Category: Desert

The Sahara Desert is the worlds largest desert area. The word Sahara comes from the Arabic word sahra, meaning desert. It extends from the Africas Atlantic Ocean side to the Red Sea and consists of the countries of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and Sudan. It is about 5,200 miles long. Overall, the Sahara Desert covers 3,500,000 square miles. The geography of the desert is varied. In the west, the Sahara is rocky with varied elevation. It does contain underground rivers, which sometime penetrate the surface, resulting in oases.

The central region of the Sahara has more elevation than the other areas, with peaks such as Emi Koussi and Tahat. Even though the area lacks rainfall, these peaks are snowcapped during the winter. The Eastern part of the Sahara, the Libyan Desert, is dry with very few oases. The Sahara’s landscape features include shallow basins, large oasis depressions, gravel-covered plains, plateaus, and mountains, sand sheets, dunes and sand seas. Sand sheets and dunes cover over 25 percent of the Saharas surface. The most common types of dunes include tied dunes, blowout dunes, and transverse dunes.

Within the Sahara are several pyramidal dunes that reach over 500 feet in height while others reach over 1,000 feet. Researchers have for many years tried to figure out how these dunes were formed, but the case remains unsolved. The boundaries, however, are not clearly defined and have been shifting for millennia. The Sahara was once a fertile area; millet was cultivated there over 8000 years ago. About 10,000 years ago, the Sahara was used as land for grazing in which elephants, giraffes and other animals thrived. It is estimated that in 4,000 B. C. he climate began to get drier.

The fertile landscape dried up and the desert widened, creating the form that appears today. As conditions gradually became drier, however, and desertification set in, farmers abandoned their land and the animals migrated to other areas. The Saharas climate is very hot and dry. Although it is very hot during the day, it does become cold at night. On average, it only has 8 inches of rainfall per year. The Sahara’s climate consists of basically two sub-climates, a dry subtropical climate in the north and a dry tropical climate in the south.

The dry tropical climate is generally characterized by mild, dry winters, a hot dry season just before the rainy season, and an annual temperature cycle. The dry subtropical climate, however, is characterized by annually high temperature ranges, cold winters, hot summers and two rainy seasons. There is a narrow strip in the western portion of the Sahara, along the coast, which generally has cool temperatures compared to the rest of the Sahara because of the influence of the cold ocean currents.

The land is almost entirely without rainfall or surface water but possesses a number of underground rivers that flow from the Atlas and other mountains. Occasionally the waters of these rivers find their way to the surface; in these naturally irrigated oases, plants grow freely. The soil of this region of the Sahara is fertile and, where irrigation is possible, produces excellent crops. The Libyan Desert is considered the most arid part of the Sahara. Moisture is almost totally absent and few oases exist. The Libyan Desert is virtually devoid of any form of animal or vegetable life.

Sandy wastes and large dunes of sand that range to 400 feet or more in height characterize the land. The valley of the Nile River and the mountainous area of the Nubian Desert to the east of the Nile are, geographically, part of the Sahara, but the irrigation afforded by the Nile transforms the desert into fertile agricultural land throughout much of Egypt. Plant and animal life is not as abundant in the Sahara as it is in other deserts. The grasses, shrubs, and trees that grow in parts of the Sahara have adapted in order to live in the dry conditions there.

Plants of the Sahara obtain water in various ways. Some have long roots that reach deep into the soil and absorb moisture. Others take moisture from the air through their leaves. Some of the mammal species found within the Sahara are the gerbil, jerboa, Cape hare, the desert hedgehog, Dorcas gazelle, deer, common jackal, and the mongoose. The Sahara also contains over 300 species of migratory bird populations along with water and shore birds and various other types of birds. Some of the most common birds are ostriches, raptors, secretary birds, guinea fowl, desert eagles and, sand larks.

Numerous types of reptiles – including frogs, toads, and crocodiles – can be found within the Sahara’s lakes and pools of water, while lizards, chameleons, skinks, and cobras are to be found among the dunes and rocks. Among the reptiles in the Sahara’s rivers and pools can be found snails, brine and algae shrimp, plus other types of crustaceans. Most desert animals can go for long periods of time without water. They get the water from the plants that they eat. Many of the small animals stay in their burrows during the day to avoid the heat.

They search for food at night. The Sahara Desert has only 2. 5 million inhabitants, roughly 1 person per square mile, which is one of the lowest population densities on earth. Wherever abundant food and water sources occur, one will find relatively large masses of people and wildlife. On the whole, the Sahara is one of the harshest environments known to man. The majority of the people living in the Sahara Desert are nomads, which means that these people continuously move from region to region in search of better living conditions.

It is believed that the first nomadic peoples came to this region after domestic animals were introduced to the Sahara 7,000 years ago. Evidence suggests that the Sahara accumulated diverse groups that quickly formed dense populations throughout the region. The majority of the groups lived separately, but depended on each other for trade. One of the main problems that are happening to the Sahara desert is the continuing development of the boundaries of the desert. This is known as desertification. As global warming continues to increase, the probability of more desert regions becoming bigger is more likely.

The selected research is focused on the investigation of factors impacting healthy dietary habits and the availability of healthy food for individuals, with the authors conducting the study revealing that limited financial resources remain the central problem associated with so-called food deserts. Considering the outstanding importance of fresh products and their affordability to people, it proves the existence of a certain problem in the sphere that should be solved to improve the health of the nation.

Defining food deserts as areas far from traditional supermarkets rich in various products, the authors emphasize the fact that the there is no research about how people living in these areas feel and what effect is caused by the poor choice of products and lack of money that can be spent to afford particular products. Therefore, the discussed study delves into the given issue and concludes that in some urban areas where food deserts can be found, local stores do not have fresh produce.

Moreover, findings show that regardless of the limited choice, the prices for available products are much higher than in areas that are considered rich in fresh products. Having interviewed residents of the neighborhood selected for the study, the authors conclude that price becomes the main factor impacting where and how often they do shopping. People who have cars or an opportunity to go to other areas prefer to visit other supermarkets; however, individuals with limited finances suffer from the lack of choice and fresh products. In such a way, price becomes the central factor impacting people living in areas called food deserts and depriving them of a chance to enjoy the healthy food or a diversity of products.

The functioning of the society can be described using various theories that are introduced to determine the peculiarities of relations between individuals and factors that precondition their actions. Rational Choice theory is one of these frameworks that are designed to describe the main features of society’s functioning. The main idea of this model is that all individuals always make choices that rest on a particular logic that guarantees benefits to them or that minimizes the input along with the maximization of output.

In other words, all decisions made by individuals are defined by the existing conditions that are taken into account and processed to ensure that the most appropriate option is selected. The central factors that stipulate cognitive processes are satisfaction and benefit; indeed, people always act in ways that guarantee that their existing needs will be fulfilled which will result in an increased level of happiness. Regarding the functioning of society, this theoretical framework is the key to the decision making and creation of conditions that will help to improve the quality of life and create the basis for further evolution.

For instance, selecting among the existing options for buying a particular good, a person will consider available finances, the quality of the selected product, its ability to satisfy current demands, and results that will be achieved if this product is bought.

The given theory can be applied to the analyzed article to describe people’s actions and understand motifs for their choices. Thus, following the rational choice model, individuals living in food deserts go to other areas to buy needed products because it contributes to the satisfaction of their needs and the benefit of this action can compensate losses. This logic determines the rational choice which is the central concept of the theory and is used by sociologists or other specialists while predicting a particular behavior or analyzing the situation to determine all factors impacting a certain sphere of social interaction.

