Atlas mountains on the contour. Atlas Mountains: description and photos

In North Africa, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. It stretches from west to east from the Atlantic Ocean, along the Mediterranean coast, to Cape Et-Tib for 2000 km. Height up to 4165 m (Mount Toubkal). The atlas is identified as a special physical-geographical region of Africa due to the diversity of landscapes and its location at the junction of subtropical and tropical zones. In the Middle Ages, Atlas was called Jezirat al-Maghrib or Maghrib (“island of the West”), thereby emphasizing the “island position” of Atlas between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara Desert.

Relief. The atlas consists of a series of sublatitudinal en-echelon ridges. In the north, along the Mediterranean coast, stretch the short horseshoe-shaped Er Rif ridge and the Tell Atlas coastal ridge system. To the south are the Middle Atlas, to the west of which the Moroccan Meseta plateau descends stepwise towards the Atlantic coast, and the High Atlas with the highest point of the Atlas - Mount Toubkal (4165 m). A series of Saharan Atlas ranges extend along the southern edge. Between the Tell Atlas and the Saharan Atlas are the High Plateaus. In the extreme eastern part of the Atlas there is the Tunisian ridge (height up to 1295 m, Mount Zagwan), represented by a complex system of low mountains, in the southwest there is the Anti-Atlas ridge. The relief of the high mountains (High Atlas, Er Rif, Tell Atlas) is distinguished by sharp and deep dissection (more than 500 m). The mid-altitude mountains (Saharan Atlas and Tunisian Atlas) have relatively weak dissection (less than 500 m). In the high massifs of the western part of the Atlas, alpine landforms predominate. On the slopes of the High Atlas there are traces of ancient glaciation (peaks, cirques, trough valleys), trains of moraines descend to a height of 2100 m. On the High Plateaus, in the Saharan Atlas and Tunisian Atlas, denudation and accumulative plains, remnant mountains, and table plateaus are developed. At the foot of the steep slopes of the Atlas, classic forms of piedmont sloping plains - pediments - are presented. In the south of the Atlas - the slopes of the mountains facing the Sahara are covered with gravelly screes. Karst landforms (sinkholes, fields, karrs) are widely represented in the High Atlas and Middle Atlas, Er-Rif. The deepest karst cavity in Africa, Anu Iflis, is located in the Djurjura Tell Atlas ridge.

Geological structure and minerals. The Atlas is located within the Mediterranean (Alpine-Himalayan) mobile belt; separated from the ancient African platform by the South Atlas fault zone. In the western part of the Atlas, in the Moroccan Meseta region, folded carbonate-terrigenous and volcanic strata of the Upper Proterozoic and Paleozoic, accumulated on the deep-sea margin of the Paleotethys ocean, are widespread (see the Tethys article). In the Carboniferous and Permian, during the era of Hercynian tectogenesis, these rocks experienced intense deformation, metamorphism and the intrusion of granite plutons. Lagoonal-continental and shallow-marine sediments of the cover of Triassic-Jurassic age are developed in the High Plateau region. In the northern part of the Atlas, they are overlain by flysch, pelagic and reef carbonate strata of the Upper Jurassic, Cretaceous and Paleogene, which accumulated on the southern margin of the Neo-Tethys Ocean. At the end of the Eocene, during the era of Alpine tectogenesis, Mesozoic and early Paleogene deposits experienced intense fold-thrust deformations, forming a system of tectonic covers of the coastal chain of Er-Rif and Tell-Atlas that moved southward. At the front of the orogen, foredeeps were formed (Predrifsky, Predtelsky), filled with Miocene molasse. In the southern part of the Atlas, in the Jurassic-Eocene time, rift troughs arose, filled with thick strata of shallow-marine sediments, which subsequently underwent inversion under the influence of a compression impulse from the Alpine orogen and formed the folded mountain ranges of the High, Middle and Saharan Atlas. The High Plateau and Moroccan Meseta regions remained stable during the Alpine stage with the accumulation of Jurassic-Eocene marine and Oligocene-Quaternary continental sediments. In the modern era, mountains remain highly mobile, accompanied by increased seismic activity. Destructive earthquakes in 1954, 1980 in Tell Atlas; in 1960 in High Atlas. The main wealth of the Atlas subsoil consists of iron ores, polymetals, and phosphorites (Arabian-African phosphorite province). Deposits of oil and combustible gas in intermountain depressions have long been known.

