find new places and see beautiful views. You might see animals you have never seen before. You could climb trees, swim in the sea, or just sit and watch the sunset. Every day could be a new adventure.

Learning New Skills

Being alone on a desert island would force you to learn new skills. You would have to learn how to find food and water, how to make fire, and how to build a shelter. You would also need to learn how to take care of yourself. You might even learn how to make tools or clothes from things you find on the island.

So, next time you find yourself alone, whether it’s on a desert island or just in your room, remember that being alone can be a chance to learn, grow, and have adventures. It might be hard at times, but it can also be a great experience.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

Happy studying!

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Man’s life in desert (an overview).

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Man’s Life in Desert!

Man today inhabits almost every patch of land available to him. He cannot choose the climate; he can only adapt himself, up to a certain degree. Of all human beings, only a few hardy peoples have been able to survive in the desert-nomadic Bedouins, Mongol herdsmen, American Indians, and Australian Aborigines are among the few peoples whose social customs, and even physical attributes have enabled them to live well there.

These desert peoples – as much as the plant and animal inhabitants-throw light on just what the word adaptation really means. They are all truly at home on arid lands. They do not find deserts “hostile” or “searing,” for such descriptions are an outsider’s way of looking at this world. In fact, a cactus or a pack rat would find life nearly impossible in a well-watered, shaded woodland or meadow.

The reason, a desert is not deserted is that many forms of life have adapted to the extreme conditions. You might even find the desert bursting with life-a procession of animals at a waterhole, or a profusion of wild flowers budding or courtship in birds after a rare shower.

How does man adapt to his climate?

Man is a homo-thermic animal – he is capable of maintaining a relatively constant internal body temperature over a wide range of climatic conditions. The human body has an extremely well-developed thermoregulatory system whose major function is the protection of body tissues against overheating.

Constancy of deep- body temperature is achieved by adjusting the heat loss to the surroundings in such a way that it always equals the net heat gain from internal and external sources. In a hot environment, the total heat load on the body is comprised of internal or metabolic heat production together with external heat gain due to radiation and convection from the surroundings. Practically, the only way the body can dissipate heat in the summer is through evaporation of sweat.

Metabolic heat load :

Out of the total metabolic heat produced, only about 15 per cent is used for the performance of work; the remaining 85 per cent keeps the body temperature constant.

The metabolic heat load does not change with the seasons; it remains the same, be it summer or winter. The heat exchange occurs by three principal mechanism viz., radiation, convection and evaporation. Heat exchange by convection depends on air temperature and wind-speed. The air in immediate contact with the body surface will remove heat from the body only if it is cooler than the skin; otherwise the body heat goes up. Common effects of desert environment

The desert is an un-melting mistress, to those who do not know how to win it. The desert environment makes almost every action more difficult, more exhausting and more demanding. Soft sand, sharp declivities, rugged wadis, knife edged stones, spiny vegetation and venomous animals wait to trap the unwary, rush or desperate. Heat shimmer and dust obscure the vision; every sand- hill or stony depression looks like the last except to be initiated. The mirage is its final supreme mockery.

Effects of Desert Environment:

The Effects of desert environment are following:—

1. Perspiration:

As the temperature of the surrounding air increases, the amount of perspiration increases too. It is the only way to disperse the heat from the body. Perspiration is mainly a combination of water and salt. Perspiration plays the most important role in cooling of the body.

It is common knowledge that evaporation produces cooling at a rate of about 540 kcal for each litre of water evaporated. The amount of water consumed by drinking does not affect the rate of perspiring. Perspiring cannot be avoided by not drinking water. If man does not drink he will be dehydrated.

2. Fatigue:

It is fairly common in hot climates, but researches show that not only physical, but also emotional causes contribute to this phenomenon. There are two faces to the definition of fatigue – one is objective – the decline in working capacity or efficiency: the other is man’s subjective feeling of exhaustion.

3. Dehydration:

The prolonged sweating has a most pronounced danger of dehydration i.e. a deficit in body water.

Table – Symptoms of dehydration in mar at deficits of body water.

Control of Dehydration:

Intake of water is the only way to prevent dehydration. Another way is to consume vegetables and fruits as these contain large amount of water. It was also found that frequent drinking of relatively small quantities is preferable to large quantities at great intervals. It is very important to prevent even temporary dehydration and to restore the fluid loss as soon as possible.

Adaptation :

Arid conditions seem to have played a determinant role from time to time in the course of man evolutionary history. With the help of modern bio-technology man has adapted the desert environment. The adaptations of man to desert environment are physiological and technological. Man’s adaptation to environment and work in hot deserts is his ability to satisfy his needs in regard to comfort, activity and motivation.