At the same time, persons who do not have free money prefer not to travel to other areas of the city as it is also defined by the existing conditions. Besides, the need to save money to avoid extra spending and ensure that the will be no significant deterioration of the quality of life also plays a certain role in the process. Thus, the theory is important in analyzing the evolution of people’s demand as it provides the basis for speculations about the factors that stipulate choices and make people think in a certain way.

The analyzed paper utilizes specific research methods to collect data and process them to create the basis for the discussion and conclusion. First of all, investigators stated that they conducted an in-depth interview with 42 neighborhood residents. The primary aim was to collect data about food habits and peculiarities of their shopping patterns. The second method was the assessment of the selected neighborhood in Raleigh, N.C., that is officially determined as a food desert.

This study was focused on the analysis of the available products, their price, and how the difference between areas that are rich in fresh food. The adherence to the given research methodology has several advantages that preconditioned their choice. First, a literature review is a potent tool to conduct ethnographic or phenomenological research focused on the investigation of the peculiarities of people’s attitudes to a selected phenomenon or evolution of their views.

The collected data can be considered relevant and credible as it was obtained from a primary source. Another advantage of the literature review is the ability of an investigator to design questions that should be asked to interviewers to assess the most interesting issue and guarantee that all needed data is collected. However, this method is time-consuming as specialists have to create questions, blanks, and communicated with the participants. The assessment of the selected area also can be considered a potent tool to gather the needed information and conclude about a particular issue. However, it can also demand additional resources and time; moreover, there is the need to collect credible statistical facts that should be processed by the authors.

However, there is also an opportunity for additional research that will help to collect extra information about the problem of food deserts and people’s inability to buy the products that they demand. First of all, the general level of income of the population living in the investigated area can be determined. The selected tool will help to analyze the amount of money needed to buy demanded foods and improve the quality of life.

Moreover, this analysis will help to correlate particular shopping patterns and income of individuals who have no opportunity to move to other regions to buy fresh products. Finally, the assessment of the state of health using the statistical data related to this area can be conducted to determine if the poor access to fresh products has a negative impact on the state of health. In general, the utilization of the given combined approach helps to attain higher credibility and relevance levels.

Art is an essential part of human life. Literature is a part of art. Literature entertains people, gives them some information, or offers them some ideas to think over. Literature is very important for modern people, it ennobles, especially classic literature. It is impossible to imagine present life without literature. Some people understand this world better through literature, they try to imagine themselves in the place of this or that hero and maybe to avoid some mistakes in the future. Every country has its own greatest writers with their immortal literary works.

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We are going to discuss Honor de Balzac, a famous French writer, and his short story “A Passion in the Desert” in particular. This short story is written in 1830, almost at the very beginning of his writing career. It is not the literary work that made him popular, but still, it is the story that deserves our attention.

There are a lot of books about the life and works of Honor de Balzac. Graham Robb in his book about Balzac’s life writes:

Balzac himself was always delighted with his initial coordinates. Born in 1799 with what he called a centenarian’s constitution, he had the best possible chance of seeing three centuries. The year was also historically appropriate. Bonaparte was about to make himself First Consul. Balzac too would create an Empire, a fictional world so real that Oscar Wilde would be able to describe him only half-humorously as the inventor of the nineteenth century (3).

The literary career of the writer began approximately in 1820 when he under different pseudonyms began to print his keen novels and described dispositions of society. Honor de Balzac died on August, 18 in 1850 in Paris. He left after himself a lot of novels, stories, short stories, philosophical etudes, and plays, five of which were published.

“A Passion in the Desert” is an extremely imaginative story with the exoticism and mystery of the setting and characters. The author managed to place so many aspects in this short story. He managed to combine love and hate, alienation and isolation with real friendship, devotion with betrayal, animals, and humans, death at the end, and understanding of the mistakes. All these aspects are combined in this short story so naturally, so realistic, that sometimes during the reading you can catch yourself on the thought that it is not a fairytale, that it could be.

The story begins with the woman’s opinion about the show where she saw taming wild beasts, that it is an ineffectual attempt. She says that, “The whole show is dreadful; working with his hyena can he have tamed these animals to such a point as to be certain of their affection for?” (Balzac, 2008)

The beginning shows us the narrator’s attitude to animal taming. But the story shows us reverse, that not only the taming is possible, but even friendship and passion between animal and human. Patrick Smith in his book describes Balzac’s story in this way:

The story-within-a-story is about a Frenchman in the war. He is taken hostage by the enemy, but manages to escape after a few days and awakes to the harsh desert teat. After days of wandering, he takes shelter in an oasis and realizes that he is sharing the sanctuary with a wild beast, which turns out to be a panther with bloodstained teeth. The Frenchman, though, finds the animal to be friendly and playful. The two become close, their friendship the only bright spot in an otherwise endless string of days in the desert. Though he has come to trust the panther, the man keeps his knife by his side, and when the panther makes a lunge at him, he kills the beast in self-defense (Balzac, 2000).

The first meeting of the man and the panther was horrifying, “a profound terror, increased still further by the darkness, the silence, and his waking images froze his heart within him. He almost felt his hair stand on end when he perceived through the shadows two faint yellow lights, vivid brilliance of the night aided him gradually to distinguish the objects around him in the cave, and he beheld a huge animal lying but two steps from him.” (Balzac, 2000)

The Frenchman thought about different kinds of how to kill the sleepy animal. The gun does not suit as shot could miss the mark, then he thought about the knife, and he tried to kill the panther but could not, and, “he preferred the chances of a fair fight, and made up his mind to wait till morning” (Balzac, 2000).

The soldier was ready to start fighting any minute, but the panther surprised him, “the animal waved her tail voluptuously, and her eyes grew gentle; and when for the third time the Frenchman accomplished this interesting flattery, she gave forth one of those purrings by which our cats express their pleasure” (Balzac, 2000). He understood that there was no direct danger. The panther played with him. They looked at each other so passionate as if they understood each other, “the man and the panther looked at one another with a look full of meaning” (Balzac, 2000). It was a look of a human and an animal who knew each other for many years.

The soldier found a real friend in the animal; he regarded it as a human being, “she has a soul” (Balzac, 2000), he once said. But still, he did not trust the panther, every time playing with the panther he held a knife in his hand, he was afraid of her attack, even though there was a passion between him and the animal; on the question of how their passion ended he answered that it “ended as all great passions do end – by a misunderstanding” (Balzac, 2000).

I don’t know if I hurt her, but she turned around, as if enraged, and with her sharp teeth caught hold of my leg–gently, I daresay; but I, thinking she would devour me, plunged my dagger into her throat. She rolled over, giving a cry that froze my heart; and I saw her dying, still looking at me without anger. I would have given all the world–my cross even, which I lied not then–to have brought her to life again. It was as though I had murdered a real person; and the soldiers who had seen my flag, and were come to my assistance, found me in tears (Balzac, 2000).

Balzac finishes his story with the words of the soldier, “In the desert, you see there is everything and nothing… it is God without mankind” (Balzac, 2000). What did he want to say by those words? They may be understood like love is not subject to reason, and there is no doubt that the desert is not subject to civilization.

These words may be understood in different ways. The desert is the place where everything is unusual, this is a place with different laws of life, the same happens inside every person. Every person is a puzzle and it is impossible to solve it. It is impossible to look inside the person and to get to know her thoughts and intentions. The same happened with the soldier. He had a friend, a real friend, as he thought but still, he could not see the soul of the panther.

It may be said that he saw everything, especially the friend, but in reality, he saw nothing. He did not see the panther’s intentions to play, he did not see the panther’s thoughts and soul, so it may be said that he saw nothing. And as a result, he was left without a friend, a friend who trusted him, who even was not angry with him, as she believed. The soldier says, “I, thinking she would devour me, plunged my dagger into her throat. She rolled over, giving a cry that froze my heart; and I saw her dying, still looking at me without anger” (Balzac, 2000).