Climate. In the north of Atlas the climate is subtropical Mediterranean, in the interior and southern regions it is semi-desert. Winter is cool and rainy. In the lower mountain belt, the average January temperature in the north is 10-12°C, in the interior regions 4-6°C. Summer is dry and hot. The average temperature in July is about 25°C. The absolute maximum air temperature on the internal plains is 40°C, in the south of the Atlas it is 49°C. The greatest amount of precipitation (1000-1800 mm per year) falls on the northern and eastern slopes of the Tell Atlas east of 2° east longitude and in the High Atlas at an altitude of 2000-2500 m. Most of the Atlas receives 400-600 mm, the southern regions - less than 300 mm of precipitation per year. Above 1500 m in the mountains there is snow for 4-5 months. The height of the snow line in the north is 2500 m, in the south - 3500 m. On the highest peaks, the thickness of the snow cover reaches 2 m.

Rivers and lakes. The deepest rivers are the basins of the Atlantic Ocean (Umm er-Rbiya, Tensift, Cebu) and the Mediterranean Sea (Muluya, Sheliff). During the rainy season, water flows in them increase to several hundred and thousand m 3 /s. Most of the remaining rivers are dry (oueds), fed mainly by rain, winter floods and extremely uneven flow. In the high-mountain basins of the High Atlas and Middle Atlas there are freshwater lakes of predominantly karst origin. In the eastern part of the Atlas, in vast intermountain basins, there are salt lakes - sebkhas (Chott el-Shergi, Chott el-Khodna, etc.).

Soils, flora and fauna. On the coast and in the mountains (up to an altitude of 800 m), landscapes of the Mediterranean type are common - thickets of evergreen hard-leaved shrubs (maquis), as well as forests of cork and holm oak on brown soils, cultivated vegetation - olive trees, pistachios, etc. In the dry interior regions and in the south, in the zone of subtropical deserts, there is sparse grass vegetation (feather grass, alpha), wormwood on gray-brown, highly gravelly soils. The altitudinal zonation of landscapes in the Atlas is most clearly expressed on the windward slopes of Er Rif and Tell Atlas. Up to an altitude of 1200 m - evergreen forests of cork oak, at an altitude of 1200-1700 m - mixed forests with evergreen and summergreen broad-leaved and coniferous trees, up to 2200 m - coniferous forests (mainly Atlas cedar). Mountain brown leached and brown forest soils are developed under the forests. On the peaks there are patches of mountain meadow and mountain steppe vegetation.

The fauna is greatly depleted; has representatives of both African and some European animals (for example, the hare). Monkeys are preserved in the north, jackals are everywhere, hyenas and some ungulates are preserved in the south. Many migratory birds. Reptiles are numerous.

The Atlas contains 18 protected natural areas with a total area of ​​509 thousand hectares, including the national parks of Guraya, Teniet el-Had, Shrea, Djurjura, and Toubkal.

Lit.: Gvozdetsky N. A., Golubchikov Yu. N. Mountains. M., 1987.

D. S. Asoyan; V. E. Khain (geological structure and minerals).

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The high ridges of the Atlas Mountains stretch for 2,500 thousand kilometers from the coast of Morocco to Tunisia. They separate the Atlantic coast and the Mediterranean from the harsh and endless Sahara. The mountain system owes its name to the Greek Atlas (Atlas), who held the firmament on his mighty shoulders. The first evidence of the Atlas Mountains dates back to 150 BC.

