0° Equator

40°W

A T L A N T I CO C E A N

I N D I A NO C E A N

Red

Se a

M e d i t e r r a n e a n S e a

LakeChad

LakeVictoria

LakeTurkana

LakeNyasa

LakeTanganyika

Orange R.

Limpopo R.

Zambezi R.

CongoR

.

Niger R.

Nile

R.

Senegal R.

Gulf of Aden

Gulf of Guinea

ARABIANPENINSULA

KALAHARIDESERT

S A H A R A

NAM

IBD

ESE

RT

DRAKENSBERGM

TS.

LIBYANDESERT

A T L A S M O U N T A I N S

GR

EA

TR

IFT

VALLEY

MA

DA

GA

SC

AR

Mt. Kenya

Mt. Kilimanjaro

S A H E L

A F R I C A

E U R O P E

Rain forestSavannaDesertMediterranean

0 1,000 Miles

0 2,000 Kilometers

Vegetation Regions of Africa

1

2

3

4

The deadliest creature lurking in rain forests is a small fly called the tsetse fly. Tsetse flies carry a disease that is deadly to livestock and can cause fatal sleeping sickness in humans.

1

Sahel means “coastline” in Arabic. African people may have named it this because the Sahara seemed like a vast ocean of sand.

2

The dense trees and lack of edible vegetation in the humid rain forest make it an unwelcoming environmentfor most people.

4

The savannas are home to herds of animals such as giraffes, wildebeest, and antelope. They also support grain crops of millet, wheat, and maize (corn).

3

GEOGRAPHY SKILLBUILDER: Interpreting Maps1. Place About what percent of Africa is desert? savanna?2. Region If you were to fold a map of Africa in half along the equator, what do

you notice about the similar vegetation zones above and below the fold?

214 Chapter 8