The Frenchman understood his mistake, but it was too late. He could not change what he had done. He felt very lonely at the moment; he understood that he had lost the only devoted friend, and it was he, who killed him. There was nobody else in that desert except him.

A lot of writers turned to love and devotion in their work. Love and devotion is a very difficult topic to talk about. Different people understand these meanings in different ways. But there is no doubt that only animals know the real value of these words and their price. The animal will never betray you. The feelings of animals are real; they cannot pretend to be the others.

Literature is one of the ways to express thoughts related to a particular issue or discuss people’s perspectives on it. Throughout all history of humanity, individuals have been trying to express their emotions and feelings by using the power of the word. Written texts, as the first potent tool to familiarize nations with various concepts, became a potent tool to impact society and trigger vigorous debates. That is why it is not surprising that the most relevant topics peculiar to communities at various periods of time were discussed by authors in their books. Religion has always been one of the most important elements of people’s lives, as it impacted their motifs and actions. For this reason, this theme often appears in various pieces of literature to cogitate about the exiting problems or perspectives on faith. The works Ceremony, Desert Solitaire, and Death Comes for the Archbishop also have religious motifs that are introduced to trace the role religion plays in persons’ lives and all changes they undergo in their life.

Background

All the selected novels are devoted to different people and actions, as they are created with different purposes. However, they all have some similar elements that result from the attempts to show the existence of various religious themes in many aspects of people’s living regardless of the environment, context, and events that shape their mentalities and actions. The given idea is not new; however, it still remains topical because of the relevance of religion. All authors try to engage in discussion with the audience by offering the idea that faith is one of the central factors driving society and individuals living in it. For this reason, the analysis of these books through the prism of religion can help to understand some essential elements of these stories and the role this issue plays in storytelling and plot.

Approaches to Religion

Speaking about Ceremony by Leslie Mormon Silko, one should say that religion plays an obviously important role in this novel. It is devoted to the life and problems of Tayo, a half-Pueblo, half-white Laguna Pueblo man who has just returned from the WWII and has a severe post-traumatic disorder which complicates his life and poses multiple questions about his future (Silko 11). The unusual storytelling of the book combines many timelines that help the author to show all existing problems and ask questions about the life of people deprived of their culture because of the contact with the modern reality.

The spiritual timeline with the Spider Woman touches upon the problem of faith and religion that arise in terms of culture. In general, the past of these people and their faith is all they have “I will tell you something about stories…They aren’t just entertainment. Don’t be fooled. They are all we have, you see, all we have to fight off illness and death” (Silko 45) These words show that religion of this nation is not just words, it still plays a critical role in their lives; however, many start to forget its real meaning, which results in the collapse of their world. “You don’t have anything if you don’t have the stories” these words perfectly show the author’s attitude to religion expressed by the character of the novel (Silko 65). Stories represent people’s beliefs and faith and should be considered to avoid problems with self-determination and life purpose.

As for Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather, the story also raises some questions related to religion and its plays in the life of people. The story revolves around bishop Jean Marie Latour and father Joseph Vaillant who have the important task of reinvigorating the Catholic Church in the region and increase of its power. The problem is that for many centuries, this religion has been disregarded on these lands. In such a way, faith serves as the main setting for the whole story. From the beginning, local beliefs are shown as something that comes from ignorance “Untaught and unshepherded, they cling to the faith of their fathers” (Cather). It preconditions the clash of cultures and perspectives on faith. The idea that “after all, these people have had their own beliefs and customs for thousands of years” becomes central to show that individuals who have their own ideas cannot accept new ones in a single day (Cather). Additionally, the refusal of the traditional beliefs might mean degradation and decline which is emphasized in the story.

Finally, speaking about Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey, it should be said that the book differs from the previous two. It can be described as a set of autobiographical stories devoted to the author’s experiences gained while working as a park ranger. That is why there are many descriptions of nature, animals, climate, and landscapes peculiar to the area where he worked. However, it also helps to touch upon the themes of spirituality and our past that can also be associated with religion. He states that “wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread” (Abbey 45). In such a way, the author draws a parallel between our faith, past, existence, and the way we live. It becomes an important comparison as “a civilization which destroys what little remains of the wild, the spare, the original, is cutting itself off from its origins” (Abbey 55). In such a way, the author is sure that religion, or spirituality, is closely related to nature as the representation of our past and future that should be protected.

From these cogitations one can see that all these three stories have one similar element that is touched upon by the authors in their attempts to attract people’s attention. It is spirituality, or religion, as one of its forms that impact people’s actions and their motifs. Abbey, Cather, and Silko show their perspectives on this topic and how it affects individuals and shapes their lives. It remains a critically important issue ensuring the connection with the past and providing visions of the future. At the same time, beliefs form the value system and the main characters’ responses to various threats or problems. In these novels, people face the challenge of the deterioration of religion and its gradual decline, which is dangerous for their survival and future life. In such a way, the discussed theme becomes significant for the development of plot and improved understanding of heroes’ motifs.

However, it should be said that despite the similarity of the utilization of religious motifs, there are still some differences in the approaches books take to faith. In Ceremony, the author homologates spirituality, past stories, and beliefs with religion: “as long as you remember what you have seen, then nothing is gone. As long as you remember, it is part of this story we have together” (Silko 67). Emphasizing the past of individuals, the author also shows that it is an integral part of their set of values and beliefs, that is religion, and that impacts their future significantly. The approach utilized by Silko helps to understand the gap that emerges between cultures because of the disregard of their faith.

As for Cather’s approach, it is also different from other stories. The author directly shows the clash of religions and the important role they play in the life of the main characters. For instance, by saying that “the Passion of Jesus became for him the only reality”, Cather emphasizes the importance of faith, and, at the same time, the inability of the Bishop to accept other perspectives. In the novel, the traditional approach to religion is opposed to some other phenomena that can also be sacred: “Where there is great love there are always miracles” (Cather), which is important for the understanding of the true nature of people’s feelings, beliefs and values. Utilizing this different approach, the author shows the opposition between some popular perspectives on faith and the traditional views of other peoples who try to protect them.

Finally, in Desert Solitaire, nature becomes the embodiment of people’s spiritual side of their lives. In such a way, Abbey draws a parallel between wilderness and people’s system of value, emphasizing the fact that its destruction will mean the elimination of the spiritual background of the human nation and its inability to recover (56). From this perspective, religion, as a reflection of our spirituality, becomes deteriorated by our activity aimed at the destruction of natural landscapes, disregard of some other traditional beliefs, and elimination of animals. Adhering to this very approach, the author manages to sound especially convincing as he utilizes his own experiences and potent views of nature. This approach is different from the previous ones; however, it does not mean that it becomes weaker as it helps to convey the main Abbey’s message.

Conclusion

Altogether, all three discussed stories have different plots and discuss various events in the life of the main characters. At the same time, they are united by the fact that authors try to utilize religious motifs with the primary purpose to attract readers’ attention to the problem of spirituality, traditions, and the gradual deterioration of their approach to faith. The main character of Ceremony suffers from the isolation and detachment from his native culture and traditional belief. The archbishop faces other people’s unwillingness to accept the only religion he considers to be a true one. The main character of Desert Solitaire experiences destruction of nature as the sign of corrupted spirituality. Utilizing different approaches, the authors manage to show the existence of a wide scope of various problems that pose a threat to the further evolution of human society because of the gap in their true or native perspectives on the world and those dictated by society. For this reason, religion plays a critical role in all these books as a potent tool to make people think about the discussed problems and find their own attitudes to faith.