The mountain range consists of several ranges: High Atlas, Middle Atlas, Tell Atlas, Saharan Atlas. There are several plains and huge plateaus here. The highest point of the mountain system is Toubkal Peak, it rises to 4167 meters. It is the second highest mountain on the African continent after Kilimanjaro.

The Middle Atlas is a mountain system in northern Morocco with little elevation change. The peak is located at an altitude of 3326 m. Walking routes, cycling and horse riding are organized here. Among the iconic places worthy of attention: the cedar forest of Ain-Löch, almond groves, the National Park near the city of Ifrane, the Falls of the Virgins. The High Atlas is also rich in attractions: gorges along the Dades and Todra rivers, the Ait-Bugemez valley, the Ouzoud waterfall, the Mgun valley.

The Atlas Mountains attract travelers with the opportunity to study the peculiarities of life and way of life of the indigenous people of Morocco, to get acquainted with the soul and heart of this North African country. You can travel along the roads of the Atlas Mountains by personal or rented car.

Things to do here 2

№4 oddviser

There is an ornate winding road leading to the Dades Gorge; try to overcome this difficult but very picturesque path.

FREE 6

No. 13 Evelina Ziolo

Camels are always accompanied by their guard - agree with him in advance about the duration of the walk.

The Atlas Mountains are the mountains of Africa. The ancient Greek legends and poems of Homer (between the 12th and 7th centuries BC) telling about the structure of the world brought the story of the great titan Atlas to the present day. It was believed that he lived in the far west, for which the Greeks at that time could take the African coast, and had enormous strength - such that it was enough to support the pillars separating the firmament from the earth (this is exactly how our distant ancestors imagined the place and view of the earth in space). He was associated with the ocean and was considered a sea titan, treacherous and rebellious. But justice was also found for him: Atlas, who in some legends was also called the African king, had the imprudence to refuse hospitality to the legendary Greek hero Perseus. And Perseus at that time was already the owner of the magical head of the Gorgon Medusa, which turned anyone who looked at her into stone. Frustrated by the behavior of Atlas, Perseus showed the titan the ill-fated head of Medusa and turned him into the African Mount Atlas. Myths are myths, but in the north-west of Africa, where Atlas allegedly lived, there is an extended ridge - the Atlas Mountains.
They are known by this name in Europe, but among the local population there is no single name - only the names of individual ridges. These mountains cross the territory of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia and consist of several ranges: Tell Atlas (High Atlas), Middle Atlas and Saharan Atlas. Between them are plains and several internal plateaus - the High, Orano-Algerian and Moroccan Mesetas. The latter, from the most elevated part of the Er-Rif ridge, descends in terraces to the west.
Atlas is a whole mountainous country. It stretches from the coast, crossing the African continent from west to east almost along the coast (Tell Atlas ridge). It is so extensive that zones change here - tropical to subtropical, providing very contrasting landscapes: mountains and traces of ancient glaciation on their highest peaks, flowering oases, desert (Sahara Range), rivers and sebkhas (salt lakes).
In the north and west, the vegetation up to altitudes of 800 m is similar to the usual forests characteristic of the Mediterranean: picturesque thickets of evergreen bushes and cork oaks are reminiscent of southern Europe. The south and inland areas have an arid climate, so the main species that survive here are grasses, feather grass and wormwood. Higher belts form evergreen forests of cork and holm oak (up to 1200 m), higher (up to 1700 m) maples and conifers join them. Even higher (after 2200 m) these forests are replaced by coniferous ones, in which a valuable, drought-resistant and pest-resistant species of timber tree predominates - Atlas cedar, which began to be cultivated in Europe in 1842 for decorative purposes.
The Atlas mountainous country is separated from the African tectonic platform by a fault in its southern part (South Atlas Fault).
Another fault runs along the Mediterranean coast, and it is this fault that provokes earthquakes in this part of the ridge.
The atlas was formed in three phases. The first stage of deformation (in the Paleozoic) affected only the Anti-Atlas as a result of the collision of continents. The second stage of the Mesozoic formed most of the modern High Atlas, then it rested on the ocean floor. During the Tertiary period, Atlas appeared on the surface.
Deposits of iron ore and copper, iron and lead, lime, rock salt and marble are developed in the mountains.
The harsh mountains with a capricious climate are not an uninhabited region: there are rivers here (especially in the northwest), along which settlements have long been formed. Local rivers, which are fed by rainwater and often have a “temporary” character, are called oueds by the Arabs. They even experience floods in winter, but in summer they dry up almost completely, especially in the southern and inland regions.
The Berbers (indigenous peoples of North Africa) adapted to live in such conditions; they survived all the historical vicissitudes of this region and remained staunch inhabitants of the inhospitable mountains. There are differences between them both in language and in their way of life. The Berbers of the western Atlas Mountains are called Shilluh. They lead a more sedentary lifestyle, live in houses, engage in farming and successfully master a number of crafts. Their villages are most often scattered far from each other.
Farming here requires titanic labor, since first you need to create your own plot. There is often no soil on the rocky, weathered slopes of mountains, so future farmers look for places in the hollows where soil has washed or applied, and from there they carry it in baskets on their heads to their plot. Precious soil is placed in special terraces, which are hollowed out in the rocks. Then you need to take care of this soil so that it does not get washed away by rain. The plots can be so small that it is impossible to process them with a plow and everything has to be done by hand.

