Thar and Sahara

the thar desert also known as the great Indian desert or marutsthali is a large ,arid region in the north-western part of the Indian subcontinent that forms a natural boundary between India and Pakistan. It is the world’s 9th

largest subtropical desert.

The Thar Desert extends between the Aravalli Hills in the north-east, the Great Rann of Kutchalong the coast and the alluvial plains of the Indus River in the west and north-west. Most of the desert is covered by huge shifting sand dunes that receive sediments from the alluvial plains and the coast. The sand is highly mobile due to strong winds occurring before the onset of the monsoon. The Luni River is the only river integrated into the desert.

Stretches of sand in the desert are interspersed by hillocks and sandy and gravel plains. Due to the diversified habitat and ecosystem, the vegetation, human culture and animal life in this arid region is very rich in contrast to the other deserts of the world. About 23 species of lizard and 25 species of snakes are

The region is a haven for 141 species of migratory and resident birds of the desert. One can see eagles, harriers, falcons, buzzards, kestrel and vultures. There are short-toed eagles (Circaetus gallicus), tawny eagles (Aquila rapax), greater spotted eagles (Aquila clanga), laggar falcons (Falco jugger) and kestrels. There are also a number of reptiles.The Indian peafowl is a resident breeder in the Thar region. The peacock is designated as the national bird of India and the provincial bird of the Punjab (Pakistan). It can be seen sitting on khejri or pipal trees in villages or Deblina.

VegetationThe natural vegetation of this dry area is classed as Northwestern thorn scrub forest occurring in small clumps scattered more or less openly. Density and size of patches increase from west to east following the increase in rainfall. The natural vegetation of the Thar Desert is composed of

AgricultureThe Thar is one of most heavily populated desert areas in the world and the main occupations of people living here are agriculture and animal husbandry. Agriculture is not a dependable proposition in this area—after the rainy season, at least 33% of crops fail. Animal husbandry, trees and grasses, intercropped with vegetables or fruit trees, is the most viable model for arid, drought-prone regions. The region faces frequent droughts. Overgrazing due to high animal populations,

The Sahara is the largest subtropical hot desert and third largest desert after Antarctica and the Arctic. At over 9,400,000 square kilometers (3,600,000 sq mi), it covers most of North Africa, making it almost as large as China or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea in the east, including parts of the Mediterranean, to the Atlantic Ocean in the west. To the south, it is delimited by

The Sahara covers large parts of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan and Tunisia, extends over 9 million square kilometers (3,500,000 sq mi) and it covers about 1⁄4 of the African continent. If all areas with a mean annual precipitation of less than 250 mm were included, the Sahara desert would be over

The Sahara is a harsh environment with extreme conditions. It is the world's largest subtropical hot desert, and the world's hottest desert. The Sahara has mainly a subtropical, hot desert climate (Kipper climate classification BWh) with long, prolonged, extremely hot to scorching summers while the winters stay short, brief, extremely warm to truly very hot. The climate of this desert is also characterized by a perpetual clear sky, fair weather and by very low, and even almost non-existent rainfall but the precipitation is also very irregular and sporadic. Although the Sahara is located under the Tropic of Cancer in the most part, this climate is said to be subtropical due to the subtropical high pressure belt, which is mainly responsible of the hot desert climate.

The climate of the Sahara has undergone enormous variations between wet and dry over the last few hundred thousand years. This is due to a 41,000 year cycle in which the axial tilt of the earth changes between 22° and 24.5°.At present (2000 CE), the Sahara is in a dry period, but it is expected that the Sahara will become green again in 15,000 years (17,000 CE).During the last glacial period, the Sahara

The Flora of the Sahara is highly diversified based on the bio-geographical characteristics of this vast desert. Floristically, the Sahara has three zones based on the amount of rainfall received – the Northern (Mediterranean), Central and Southern Zones. There are two transitional zones – the Mediterranean-Sahara transition and the Sahel transition zone.The Saharan flora comprises around 2800 species of vascular plants. Approximately a quarter of these are endemic. About half of these species are common to the flora of the Arabian deserts.

Several species of fox live in the Sahara, including the fennec fox, pale fox and Rüppell's fox. The addax, a large white antelope, can go nearly a year in the desert without drinking. The dorcas gazelle is a north African gazelle that can also go for a long time without water. Other notable gazelles include the Rhim gazelle and dama gazelle.The Saharan cheetah (northwest African cheetah) lives in Algeria, Togo, Niger, Mali, Benin, and Burkina Faso. There remain fewer than 250 mature cheetahs which are very cautious, fleeing any human presence. The