The poem “Desert Places” by Robert Frost depicts the speaker’s lonely mind in a deserted place, resonating with the current times; the inevitable return of depression and universal human loneliness. The poet uses simple vocabulary, “the loneliness includes me unawares,” which underestimates the actual extreme loneliness of human beings (line 8). Frost explores loneliness, emptiness, and some positive aspects that can result from being put in an isolated place, and he manages to balance the mood of the poem delicately between positivity and negativity.

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The poem has four stanzas, each with four lines, and quatrains. Every one of them follows a rhyme scheme of AABA, CCDC, and so on. There is also a consistent meter, and each line contains ten syllables. The poem is organized chronologically during that lonely evening transitioning into the night. In the first stanza, snow starts to fall as the night approaches fast. The second and third stanzas illustrate the effect of the fallen snow, covering all the vegetation and animals, increasing the speaker’s loneliness. The fourth illustrates the speaker’s changed perspective regarding loneliness, looking at the stars, and finding hope.

The first stanza has the speaker wondering what is going on around him at that time of the night–snow falling and night approaching fast. When he looks at the ground, there is much snowfall, with almost everything covered. The speaker then pauses to contemplate the world around him by glaring at how the pure whiteness is almost obscuring the few remaining “weeds and stubble” (line 4). This reminds him of his loneliness, being in an isolated, empty landscape, underscoring the poem’s tone.

In the second stanza, the speaker is worried about the absence of plant cover, having all been covered by snow. One thing he notes then is that even the “woods around it have it–it is theirs” (line 5). The snowfall has changed the ground, smothering animals and forcing them down into their lairs. The speaker is influenced by compaction and absence, making him “absent-spirited” (line 7). Therefore, at this point, the speaker is too lonely to know how to handle it, as it caught him unawares.

The third stanza emphasizes loneliness as the central theme of this poem since the word is repeated three times. The speaker of Frost’s poem at this point acknowledged the idea that loneliness is going to be more extreme before it “will be less” (Von Frank para. 4). Therefore, he is well prepared to get more affected by it before he can find solace. Thus, this situation reveals the speaker’s depression; everything that was thriving here has disappeared, and there is nothing to boast about the landscape.

In the last stanza, the speaker remembers his inner turmoil, influenced by the scene around him. The snow in the desert depicts the speaker’s loneliness, but this poem’s ending gives a somewhat different impression. The speaker looks at the stars in the sky and finds hope. This change of circumstances implies that desolation in nature cannot depress a person who has undergone several instances of unhappiness possible to human beings (Adi 17). Readers get a different imprint of the poem; the speaker finally manages to master this situation by relating it to the desert places he has closer to his home.

One of the most evident poetic devices in Frost’s poem is alliteration. For instance, in “Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast,” four words start with the sound “f” (line 1). The use of alliteration helps the poet alternate between the high and low reading paces. The poem’s metrical pattern and rhyme scheme work together with alliteration to mimic the falling snow. The second example of alliteration is “smooth” and “snow” in “And the ground almost covered smooth in the snow” (line 3). The third instance of alliteration is “stubble showing” in the first stanza, “But a few weeds and stubble showing last” (line 4). This combination enables the reader to rush forward and suddenly retreat to ponder the land’s emptiness and the speaker’s intention.

Moreover, Frost uses imagery in his poem to help paint a clearer picture of the speakers setting. One example is “the ground almost covered smooth in the snow” (line 3) and “all animals are smothered in their lairs” (line 6). These two instances in the poem enable the reader to visualize the actual state of the desert. They resonate with what Adi comments about the poem: mothered animals and a blanker whiteness of snow all over the place (19). Additionally, there is the use of metaphor, for example, desert places signifying humans’ spiritual and moral wilderness. Furthermore, the field represents nature, and he sees some positive natural identity remaining after a moment of snow falling, “few weeds and stubble showing last” (line 4). Therefore, imagery and metaphor are other essential devices that enable the poem to convey its intended message.

Moreover, the poet has used an irregular rhythm to write the poem, making it sound like a true story. It helps the reader to shift from a common phenomenon to the truth. An example of this is in “Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast” (line 1). Midway through the poem, the aspect of snow falling is predominant, and it adds to the rhythm making the poem sound like a ducked pulse beat.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Frost’s poem reveals deep thoughts about life’s philosophy regarding loneliness and helplessness toward reality. The intensity of the depression of Frost’s speaker is described by the cold night. The poem illustrates the sharp contrast between human beings’ ability to experience feelings of isolation and connect, as illustrated by the despair in the poem’s speaker. He takes longer to accept and conquer, underscoring the transition between negativity and positivity.

What Do Deserts And Rainforests Have In Common?

Although rainforests and deserts are very different they do have something in common. They both have mountains and steep canyons. Food webs usually have 5 levels of animals and plants. First the producers are the bottom of the web for example the sun produces light for the grass.

How are deserts and tropical rainforests similar?

Explanation: Both in tropical rainforests and deserts the animals are adapted to survive in the conditions of the environment. The both tropical rainforests and deserts are inhabitable for the humans are because of the excessive rain in the rainforests and the excess hot environment in desert.

How are deserts and forests related?

Explanation: Forests and deserts are associated because many survive in close vicinity to one another: a desert that gets adequate rainfall to plant trees can change into a forest while a forest that undergoes dehydration may notice fast desertification.

What do rainforest have in common?

Found on every continent except Antarctica rainforests are ecosystems filled with mostly evergreen trees that typically receive high amounts of rainfall.

What do deserts have in common?

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.

What do deserts and grasslands have in common?

Deserts and grasslands are biomes known for their low precipitation and lack of trees. They are found on nearly every continent and within close proximity of each other. The lack of water and other key resources makes life in these climates difficult and challenging but not impossible.

Why are deserts dry and rainforests wet?

Cool air can hold less water than warm air. This means that as the air cools clouds form that release most of the water they hold. Because the cooling air is above the equator the moisture rains back down on the tropics. Rainforest and deserts are wet and dry due to the cycle of the air.

Can a desert be near a forest?

If the forest is at about 3000m of altitude it can be close to the desert.

What’s the difference between forest and deserts?

The forest ecosystem is characterized by a large amount of trees animals and water while the desert has a limited amount of species.

What are 5 interesting facts about the rainforest?

• There are several different types of rainforests. …
• Rainforests cover less than 3 percent of the planet. …
• The world’s largest rainforest is the Amazon rainforest. …
• Rainforests house more species of plants and animals than any other terrestrial ecosystem. …
• Much of the life in the rainforest is found in the trees.

What is a rainforest for kids?

A rainforest is a tall dense forest that receives lots of rain every year. Rainforests are full of biodiversity meaning there are lots of different species of plants and animals that live there. There are two types of rainforests: tropical rainforests and temperate rainforests.

Which has more biodiversity a rainforest or a desert?

Both biomes have warm climates but the desert is very dry and the rainforest is very wet. The desert has very few organisms so it has low biodiversity. … In contrast the rainforest has the highest biodiversity of any biome on Earth.

What do all deserts have in common quizlet?

What do all deserts have in common? They all lack fertile soil. You just studied 20 terms!

Where are deserts most commonly found?

Hot and dry deserts can be found in North America Central America South America southern Asia Africa and Australia. Well-known hot and dry deserts include the Mojave and the Sahara.

What does the Sahara Desert and Antarctica have in common?

Although the Sahara desert and Antarctica are very different in many ways they do have similarities. One very important similarity is that they are both considered deserts. That is because they both recieve very little rainfall. The average rainfall during the year in Antarctica is less than 10 centimeters.

How is a desert and tundra alike?