Physiological Adaptations:

The body tries many physiological adjustments to keep its temperature constant when heat exerts a stress.

These adaptations are of two types:

1. Vascomotor control which regulates blood supply to skin and

2. Subdomotor control which regulates sweat production (Fig. 12.1).

Physical and physiology responses to heat and ill-effects of prolonged exposure due to straining of various control mechanisms

The immediate thermoregulatory adjustments may be as follows:

1. Vasodilation of peripheral or skin blood vessels, increasing transfer of heat from the interior to the surface and facilitating heat loss by conduction.

2. Subdomotor acts by initiating sweat-gland activity. There by excessive sweating, which provide water for evaporative cooling from skin.

3. Reduced activity.

When a man is doing physical work in hot environment, there are competitive demands of muscle and skin on the cardiac output. The result is obviously a decrease in work capacity. Work capacity can also fall due to an elevated body temperature. Although the body is able to maintain thermal balance for some time, the control mechanisms are put under heavy strain. However, deterioration of performance is first observed in tasks involving mental and intellectual efforts and later in those involving physical labour.

Man has a considerable capacity for adjusting his heat balance to quite large demands, but as the demand grows the risk of undesirable secondary consequences increases. Failure; if and when it occurs more often comes from the secondary consequences than from inadequacies in heat regulation itself.

Technological Adaptations:

To primitive man there was no course but to bow to desert environment and was at its mercy. Due to technological development, desert dweller manipulate environment. But desert dweller due to technological development and economy can manipulate environment more feasible and profitable.

To beat the heat in the hot desert, the adjustments are:

I. Shelter:

1. Shade to outer surface-as by trees, another structure, screens and projections from walls.

2. Reflective outer surface-as by light colour, or polished metal surface.

3. Air movement over surface-secured by orientation to wind, slope, absence of wind barriers.

4. Capacity insulation for permanent roof and wall structures exposed to sun-as by use of fairly thick layers of adobe, cement, stone or bricks.

5. Shade; to openings-such as projections above window, shutters, screens.

6. Ventilation of structural spaces-such as roof space, interval between layers of roof or wall constructions.

7. Controlled ventilation over undersurface of heated roof or wall-by forced ventilation to remove heat without mixing into room air.

The application of these principles to specific situations will vary greatly with the circumstances.

II. Clothing:

The first principle in the design of clothing is that of extensive coverage against environmental hazards. The coverage must permit transfer of evaporated moisture from beneath the clothing to the outer air.

Loose fit white and high permeability of the clothing fabrics to water vapour offer a compromise between two functions i.e. keeping heat out without locking water vapours. Natural fibres such as cotton and wool are more permeable to water vapour than most synthetic fabrics.

Clothing for desert environment to reduce heat

In the applications of these principles to garments there is a room for much individuality- and much error.

The head, neck and shoulders receive the bulk of the incident direct solar radiation. For this best screen is provided by the flowing Arab head-dress. A light-weight, light-coloured cloth, fixed to the crown, but falling freely over neck and shoulders, intercepts the solar radiation and returns the heat to the surrounding air, while simultaneously providing a means for screening the head from wind and dust. Hats and caps provide shade to eyes.

Upper Garment:

This should overlap the lower garment, preferably on the outside. An extra thickness of material over the shoulders and upper back may assist insulation against radiation.

Lower Garment:

Long trousers are probably better suited. An extra insulating layer and wear-resisting layer may be incorporated in the seat and over the knees.

Principles of shading for head and shoulders

Good sole insulation is required for protection against hot ground, mechanical and biological hazards – sand, rocks, cactus, snakes etc.

Underclothing:

Thin and absorbent under clothing is desirable for hygienic reasons and not from a thermal point of view.

Further insulation can be provided if necessary by the addition of an over-garment.

Clothing serves a variety of purposes and some compromise always must be made between demand and fashion.

III. Housing:

The important principles of housing for hot dry environments are:

1. Shade to wall from high-altitude sun by roof and wall projections.

2. Effect of surface on absorption of solar heat. Black reflects none, but has good emission of long infra-red. White reflects visible and has equally good emission of long infra-red; polished aluminum reflects visible and some short infra-red but emits very little in long infra-red.

3. Wall openings should be closed by day when outdoor air is hotter than indoor, but open by night when reverse gradient prevails.

4. Controlled ventilation over inner surface of heated structure very desirable. Controlled convection can be used to remove heat from inner surface of heated structure, without mixing into room space. Importance is increased and resultant protection is greater when the inner surface has a low emissivity for infra-red.

