Shirley Avida and Uri Boaz

November 10, 2017

History

Script

Introduction:

The geography of the Niger river and the relationships of vegetation zones to forests,

savanna, and desert to trade gold, salt, and food had a large impact on Africa. There are over

1,100 different species of mammals in Africa and over 2,600 species of birds. Four of the top

five fastest land animals in the world live in Africa, fastest is the cheetah, then the wildebeest,

lion, and Thomson's gazelle. Geography relates to this because these animals need certain

habitats and requirements to live, and that all relates to the geography and topography. The

geography of Africa is very unique. For example, the African Lion wander a territory of 100

square miles, this territory consists of scrub, grasslands or open woodlands. An African Lion can

only live in these types of area because the prey he eats live on those types of landscapes. Also

the African Lion camouflages with the color of these grasslands. This is only one example of

why the African Lion needs to live in Africa.

 Geography of Sahara Desert:

Did you know that the Sahara Desert is the largest hot desert on Earth?​ In fact, the

Sahara Desert covers an area of 3,629,360 square miles. ​The Sahara Desert roughly 10% of

Africa. (Isn’t that cool?) The Sahara Desert stretches across much of Northern Africa, covering

about 31% of the African landmass. ​The average temperature during the summer months is

between 100.4 °F and 114.8 °F. In some areas of the desert the temperature can exceed 120 °F

for several days in a row. About ​half of the Sahara receives less than an inch of rain per year, and

the rest receives up to 4 inches per a year. Sahara’s northeasterly winds can reach hurricane level

leading to many sandstorms. 25% of the Sahara Desert is sand dunes.​ Dunes in the Sahara desert

can reach up to about 500 feet tall. ​The Sahara's fabled dune fields, which cover only about 15

percent of the entire desert's surface, lie primarily in the north central region, in the countries of

Algeria and Libya.​ ​The Sahara Desert is more than 16 times the size of France, the Sahara Desert

blankets nearly all of Mauritania, Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya, Egypt and Niger; the southern

half of Tunisia; and the northern parts of Mali, Chad and Sudan.
 Geography of Niger River and other rivers:

Did you know that the Niger River is the world's 11th-longest river in the world at

2,590 miles?​ ​It is the largest river in western Africa and is the 3rd largest river in Africa. The

river begins in Guinea and runs east through Benin, Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. Niger

River runs through different 10 countries. The mouth of the Niger River opens in Gulf of Guinea,

Atlantic Ocean. The delta of the Niger River is approximately the size of the country Belgium.

The Niger River's watershed (area of land drained by the river) is 817,600 square miles. The

Niger River is the home of about 36 freshwater fish. One of the main resources that the Niger

River provided was fish. Many African People had fished from the Niger River because of the

many different types of fish that live there.

 Routes and Details of Trade:

Did you know that trade was so important and that a majority of the jobs in

northern and western africa were merchants?​ The main items traded were gold and salt. The

gold mines of West Africa provided great wealth to West African Empires such as Ghana and

Mali. Other items that were commonly traded included ivory, kola nuts, cloth, slaves, metal

goods, and beads. In Western Africa the major trade centers were cities such as Timbuktu, Gao,

Agadez, Sijilmassa, and Djenne. Along the coast of North Africa sea port cities developed such

as Marrakech, Tunis, and Cairo. Most major trade routes moved goods across the Sahara Desert

between Western/Central Africa and the port trade centers along the Mediterranean Sea. ​Camels

are mainly used for trade because they can go weeks without food or water. This advantage is

used in the Sahara desert​.​ Camels were the main mode of transportation and were used to carry

goods and people. Large caravans were important because they offered protection from bandits.

A typical caravan would have around 1,000 camels with some caravans having over 10,000

camels.
 Vegetation Areas:

Desert Vegetation vegetation is generally scattered with different grasses, shrubs, and

trees in the highlands and in the oasis. There are many different types of grasses in the Sahara

desert including species of Aristida, Eragrostis, and Panicum. ​Another type of vegetation area is

grassland vegetation. Tropical grasslands have many different types of grasses, often 3 to 6 feet

tall when they are fully grown. Some grasslands may have drought-resistant, fire-resistant,

animal-resistant trees, or they may have an open shrub layer. The soil of tropical grasslands

absorbs water causing less flooding. ​A third vegetation area is ​Forest Vegetation. Trees make up

approximately seventy percent of the greenery in the rainforests. There is about six hundred

different types of trees in the rainforest of Africa and about two thousand five hundred species of

vines. The trees of tropical rainforest are so close together that the canopies are touching causing

it take as long as 10 minutes to reach the ground.​ A fourth vegetation area is ​Savanna

Vegetation. One unique type of plant is the River Bushwillow. The River Bushwillow has leaves

that change colors when each season changes. A yellowish flower blossoms and has a poisonous

fruit. Another type of plant is the Okra, the Okra has yellow or white flowers and can grow to be

more than six feet tall. A third type of plant is called Bermuda Grass, Bermuda Grass grows a

thick mat on the ground and has the ability to survive through droughts.
 Concluding:

The unique geography and types of vegetation of Africa influenced the people and

animals that lived there. There are many types of biomes in Africa. The Sahara Desert made it

harder for Africa to trade with other countries. The Niger River was an important for resource for

10 different countries throughout Africa. The vegetation in Africa was scarce, but it still had a

large impact on the geography. All of these things affected the types of trade in Africa and the

different routes used for trade.