Deserts are similar to tundras cause they both experience extremely high temperatures with little rain. It is also difficult for crops to grow in these areas. Both tundras and deserts get about 10 inches or less of rain per year and lots of bushes as well as trees. They both expierience extreme tempatures.

What characteristics do all grasslands have in common?

The following are the key characteristics of the grassland biome:

• Vegetation structure that is dominated by grasses.
• Semi-arid climate.
• Rainfall and soils insufficient to support significant tree growth.
• Most common at mid-latitudes and near the interiors of continents.
• Grasslands are often exploited for agricultural use.

What biome has 4 seasons?

Temperate deciduous forests

Temperate deciduous forests are most notable because they go through four seasons: Winter Spring Summer and Fall. Leaves change color (or senesce) in autumn fall off in the winter and grow back in the spring this adaptation allows plants to survive cold winters.

Why do deserts have sand?

This sand was washed in by rivers or streams in distant less arid times – often before the area became a desert. Once a region becomes arid there’s no vegetation or water to hold the soil down. Then the wind takes over and blows away the finer particles of clay and dried organic matter. What’s left is desert sand.

Why are tropical rainforests?

As well as the vivid beauty that comes with great diversity in plants and animals rainforests also play a practical role in keeping our planet healthy. By absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing the oxygen that we depend on for our survival. The absorption of this CO2 also helps to stabilize the Earth’s climate.

Why do deserts exist?

They are caused by cold ocean currents which run along the coast. They cool the air and make it harder for the air to hold moisture. Most moisture falls as rain before it reaches the land eg the Namib Desert in Africa. … Some deserts form in areas that lie at great distances from the sea.

Is it possible to turn the Sahara green?

Sometime between 11 000 and 5 000 years ago after the last ice age ended the Sahara Desert transformed. … However because of a wildcard — human-caused greenhouse gas emissions that have led to runaway climate change — it’s unclear when the Sahara currently the world’s largest hot desert will turn a new green leaf.

Did deserts used to be oceans?

New research describes the ancient Trans-Saharan Seaway of Africa that existed 50 to 100 million years ago in the region of the current Sahara Desert. … The region now holding the Sahara Desert was once underwater in striking contrast to the present-day arid environment.

Was the Sahara a rainforest?

Summary: As little as 6 000 years ago the vast Sahara Desert was covered in grassland that received plenty of rainfall but shifts in the world’s weather patterns abruptly transformed the vegetated region into some of the driest land on Earth.

What is the main difference between desert and rainforest?

The deserts are very dry land areas that can be hot or cold and experience very less rainfall. On the other hand rainforests receive an enormous amount of rain. Both are homes to a variety of plants.

Why does vegetation in tropical rainforests differ from the vegetation in deserts?

Some desert plants have very deep root system in order to absorb water from near the water table. Rainforest plants have specialized roots that are more adapted to support the trees as trees are often unstable due to the wet and loose soil. … They have more diversity than desert plants. They do not experience much rain.

How is a desert habitat different from a forest habitat?

Answer: Forest flora is diverse. The vegetation in deserts is simpler than in forests. On the other hand some deserts can have many plant species that have adapted to harsh conditions while other deserts may have only a small variety of plants.

What are 3 interesting facts about the rainforest?

9 Rainforest Facts Everyone Should Know

• Rainforests are a powerful natural climate solution. …
• Tropical forests have become a net carbon emitters. …
• Tropical rainforests cover less than 3% of Earth’s area yet they are home to more than half our planet’s terrestrial animal species.

Where are rainforest for kids?

The major areas of tropical rainforests are in South East Asia West Africa and South and Central America. The best known rain forests are found in tropical regions between the Tropics of cancer and Capricorn. Temperate rainforests are found along coasts in the temperate zone.

How many trees are cut down every minute?

This is one-third less than the forest cover before the expansion of agriculture a half of that loss occurring in the last century. Between 15 million to 18 million hectares of forest an area the size of Belgium are destroyed every year. On average 2 400 trees are cut down each minute.

What is the most common habitat of the rainforest?

Scientists think that over half of all the plant and animal species in the whole world live in rainforest habitats. Most of the creatures who live in rainforest habitats actually live high up in the trees in an area called the canopy. Up there it’s hot and dry while the ground in the rainforest is dark and humid.

Why are rainforests hot and wet?

As tropical rainforests are located on or close to the Equator the climate is typically warm and wet. The high rainfall and year-round high temperatures are ideal conditions for vegetation growth. … The atmosphere in the tropical rainforest is hot and humid as the result of high temperatures and abundance of water.

How much does it rain in the rainforest?

Rainforests receive the most rain of all of the biomes in a year! A typical year sees 2 000 to 10 000 millimeters (79 to 394 inches) of rain per year.

Why does a rainforest have more living things than a desert?

Climate: because rainforests are located in tropical regions they receive a lot of sunlight. … Since there is a lot of sunlight there is a lot of energy in the rainforest. This energy is stored in plant vegetation which is eaten by animals. The abundance of energy supports an abundance of plant and animal species.

A biome mainly referred to an ecosystem where places share similar climates. It comprises all plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as the physical environment in a specific area. A biome is distinguished by its atmosphere, and area. Biome mainly consists of tundra, forest, desert, grassland, and aquatic. A desert is one of the five main biomes on Earth. The main geographic features of the deserts are only sand or rocks. deserts are very hot with less humidity. It remains hot during the daytime and becomes cold during the nighttime. Vegetation is very rare and does not grow tall because of less rain. It is mostly found in the tropics of cancer and Capricorn.

The climate of deserts is quite different from other biomes formed by high-pressure zones in which cold air becomes warm. The average amount of rainfall every year is less than 1 inch. The temperature depends on their location like cold climate is found in temperate zones because mountains block the rain from the western side. For example, the Patagonian Desert in Argentina and the dry part of the Great Basin Desert whereas hot climates in the desert are found in tropical zones in the lower middle latitudes. The climate in Tropical zones is usually hot and sunny. For example, the Sahara Desert of Africa, and the Sonoran Desert of South America. The Arctic Desert is also extremely cold. In winter, the temperature falls up to -500 Celsius whereas, in summer, the temperature rises up to 100 C. climate of the deserts affects living organisms in a number of ways.

A Desert might seem like a place where plants don’t exist. But there are thousands of plants that are grown in deserts like ocotillo, Encelia Farinosa, and Saguaro Cactus. Ocotillo is able to bear desert temperatures. The roots of Ocotillo are used to slow bleeding and over fresh wounds. It is also used to get rid of coughing, hurting limbs, and urinary infections. Encelia Farinosa stays protected from the heat and cold in the desert because of its hair. It can be used to treat toothache, alleviate chest pain, and as glue. The saguaro cactus also grows in deserts. When it rains, its trunk expands to hold water. Not only plants but there are also some animals that have the ability to survive there.

Because of the hot climate, only small animals like chameleons, nocturnal, tortoises, dromedaries, etc. are found. Nocturnal are also found in deserts as they hide in their burrows during the day and come out during the night time. Tortoises hibernate during summer to avoid heat. Tortoises are also used by humans for medicinal purposes like treating all types of plain, swelling, and pimples. The Namaqua chameleon digs burrows in the sand to make its home in the desert. It uses its long, sticky tongue to nab insects and scorpions and excrete salt from nasal glands to preserve water. Dromedaries are one-humped camels. They can travel 100 miles without water and handle temperatures of 110 degrees Fahrenheit. Dromedaries have been very useful to humans for their wool, milk, meat, leather, and dung to make fuel. Although they have the ability to survive in the desert, they are not quite safe. there are some threats in the desert that need to be prevented.