5. Conventional roof space is effective in protecting room beneath when designed so that convection, free and forced, removes trapped heat.

IV. Modern Technology – Air conditioning:

Today it is possible to maintain a comfortable environment in the home regardless of the outdoor temperature. Air-conditioning equipment necessary to accomplish this may be selected from a wide variety of types and makes now available.

1. Evaporative cooling.

2. Mechanical refrigeration – room air – conditioner with a refrigerant compressor, evaporator, condenser and fans.

3. Heat pump systems. It is an air to air cycle i.e. heat is taken from inside air and transferred to the outside air. These are very good for summer cooling load and winter heating load.

The harnessing of solar radiation for energy in the hot desert environment is the gift of modern technology. In the near future family houses in the desert will be independent of external energy sources to cover all needs like lighting, cooling, heating appliances and even car running on a solar power. The dry climate has many advantages to health. Dry air and ultraviolet radiation decreases the spread of micro-organisms and pathogens.

Important principles of housing for hot dry environments.

Acclimatization :

The acclimatization in physiological sense is indicating those changes in the response of an individual to repeated or continuous climatic stress that lead to reduction of the resultant strain. An important event in acclimatization is the release of hormone, aldosterone, from the cortex of the adrenal gland.This occurs in response to the relative dehydration and inadequate circulation. Aldosterone acts upon kidney, causing it to retain more water and salt and so brings about some measure of compensation.

Principle ways in which acclimatization to heat might be brought about:

(1) By decreased heat production,

(2) By increased facility for heat loss,

(3) By increased sensitivity and responsiveness of the heat-regulating system,

(4) By reduction of the disturbances consequent upon heat regulation, and

(5) Simply by increased tolerance to the disturbances set up.

Changes in the course of acclimatization

The changes observed to take place in the course of acclimatization are:

(1) Repeated exposure to hot, dry conditions, increase in sweat rate 10-20%.

(2) Progressive fall in chloride concentration in the sweat.

(3) An increased height: weight ratio in person born or raised in hot climates.

(4) A 10% reduction in metabolic rate.

(5) Changes in ratio, weight: surface area,

(6) Reduced thyroid activity.

Desert Formation: Top 9 Causes Desert Formation
Terrestrial Radiation: Characteristics and Exchange