Residents of such villages are also involved in sheep breeding. But their neighbors from the eastern part of the mountains - the Masigs - still live in caves and tents, which, apparently, is more convenient during their active movements, because the Masigs are excellent cattle breeders: the stunted vegetation of the slopes serves as food for the livestock. You can climb to higher mountain valleys, where the grass is juicier. Some Berber tribes are exclusively pastoralists, but they also have permanent villages to which they return after grazing in the mountains, where they live in temporary camps.
The Berbers represent mainly the Moroccan part of the mountain inhabitants. On the Algerian side, they were also mastered by the Kabyles (a local variety of Berbers). Recently, people have noticeably influenced the landscape - in the north, closer to the coast, there is less natural vegetation, the area of ​​artificially irrigated land has increased, on which citrus fruits, grains are grown, olive and eucalyptus trees, and date palms are cultivated. And peach and apricot orchards, pomegranate plantations and vineyards can now be seen near private buildings. These interventions in the ecosystem even gave rise to a number of problems: for example, deforestation in some places led to soil erosion.
The existence of these mountains was discussed by the Phoenicians, who actively traveled around the world, and then by the ancient Greeks. And the Romans - in 42 the Roman commander Gaius Suetonius Paulinus (1st century) crossed the mountains. And in II century, the Greek wandering philosopher, Orator and writer Maximus of Tyre had already compiled a fairly detailed description of the mountains for that time.
But the world scientific community was able to significantly expand its understanding of this mountainous country only in the 19th century, when the outstanding German explorer of Africa Gerhard Rolfe (1831-1896) crossed the High Atlas under the guise of a Muslim in the service of the Moroccan Sultan and studied the largest oases and went deeper into the Sahara from Algeria. It was he who significantly refined the map of the ridges and created two books from descriptions of his routes and impressions.
Tourists began to come here for explorers, they are attracted by sunrises and sunsets in the mountains, beautiful views, many migratory birds, mountain oases (like Shebika in Tunisia), centers of life in the desert (like the Sauf group of oases in Algeria), date oases of Morocco and the palace Pasha of Marrakech Thami el Glaoui.

general information

Countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia.

Salt lakes: Chott el Shergi.

Largest rivers: Umm Er Rbiya, Cebu (Atlantic Ocean basin), Muluya, Sheliff (Mediterranean Sea basin).

Major airports: Houari Boumediene International Airport (Algiers City, Algeria), International Airport. Mohammed V (city, Morocco).