One of the major threats to deserts is global warming. It led to a rise in temperature which affects the animals and plants living there. Human activities, such as driving also threaten the desert. When a vehicle ran over the soil, the soil gets disturbed and takes longer to recover which also vegetation and plants living there. Some animals like feral cats prey on plants and other organisms living in the desert. Currently, a lot of action is being taken to protect deserts like a chicken wire has been built to protect organisms from the animals living in the desert. Vehicles are banned in the areas where plants and animals live underground. In deserts, soils have started to absorb much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to prevent global vehicles.

In conclusion, a desert is basically a wasteland. It is one of the driest and most arid places in the world. However, despite harsh conditions in the desert, a diversity of species is found in the desert. The desert biome is being affected by a number of human activities and there are many things being done to protect the deserts of the world. It is very important to protect deserts. It is very important to protect deserts as it is home to millions of organisms and covers one-fifth part of the world. Humans also rely on the resources we get from desert plants and animals.

Bibliography

1. Sciencing. (2019). Why Are Deserts Important?. [online] Available at: https://sciencing.com/why-are-deserts-important-12322785.html
2. Animals, P. (2019). Protecting Desert Animals. [online] BTN. Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/btn/classroom/protecting-desert-animals/10522828
3. Knoji. (2019). Turtle and Tortoise Medicinal Facts. [online] Available at: https://herbalremedies.knoji.com/turtle-and-tortoise-medicinal-facts/
4. The Independent. (2019). Desert life is threatened by climate change and human exploitation. [online] Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/desert-life-threatened-by-climate-change-and-human-exploitation-481116.html
5. Nationalgeographic.com. (2019). Desert Information and Facts. [online] Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/deserts/

According to researchers, Namibia ranks highest as the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa. Also, it has surface water for limited periods within a year, thus in terms of rainfall capacity, Namibia receives an average of 270 mm of rain annually. The country is divided into regions, the eastern region, and the western region. The eastern region receives about 700mm of rainfall annually, while the western region receives about 20 mm of rainfall annually. Similarly, the country comprises two deserts, the Namib desert, and the Kalahari Desert. Nevertheless, the Namib desert comprises unique flora, fauna, and climate, making it a center of attraction for various research studies.

The Namib deserts run along the Atlantic Ocean, therefore, sustaining high ocean primary production due to the upwelling of the nutrient-rich waters due to the trade winds. The resulting Benguela current suppresses the rainfall over the desert and is responsible for the Namib Desert’s arid environment. The suppression of rainfall is responsible for the lack of food security and extended poverty. The Namib Desert cuts across three countries in Southern Africa, starting with South Africa, majoring in Namibia, and then ending in Angola. Approximately it covers about 130 000 km2 along the Atlantic coast inland (Mupambwa et al., 2019). The Namib Desert’s aridity results from the combination of the cool air masses influenced by the cold Benguela Current in combination with the subtropics’ high-pressure conditions. Unlike other deserts characterized by extremely high temperatures, the Namib desert experiences lower temperatures due to the influence of the cold Benguela Current.

The Namib Desert experiences an approximately average annual rainfall range of 15 mm on the coast to 80 to 100 mm near the great escarpment. Similarly, the Namib desert is the aridest part of Namibia, chances are that it may experience several years of no rainfall. For instance, an area in the Desert’s coastal part known as the Swakopmund went close to 10 years without experiencing any rainfall (Mupambwa et al., 2019). Due to the lack of rain in the area, the area inhabitants are forced to adapt to other sources of water such as fog, and other naturally occurring sources of water such as those found in food. Fog occurrence in the area is more frequent than rainfall; thus, it is easy to study and determine its occurrence, making it a significant source of water in the area (Mitchell et al., 2020). The people of Namibia rely on fog water for crop production as well as for survival.

The Namib Desert has temperatures atypical of the usual deserts, thus making it unique. For instance, the annual average temperature ranges from 17°C to 13°C. Such temperatures make it favorable for agriculture to thrive even though the place has insufficient water. In a typical desert, the deteriorating agricultural factor is always attributable to the high temperatures. However, with low temperatures in the Namib Desert, other water sources, such as drip irrigation, indicate that agricultural produce may thrive in the area. However, researchers have indicated that the Namib Desert soil lacks enough carbon content and macronutrients paramount for crop production. Likewise, the lack of enough water despite the low temperatures makes crop production in the area hard to practice. Still, given the distance proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, the Namibians may exploit various technologies to promote agricultural production in the area, and they may benefit in the process.

References

1. Mitchell, D., Henschel, J. R., Hetem, R. S., Wassenaar, T. D., Strauss, W. M., Hanrahan, S. A.,

Food deserts are defined as areas of relatively poor access to healthy and affordable food. This phenomenon is thought to be a factor in the different dietary health outcomes, like heart disease and obesity, which exist between socioeconomic classes. Even though food deserts can refer to the literal dearth of food, most studies consider “differential accessibility to healthy and affordable food between socioeconomically advantaged and disadvantaged areas” (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009).

In other words, food deserts can simultaneously be low access areas also saturated with access to unhealthy food (e. . , fast-food) and nonfood (e. g. , gas stations) venues, “characterized by calorie-dense, high-sugar foods” (Brown & Brewster, 2015). As such, people living in these areas are at a clear handicap to how they obtain food. Despite burgeoning interest in this field of study, there was no systemic review until Beaulac, Kristjansson, and Cummins (2009). This article addresses that gap by assessing the realities and prevalence of food deserts around the world, with a focus on underprivileged socioeconomic settings.

Though evidence internationally is inconclusive at best, food deserts are present here in the U. S. These areas of need are made more alarming due to “deprivation amplification,” whereby area-level deprivation compounds individual disadvantage, and may contribute to social disparities (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). The study examines the literature to determine whether access to healthy, affordable food varies at the expense of socioeconomically deprived areas. Findings show there is ample evidence citizens in low-income and minority communities have a propensity for lesser access to healthful foodstuff (Beaulac,

Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). Moreover, living and working environments contribute to health and socioeconomic differences more so than the influence of individual characteristics. Thus, there are structural inequalities in food retail, which may influence the imbalances in dietary outcomes of different socioeconomic classes. Therefore, findings submit the problems in this system appear to further hinder populations “already limited in their ability to purchase healthy food” (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009).

This is further enhanced for those lacking access to consistent transportation. According to Beaulac, Kristjansson, and Cummins (2009) 26. 5% of Americans with incomes below $20,000 did not own a car in 2001. When this gets coupled with the growing presence of small, independent and convenience stores in lower earning communities, it limits residents to shopping at stores that charge higher prices (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). These stores tend to provide a weak medley of healthful foodstuff, but an abundance of unhealthy items; a major contributor to poor diet.

Not surprisingly, research shows that in the United States better access to supermarkets correlates to lower incidence of overweightness, increased fruit and vegetable consumption, and overall better diets among minority and low-income groups (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). Conversely, augmented access to convenience stores is associated with higher risk of obesity. This deprivation amplification cycle makes it incredibly difficult for lower income populations to rise up and transform their dietary habits for the better.

Quite simply, healthy food leads to better diet. What is more, the perception of better and fresher produce may contribute to increased fruit and vegetable consumption (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). Compounding the problem further, studies show higher prices are found in small stores and nonfood venues, a greater occurrence of which are found in low-income and minority locales. Additionally, higher prices for healthier food baskets is backed by recent economic nalysis demonstrating “energy-dense diets cost less than healthier diets” (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). This suggests people with limited financial means for food may not be able to purchase healthful foods. In fact, low income populations cite high costs of healthy food items as a barrier to healthful eating habits (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). Studies have shown lower prices on fruits and vegetables are associated with lower body mass index, which may help show how pricing plays a strong role in producing the phenomenon of food deserts.