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Life In The Desert

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Paragraph On Desert: Deserts are fascinating, unique, and challenging ecosystems that cover approximately one-third of the earth's surface. Despite their harsh conditions, deserts are home to a diverse range of plants and animals that have adapted to survive in such a challenging environment. ... You can read more Essay writing in 10 lines ...
Desert Ecosystem
Desert Ecosystem Essay. Exclusively available on IvyPanda®. Updated: Dec 30th, 2023. An ecosystem can be described as an environment that is biological and includes all living organisms that could be found in that area. It also includes physical components, which are nonliving, in the area. Examples include the air, sunlight, water and soil.
Life in the Deserts
1. Overview of the Sahara Desert. The Sahara, often referred to as the "Great Desert," is the largest hot desert in the world, spanning North Africa. Covering approximately 9.2 million square kilometers, it is a vast expanse of sand dunes, rocky plateaus, and barren plains. Table 1: Sahara Desert Quick Facts. Feature.
Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children
Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children. Deserts are areas where the rainfall is less than 25 cm, The soil over some areas of desert land is rich in minerals where plants grow. ... Plants here, normally have a short life cycle. In spite of the difficult conditions, many animals live in the desert. The most commonly known is the camel ...
Essay on Sahara Desert
250 Words Essay on Sahara Desert The Sahara Desert: A Brief Overview. The Sahara Desert, stretching over 3.6 million square miles across North Africa, is the largest hot desert in the world. ... Sahara, though sparse, have a rich cultural history. The Berbers, Tuaregs, and other ethnic groups have adapted to the desert life, their culture and ...
Life in Desert Essay
Manna and Quail The second desert test is found in Exodus 16. The whole Israelite community left Elim and traveled into the desert of Sinai. This area was located between Elim and Sinai. In the desert, everyone was complaining against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites were actually wishing that they had died in Egypt.
Desert
Desert, any large, extremely dry area of land with sparse vegetation. It is one of Earth's major types of ecosystems, supporting a community of plants and animals specially adapted to the harsh environment. In deserts, trees are usually absent, and shrubs or herbaceous plants provide only very incomplete ground cover.
Desert Ecosystem Importance
Desert Phenomenology / Experiential Archaeology: This is an archaeological approach that seeks to understand how people live in the deserts, their life experiences, and how they perceive their local environment(s). It includes their sensory experiences of day-to-day living; Desert economy: Deserts have always been vital for resources and ...
Life in the Desert
Many people view the desert as a barren place, tell us about life here. It is true that the Qatari desert looks dusty, empty and quiet. But actually, she hosts 2,000 species of organisms, not counting microbes, half on land and the rest in her coasts and seas. Their activity is imperceivable, because most animals lead a cryptic existence ...
55 Desert Essay Topic Ideas & Examples
The Desert Ecosystem's Complex Interrelationships. A desert's is divided into abiotic and biotic components by structure; this in lay terms refers to non-living and living components of the ecosystem. This may lead to the destruction of the soil structure and […] We will write. a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts.
Desert Habitat
North America has large deserts, too, including the Mojave in California and parts of Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. The Sonoran is a large desert located in Mexico and parts of the Southwestern United States. More than one-fifth of the continent of Australia is covered in desert. The Great Victoria Desert is the largest on the continent.
Life in the Deserts: The Cold desert
Although both 'desert' and 'dessert' are different! What we're talking about is a 'desert', sadly the one you cannot eat. To think of it, life in deserts might seem really tough, but is it really? Ali resides in a desert. And he has an interesting story to tell about various kinds of deserts. Let us join him and hear out his stories.
Paragraph on Desert Life
Paragraph on Desert Life - by Jenny. Introduction: On hearing the word Desert, dry barren land, which is totally isolated and too hot to be in, is what comes to our minds first. However, that is not the complete or exact picture of a desert. Though deserts are barren lands where life is almost impossible, there are places where life does ...
Wandering in the Wild: A Deep Dive into 'Into the Wild'
Essay Example: Ion of Krakauer 'In the Desert' takes readers on a deep trip alongside Khrystofor Mccandless young traveller who casts aside the comfort of the conditioned life in behalf on solitary existence in the wilderness of Alaska. Search of Mccandless for authenticity and spiritual implementation
Essay on Alone On A Desert Island
Being alone on a desert island might be hard, but it could also be a chance to learn and grow. It's a thought that makes us think about what really matters in life. 250 Words Essay on Alone On A Desert Island Stranded on an Island. Imagine finding yourself alone on a desert island. It is a place where no one else lives, only you.
PDF Life in the Deserts
Ladakh is a cold desert lying in the Great Himalayas, on the eastern side of Jammu and Kashmir (Fig. 10.4). The Karakoram Range in the north and the Zanskar mountains in the south enclose it. Several rivers flow through Ladakh, Indus being the most important among them. The rivers form deep valleys and gorges.
Man's Life in Desert (An Overview)
Man's Life in Desert (An Overview) Article shared by : ADVERTISEMENTS: Man's Life in Desert! Man today inhabits almost every patch of land available to him. He cannot choose the climate; he can only adapt himself, up to a certain degree. Of all human beings, only a few hardy peoples have been able to survive in the desert-nomadic Bedouins ...
Life In The Desert
Looking for essays on life in the desert? We have thousands of essays on this topic and more. What makes plants grow? Several people have puzzled over this question. There is no one single answer to this. Several factors contribute: Tropisms, environment, hormones, biological clocks, and even humans. We are trying to determine the effects of ...

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Which is the largest desert in the world?

What kind of plants are found in the deserts?

How do camels survive in the desert?

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Paragraph On Desert: A Fascinating World Of Extreme Conditions And Adaptations

Paragraph On Desert

Characteristics Of The Desert

Types Of Deserts

Desert Adaptations

Unique Features Of Deserts

Challenges Faced By The Desert

The Future Of Deserts

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Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children

Essay on Desert in English For Students & Children

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Deserts as Ecosystems and Why They Need Protecting

What is a Desert?

Types of Desert

Coastal Deserts

Cold Deserts

Hot & Dry Deserts

Semi-Arid Deserts

A Brief History of the Use, Study, and Conservation, of Deserts

The Age of Exploration to the Modern Age

Eremology: Preservation of Deserts as Ecologies and Cultures

The Academic, Functional, and Ecological Importance of Deserts

Desert Ecology and Biodiversity

Deserts as Climate Indicators

Desert Resources

Deserts as a Way of Life

Desert Topographical Functions

Leisure and Tourism

Seven Continents: Seven Deserts

Antarctica (Cold)

Asia: Gobi (Cold)

Australasia: Gibson Desert (Semi-Arid)

Europe: Tabernas (Semi-Arid)

North America: Mojave (Hot)

South America: Atacama (Cold)

Future Challenges for Deserts and Ecological Researchers

Increased Desertification of other Biomes

Politics of Conservation

Balancing Sustainability Against Conservation

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Paragraph on Desert Life – by Jenny