Numbers

Length: 2,400 km.
Highest point: Mount Toubkal (4167 m, Morocco).

Economy

Minerals: silver, copper, iron, lead, mercury, gas, coal, marble, rock salts.

Agriculture: crop production, livestock farming.

Service sector: tourism.

Climate and weather

Subtropical, Mediterranean - in the north, semi-desert - in other parts.

Average January temperature:+ 12°С at altitudes up to 1500 m - lower mountain belt, northern part), + 6°С (in the interior regions).

Average temperature in July:+25°С (up to 1500 m), +38°С (on inland plains).
Average annual precipitation: up to 600 mm (main part), up to 1800 mm (Tell Atlas, north and west), up to 2500 mm (High Atlas), 300 mm (southern part).

There are often frosts at night.

Attractions

■ Oases: Shebika (Tunisia), group of oases Sauf (Algeria).
■ Morocco: the city of Marrakesh, the palace of Dar el Glaoui (beginning of the 20th century) - the residence of the Pasha of Thami el Glaoui, the oasis city of Tafraout.
■ Algeria: Timgad city - Roman ruins, Djurdjura National Park, Sidi Bel Abbes lake.
■ Tunisia: salt lakes.

Curious facts

■ Usually monkeys (macaques) live in temperate latitudes and prefer Asia. But in the Atlas Mountains there is only one species that lives not only in this difficult climate, but is also the only monkey species living naturally in southern Europe (in Gibraltar) - these are the Magots, barbary monkeys, or Barbary (Maghrebian) macaques. Moreover, the Atlas Mountains region is considered their homeland. One version even admits that this species previously lived in different regions of Europe, and the colony in Gibraltar is simply the only thing left. Magoths have remarkable habits. For example, males can choose their favorite from among not only their own, but also other people’s cubs, and then they will be courted in every possible way and proudly shown to their comrades. The cubs are also shown to enemies - among the Magoths, this diplomatic technique can reduce the enemy’s aggression.
■ Atlas cedar oil is an excellent antiseptic and means of breaking down fat. It has long been used for medicinal purposes, for the production of mummifying balms, and is still used in cosmetology and perfumery.

■ A local wild grass called alpha can be used to make high-grade paper: its fibers produce the so-called “false horsehair,” even suitable for weaving. In some places they try to grow it specially.

■ Prominent British politician Winston Churchill is also known to few as an artist: he is believed to have painted his only painting during the Second World War in 1943 during his meeting with American President Theodore Roosevelt in Casablanca, watching from this Moroccan city the sun set over the Atlas Mountains mountains.

■ Even in extreme heat, reaching +40°C, local residents can be seen wearing warm jackets and knitted hats with a piece of cardboard instead of a visor. In hot and dry climates, warm clothing is no less useful than in cold weather.
■ Possibly in North Africa until the end of the 19th century. there was a bear. The Atlas brown bear lived in the area of ​​the Atlas Mountains and areas that have now become part of the Sahara Desert, as evidenced by fossil remains.
■ In one of the villages of the Atlas Mountains, the first film set of the film “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” was located. To adapt to filming at an altitude of more than 4000 m, the actors had to acclimatize.
■ In the Atlas Mountains there is an amazing butterfly - the atlas peacock-eye, whose wingspan can reach 30 cm, which is why from afar it is sometimes mistaken for a bird. It scares off its enemies with a specific coloring: the edge of the front wing is curved and colored in such a way that it resembles the head of a snake.
■ To help herd livestock and protect personal property, the Berbers of the Atlas Mountains have used a local breed of dog, the Atlas Shepherd, or Aidi, for hundreds of years. These human helpers are called differently in different parts of the country: Aidi - in Morocco, Kabyle dogs and Chauya - in Algeria.

