Southern Africa’s Kalahari Desert is a sizable sandy savannah that is semi-arid. One of the most fascinating facts about the Kalahari Desert is that, due to excessive rainfall, it is not a desert in the traditional meaning of the word. But any rain quickly percolates through the huge sand dunes, leaving nothing behind, transforming the Kalahari into the “thirstland.” The Tswana words Kgala, which means “the great thirst,” and Kgalagadi, which means “a waterless place,” are the origins of the term “Kalahari.”

There are several game reserves in the Kalahari. These include Botswana’s Central Kalahari and the nearby Khutse Game Reserves. The Makgadikgadi Pans and Nxai Pan National Parks are located in the northern Kalahari. It also contains the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, which was Africa’s first Peace Park in 2000, combining Botswana’s Gemsbok National Park and South Africa’s Kalahari Gemsbok National Park.

 

1. How hot or cold is the Kalahari Desert?

The Kalahari Desert experiences extremely scorching summers and frigid winters with nighttime lows of below zero degrees Celsius. The comparatively high altitude and primarily dry, pure air of the Kalahari are the causes of this.

 

2. How Wide Is the Kalahari’s Temperature Range?

Summertime highs can reach 45°C (115°F), while wintertime lows can fall as low as -15°C (7°F).

 

3. What Is the Kalahari Desert’s Size?

The area of the Kalahari Desert is roughly 900,000 km² (350,000mi²). It is a sand-covered plain that slightly slopes, with grasses or denser vegetation covering a large portion of it. It is all at least 900 meters above sea level.

 

4. What Constitutes a Desert in the Kalahari?

The fact that the Kalahari Desert is not a desert in the traditional meaning of the word is among the most startling facts about it. A semi-desert is what it is. The wettest regions can receive over 500mm (20in) of precipitation in very rainy years, while the driest regions receive 110–200mm (4.3–7.9in) annually.

Generally speaking, if a region receives less than 250 mm (10 in) of precipitation per year, it is considered a desert. A place where “the evaporation rate is twice as great as the precipitation” is a more appropriate definition of a desert.

This holds true for the Kalahari’s southwest region. Despite receiving far more rainfall and not being able to be classified as a desert due to its climate, the northeastern region is completely devoid of surface water. This is due to the fact that rainwater immediately drains through the deep sands here, leaving the substrate totally dry.

5. Which Nations Comprise the Kalahari?

Much of Botswana, Namibia’s eastern third, and the northernmost portion of South Africa’s Northern Cape Province are all covered by the Kalahari Desert.

6. What Kind of Wildlife Is Found in the Kalahari Desert?

The animals that inhabit the Kalahari Desert need to be able to endure the dry climate. Compared to the drier south, the wildlife in the moist north is more diverse and abundant.

Springbok, gemsbok (oryx), wildebeest, kudu, steenbok, and duiker are among the arid-adapted game species. Desert specialties like meerkats, bat-eared foxes, cape foxes, and brown hyenas can be found in the Kalahari. Unexpectedly, all three of Africa’s large cats—the renowned black-maned Kalahari lions, leopards, and cheetahs—can be found here.

The secretary bird, Kori bustard, ostrich, and several raptors, such as the gigantic eagle owl, the martial eagle, falcons, goshawks, kestrels, and kites, are among the fauna. Numerous large nests of gregarious weavers, perched atop trees and telegraph poles, dot the countryside.

The Kalahari is home to a wide variety of reptiles, such as puff adders, Cape cobras, and several lizard species. Interestingly, some amphibians, such as the tremolo sand frog and the bushveld rain frog, may also thrive here. The sound of the frog chorus starting as soon as the rain starts is amazing.

 

7. What Types of Kalahari Plants Are There?

There are sporadic drought-tolerant plants and grass tussocks in the drier southwest Kalahari Desert instead of many trees or big bushes. The San people have been using the hoodia cactus, which grows here, to quench their thirst and hunger for thousands of years. Gemsbok cucumbers and tsamma melons are two other edible plants that are used by both people and animals in this area.

With increased rainfall, the central Kalahari includes more grasses and shrubs as well as sporadic trees (including numerous acacia species). Woodlands primarily composed of camelthorn acacias can be found in the wetter north and east. The camelthorn, which is native to the Kalahari, is an essential component of the desert environment because it gives animals shade and produces nutrients that attract other plants to grow around its base. Silver cluster-leaf, blackthorn, and shepherd’s tree are some of the other trees that flourish here.

8. What Kind of Kalahari Desert Is It?

The Kalahari Desert is a vast sandy savannah that is semi-arid. The Kalahari “desert” is not technically a desert because of the very dense ground cover, even in areas that are dry enough to be considered such in terms of having little precipitation.

 

9. How Do African Deserts Connect to the Kalahari?

Africa’s southernmost “desert” is the Kalahari. It is the second largest “desert” in Africa after the Sahara and the sixth largest “desert” in the world by area. It joins the Namib, Namibia’s coastal desert, in the southwest.

 

10. The Kalahari Desert: Where Is It?

The southern African region of Botswana, along with portions of Namibia and South Africa, is home to the Kalahari Desert.