Roughly 23. 5 million people reside in urban neighborhoods and rural towns with limits to accessing fresh, affordable, and healthy foodstuff (Gupta, 2015). Hence, residents are often forced to depend on fast food and convenience stores with inadequate supplies of fresh produce. Gupta (2015) states people in these settings “struggle more with obesity and chronic conditions, and have shorter life expectancies than people who live in neighborhoods with easy access to healthy food.

Although some local organizations and markets are lending support to help eradicate food deserts, it is not enough. The most abundant food supply in the world means little if people cannot get what they need to be healthy. Looking at Seattle, neighborhoods facing this problem are laid all around the city center. From First Hill and South Park to communities on the Duwamash River, the city must work to find solutions to the food desert puzzle here at home.

Deserts make up close to a fifth of the earth’s surface, and they occur in areas where the annual rainfall is below 50cm. Most of these deserts, such as the Sahara of North Africa, occur at low altitudes though others occur at relatively lower latitudes and are referred to as cold deserts. However, such deserts are more deficient in life forms and species because of the freezing temperatures limiting plant life. The United States has four significant deserts located in the western part of the country. It collectively covers about 500,000 square miles from Oregon’s and Nevada’s lonesome sagebrush backlands to central Mexico’s cactus groves. Their location is attributed to their distances from moisture sources, rain shadow-casting mountains, permanent sub-tropic high-pressure zones, and combinations of the factors above. Each gets lower than 10 inches in annual precipitation. These deserts are the Great Basin, Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan. Therefore, this paper focuses on the unique features of each of the deserts and comprehensively discusses their geographical composition, including their climates, topography, and flora and fauna.

The Great Basin Desert

The Great Basin Desert is the largest in the United States, and it is the northernmost and highest-elevation of them, all covering about 200,000 square miles. The desert is often freezing, and the precipitation recorded in it is snow due to its location at high altitudes of up to more than 6,000 feet (Puckett 67). This is why, unlike the preconceived perception that deserts are hot, the Great Basin Desert is very cold with equally cold winters (Jones and Luna 98). However, the precipitation varies with latitude seasonally, with temperatures inhibiting the growing season to the summer.

The desert’s location stretches between the Sierra Nevada and the Southern Cascades to the West and the Rocky Mountains on the east. To the south, it borders the lower hotter region of the Mojave Desert and Columbia Plateau’s bunchgrass steppes and semiarid sagebrush, including the Snake River Plain to the north (Puckett 80). Despite this comprehensive geographical coverage, most of it is in Nevada though specific minutes parts are in Oregon, California, and Utah states (Jones and Luna 99). There is very little rainfall in this region, primarily because of the shield formed by the Sierra Nevada Mountains, which inhibits the Pacific Ocean’s winds from moisturizing the area.

Additionally, the desert’s topography is characterized by basins and mountain ranges hence its name. This arises majorly from its relief’s separation with high mountain crests below intervening bosons that form major drainage to the outlets (Puckett 84). There are also ephemeral lake beds located on the basin’s floors with specific permanent water sources like the Pyramid and Great Salt lakes (Jones and Luna 89). They are considered the remnants of the numerous and more significant Pleistocene Great Basin lakes.

However, the desert lacks botanical variety though its animal and plant communities define its uniqueness. Shadscale and sagebrush are the most common plants in the desert, with the bristlecone pine considered one of the unique plants to grace the area (Puckett 85). The tree is arguably the oldest known living organism globally, with other trees estimated to have existed in the area for over 5,000 years (Jones and Luna 95). Nonetheless, the big sagebrush dominates the site, so the desert is often referred to as the “Sagebrush Sea.” There are also saltbushes, greasewoods, salt grasses, and salt-tolerant plants which cover the saline regions. Moreover, it is segued by a black brush realm with its steamways lined by willow and scrawny cottonwood gallery forests. Furthermore, its mountainous areas are covered in non-desert woodlands and forests. Despite the variety presented, the site is still dominated by the gray sagebrush.

The Great Basin Desert is also characterized by vast public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which serve as get-ways to the desert’s adventurous iconic destinations. These include the Bonneville Salt Flats and Nevada’s Black Rock Desert (Jones and Luna 96). Moreover, the Great Basin National Park lies within the wetter Snake Range area with lower elevations covering the more delicate wild desert regions (Puckett 85). Additionally, some of the open sources accommodate some known long-distance animal movements such as the Sheldon National Antelope Refuge, pronghorn migration route, and the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. These take place in northwestern, winter ranges, and southeastern Oregon, respectively.

Despite the relatively adverse climatic conditions, the desert still serves as a home to several endangered and threatened species. The threat is brought about by its vast expanses, which render it vulnerable to extinction since the species occupying high peaks cannot interbreed due to isolation (Puckett 85). Moreover, grazing, groundwater pumping, mining, and home and road construction also affect the habitats of these species. These species include the most miniature tern birds, Utah prairie dogs, desert dace, Lahontan cutthroat trout, and White River spine dace fish (Jones and Luna 99). The Ute lady’s tresses and soda Ville milkvetch also fall in this category. These plants have to be protected as required lest the desert loses such rich organisms.

The Mojave Desert

The desert is essentially the northernmost of the four, and it is more of a transition land between Sonoran and the Great Basin. It covers about 54,000 square miles making it the most minor, and this spans across Nevada, California, and Arizona (Klinger et al. 10). The desert has extremely high elevations ranging from a low point of 282 feet at Death Valley to a high of 11,049 feet at Telescope Peak (Clair and Hoines 197). These high elevations get extremely cold at night. However, at the Death Valley, the low points are always boiling. This area is considered the hottest in the United States, with a temperature high of 134 degrees Fahrenheit and an average rainfall of below 2 inches. However, the precipitation generally is similar to that of the Great Basin Desert, with most of it coming during winter, though, in the Mojave Desert, it falls as rain (Clair and Hoines 199). Moreover, it is characterized by ephemeral Mojave wildflowers’ springtime blooms which make its climate rather unique.

Additionally, the desert is yielded by the creosote bush, which is a defining shrub for most hot deserts in America. However, Mojave’s trademark plant is the Joshua tree which maps out its geography (Klinger et al. 11). The outsized yucca flourishes in this region, hitting its developmental peak on its peaks and the bajadas and foothill’s middle slopes. The land is also covered in grasses, though sparsely, with the creosote bushes complementing these grasses (Clair and Hoines 200). Additionally, the desert is home to various animals such as rabbits, scorpions, lizards, the Mojave ground squirrel, pronghorns, the kangaroo rat, and snakes.

The soil types in the desert are volcanic, especially the parts in the state of California. However, the particle sizes decrease as the topography goes down, where there is also relatively low alkalinity. This forms a good breeding ground for plants around the erosional gradient. However, alluvial fan and pediment soil up the desert’s slope, with the flora being mostly succulents (Klinger et al. 12). Moving down the gradient, the area is encompassed the lower and upper bajada and into the saline and playa, ending up at the river (Clair and Hoines 230). The lower bajada mostly has evergreen perennials though some parts of the upper bajada exhibit the same. Nonetheless, most plants are adapted to buried bulbs, waxy leaves, deep taproots, ephemerals, spines, and photosynthetic stems due to harsh conditions.

Further, the desert is defined by xeric conditions created by the multiple mountain ranges surrounding the region. As a result, the contents lead to seasonal saline lakes, valleys, salt pans, and endorheic basins, especially when the precipitation rate is significant. However, most of these are part of the Great Basin and the Basin and Range province, which are geologic areas of crustal thinning, leading to the opening of various valleys (Clair and Hoines 233). Nonetheless, most of the valleys drain internally such that not all the precipitation that falls within the region flows to the ocean. It is also essential to note that a section of the desert’s domain is in a different geographical field known as the Colorado Plateau (Klinger et al. 14). This is the part around the Virgin River George and Colorado River, which is towards the East.

