Aoukar or Erg Aoukar ( Arabic : عوكر ) is a geological depression area of south eastern Mauritania . It is located between Kiffa and Néma , south of the Tagant Plateau . The region is also referred to as Hodh or El Hodh ( Arabic : الحوض , lit. 'the Basin ').
6-593: The Aoukar basin is a dry natural region of sand dunes and salt pans fringed by escarpments on its northern and eastern sides. There was once vast reed -covered endorheic lake in the area, but it no longer exists. The former lake of Aoukar extended towards the area of Tichit , bordering the southern edge of the Tagant Plateau . Below the cliffs (dhars) facing the extinct lake remains of about 400 villages have been found. From east to west, Dhar Néma , Dhar Walata , Dhar Tichitt , and Dhar Tagant form
12-419: A critically endangered kind of antelope which lives in the region. 18°00′N 9°30′W / 18.000°N 9.500°W / 18.000; -9.500 Natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography , geology , and climate . From the ecological point of view,
18-559: A semicircular shape around the Hodh/Aoukar Depression, which, prior to 4000 BCE, was an area with lakes of considerable size, and, after 1000 BCE, was an area that had become increasingly dried. During the emergence of the Tichitt Tradition, it was an oasis area. The Tichitt Tradition of eastern Mauritania dates from 2200 BCE to 200 BCE. Previously administered as part of French Sudan (present-day Mali ),
24-402: The area was transferred to French Mauritania in 1944, apparently on a whim of the colonial governor Laigret . The transfer was still resented upon Mali's independence. Formerly more fertile, it is now largely a barren waste. Aoukar/Hodh gave its name to the modern Mauritanian regions of Hodh Ech Chargui and Hodh El Gharbi . The Aoukar is one of the few natural refuges for the addax ,
30-419: The naturally occurring flora and fauna of the region are likely to be influenced by its geographical and geological factors, such as soil and water availability , in a significant manner. Thus most natural regions are homogeneous ecosystems . Human impact can be an important factor in the shaping and destiny of a particular natural region. The concept "natural region" is a large basic geographical unit, like
36-610: The vast boreal forest region. The term may also be used generically, like in alpine tundra , or specifically to refer to a particular place. The term is particularly useful where there is no corresponding or coterminous official region. The Fens of eastern England , the Thai highlands , and the Pays de Bray in Normandy, are examples of this. Others might include regions with particular geological characteristics, like badlands , such as
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