Further still, the desert is among the most popular tourist destination locations in the United States. This is brought about primarily by Las Vegas’s gambling destination. Moreover, it has particular scenic sites like the Mojave National Preserve, Death Valley National Park, and the Joshua Tree National Park (Klinger et al. 15). Additionally, it houses three California State Parks and lakes, Havasu, Mead, and Mohave also attract tourists, primarily due to their provision for water sports recreational activities (Clair and Hoines 240). Furthermore, various natural features in the Calico Mountains, such as the Calico Ghost Town, also serve as essential attractions. The desert is indeed full of scenic and attractive sites, and its location accords it the tourists’ traffic that it deserves.

The Sonoran Desert

The Sonoran Desert occupies about 100,000 square miles, and over two-thirds of this is located along the Mexico-U.S. line covering the State of Sonora and Baja California. It mainly occupies southern Arizona in the U.S (Bradley and Colodner 110). The Sonoran Desert has sub deserts within it, including the Yua Desert, Yuma Desert, Colorado Desert, and the Tonopah Desert. Additionally, rivers Gila and Colorado flow through it complemented by the mountains and broad valleys which get extremely hot in the summer.

Furthermore, the desert is ranked among the world’s excellent deserts because of its scenic and botanical splendor. This plantlife stems from two rainy seasons prevailing in the southern and eastern sectors, winter and summer precipitation (Sosa et al. 65.). It is known chiefly for its saguaro cactus, which grow up to above 60 feet tall with arm-like branches. It is often referred to as the “Arboreal Desert” based on these cacti (Bradley and Colodner 115). Apart from these, several other species with unique shapes and sizes, such as the mighty cardoon, the Mexican portion, the multi-pillared organ pipe cactus, the wild-armed ocotillo, mention a few. Over 2,000 plant species have been collectively identified in the desert, with each of the physiological vascular plant groupings dominating more than one major biotic communities (Sosa et al. 67). This is why it is considered to have the most significant diversity when it comes to species with relatively fine spatial scales.

To add to that, it is also home to multiple animals, which adds to its species diversity. Researchers have identified over 350 bird species, 100 different reptiles, 20 amphibians, and about 30 fish species within the desert (Sosa et al. 68). Such species include owls, lizards, jackrabbits, snakes, bats, turtles, and sparrows (Bradley and Colodner 117). These species also show tremendous variability in life forms attributed to various factors such as the varied geology, subtropical climate, bimodal precipitation, continental physiography, and wide-ranging topography.

The region’s climate is also somewhat unique as it receives frequent low-intensity winter rains and violent summer monsoon thunderstorms. These contradicting climatic conditions are borrowed with the former from the Mohave Desert and the latter from the Chihuahuan Desert (Sosa et al. 72). These distinct patterns support the vast array of flora and fauna, and it is the foundational cause of the species diversity experienced in the region. Annually, precipitation in the area averages 3 to 20 inches depending on the location, with substantial variability in quantity and timing. Nonetheless, the Sonoran is still a hot desert with summer air temperatures exceeding 104 degrees Fahrenheit, which interact with the cool, moist air in the region to produce violent summer monsoon thunderstorms (Bradley and Colodner 120). Still, the surrounding mountains in the area have dense snow cover with valley bottoms free of frost and mild winter temperatures. Nonetheless, the desert’s vast vegetation often reradiate the daytime heat overnight into the atmosphere leading to diurnal swings.

As a result of the vast array of species, the desert is a prime tourist attraction site. Moreover, there are various national parks, reserves, monuments, parks, botanical gardens, history museums, desert landscape gardens, and science research institutes that contribute to its vast tourism (Sosa et al. 72). Apart from tourism, it is also a location for illegal migration from Mexico into the United States due to low security levels. Most of this unauthorized entry takes place at night due to the harsh daytime conditions.

The Chihuahuan Desert

The Chihuahuan Desert is the largest in North America, covering about 250,000 square miles. Only about 10% of the desert is in the United States, with the other 90% in Mexico (Hruska 270). The portion that is in the U.S. covers parts of southeast Arizona, southwest Texas, and southern New Mexico. It resembles the Great Basin because it is above 3,500 feet, even though the southern part has tall cacti (Hruska 270). The desert is isolated from the neighboring arid regions by the Sierra Madre Oriental, and the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain ranges to the east and west, respectively.

When it comes to flora and fauna, it is considered the most diverse desert in the Western Hemisphere though it is also one of the most endangered areas in the world. This threat arises from urbanization, overgrazing, invasive exotic species, water diversion and depletion, fire regime changes, and native plants and animals over-collection (Hruska 270). Despite these issues, the desert’s eastern boundary is the wealthiest plant evolution center. The vegetation ranges from conifer woodlands and desert shrublands depending on elevations though the creosote bush is the most dominant plant. It also has prickly-pear cactuses, yuccas, grasses, and agaves, contributing to its over 3,500 plant species (Hruska 276). However, about 1,000 of these grow in its Ecoregion (Minckley et al. 457). Moreover, the Chihuahuan Desert has given unique habitats like the gypsum dunes, freshwater habitats, playas, and yucca woodlands, making it very diverse.

Furthermore, the desert houses over 170 reptile and amphibian species, with about 18 of these endemic to its Ecoregion. There are also over 110 fish species in the region, with most of these being endemic. The relic ones are found in the closed basins where the isolated springs lie (Hruska 280). Moreover, the desert supports over 130 mammal species such as the jaguar, grey fox, mule deer, javelin, and pronghorn. Historically, it was among the few regions where the wolves and grizzly bears would be found. It is also home to about 400 bird species, and its grasslands serve as wintering grounds for the birds (Minckley et al. 460). The birds include Baird’s sparrow, mountain plover, and the ferruginous hawk.

However, the desert’s climate is unique compared to that of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts. This is because it has colder winters and receives a lot of summer rain during monsoon thunderstorms. Therefore, it is characterized by cold, dry winters and hot summers with annual precipitation of about 6 to 20 inches (Hruska 290). However, most of the rain falls in the summer months in the form of monsoonal showers. Its range and basin topography consists of mountain ranges, basins bordered by terraces, and mesas (Minckley et al. 461). The bays provide a suitable location for the drainage of rainwater internally, contributing to the formation of playas. Dune fields made of gypsum sand and quartz are also standard features.

The region has various protected areas which are prime for tourism. These areas include the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Apache National Wildlife Refuge, and the Franklin Mountains State Park (Minckley et al. 466). Moreover, the Big Bend National Park is home to over 800,000 acres of the desert’s wildlife and plant (Hruska 295). The park offers a vast, spectacular backcountry for exploration from the grand existent canyons and the Chios Mountains. There is also the Rio Grande River which flows through the desert down to the Gulf of Mexico. These features accord the desert the tourism traffic making it ripe for revenue collection for both the Mexican and U.S. governments.

Conclusion

The United States has arguably the most diverse types of deserts. These deserts present unique characteristics ranging from the nature of the climatic conditions, flora and fauna, and even topography. From the preceding, it is clear that the four, the Chihuahuan, Sonoran, the Great Basin, and Mojave, also have similar characteristics. These features mainly arise because of their proximity to each other in the United States. This shows the significance of immediacy when it comes to the geographical study of deserts despite the differences highlighted regarding the hot deserts and cold deserts. Nonetheless, the deserts still serve as important tourist sites and prime locations for research, a sound source of revenue, unlike the contemporary perception of deserts being non-economic features. Therefore, the government needs to continue protecting these sights from any interference to ensure the given flora and fauna within flourish.