This is a large mountain system, 2500 km long. The mountains stretch from the Atlantic coast of Morocco through Algeria and to Tunisia. Thus, the Atlas Mountains separate and protect the Mediterranean and Atlantic from the Sahara Desert and its high temperatures. The highest point of the mountains is in Morocco - the height of Mount Toubkal is 4167 meters, and in Tunisia the highest point - Mount Chaambi - reaches 1554 meters.

The name of this mountain range comes from the Greek myth, according to which the mighty Titan, nicknamed Atlas, held the vault of heaven on his shoulders as a punishment from the main god Zeus. According to the legend, for this Atlas was turned into a high mountain, and all the rocks around it became known as the Atlas Mountains.

In Tunisia, these rocks are almost devoid of vegetation and have a reddish color. They are interesting, first of all, for their oases. The first of them is Shebika, located north of the city of Tozeur. Once upon a time there was a small village in this area, but after three days of rain in 1969 it suffered a devastating flood that claimed hundreds of lives. Since then, no one has restored the destroyed village of Shebiku, and modern settlements have appeared closer to the valley. This area is notable for its small waterfall flowing straight from the rocks. The stream flowing from it flows along a narrow channel between the mountains, and then spills over the plain where the oasis lies. It is represented mainly by date palms and is irrigated thanks to a good irrigation system.

The second mountain oasis in the Atlas Mountains is located in Tamerz. It can be reached from Chebika along a 15 km long mountain road along the Algerian border. Like Shebika, Tamerza was heavily damaged during the 1969 flood. Now tourists can see here dilapidated houses, a snow-white mosque and the tomb of a marabout (saint). And the main attraction of the oasis is, of course, the Grand Cascade, which forms a natural pool. Tourists like to swim in it, as in Shebika.

You can also admire the beauty and grandeur of the Atlas Mountains by taking a ride on the legendary Red Lizard train. Back in the early 20th century, the Turkish Bey traveled on this train along with his retinue. The diesel locomotive consists of six different cars. Previously, the bey himself rode in one of them, his guards in another, his servants in a third, and so on. When equipping the train for tourist purposes, the engineers preserved its ancient appearance - some carriages are equipped with leather sofas, others with simple seats, like in an electric train.

The route of the tourist train starts from the city of Metlaoui, and the journey ends in Redeife - at the site of phosphate mining. The round trip lasts two hours, during which tourists can enjoy views of the rocky desert, oases, the Selja mountain gorge and canyons, and at the same time feel like residents of the Wild West.

A system of mountain ranges and intermountain plateaus within Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia (Maghreb countries), which is collectively called the Atlas Mountains and occupies the very north of the continent.

They were named so by the Greeks back in ancient times in honor of the mythical titan Atlas. The mountain range stretches from southwest to northeast for 2000 km, and is washed on three sides by the waters of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. In the south, the border with the Sahara is drawn along the foothills of the mountains. This part of the Alpine-Himalayan belt arose relatively recently and joined Africa as a result of the closure of the Tethys Ocean. The relief of the southern part of the region is formed on structures of Hercynian age, and the northern part - of Alpine age. The Atlas lies mainly within the subtropical zone and is strongly influenced by the Mediterranean Sea.

It is a mountainous country within the mobile belt, unlike most African regions. It is characterized by an echelon-like arrangement of ridges.

These are mainly mountains with average heights of 1200-1500 meters. The maximum height is the city of Toubkal in the High Atlas (4165 meters). The formation of folded structures began in the Hercynian time. Only the Anti-Atlas in the south is a block block within the margins of the ancient Sahara Plate. Most of the ridges (High, Middle, Saharan Atlas) are folded-block structures formed during a period of active tectonic activity in the Neogene, when the Hercynian folded structures were broken into blocks and uplifted. Volcanic eruptions occurred along fault lines. During the era of the Alpine orogeny, the huge Moroccan Meseta block advanced into the Atlas region, crushing limestone strata into steep folds. As a result, the folded Air Reef was formed with a Precambrian core in the axial zone. Tel Atlas arose somewhat earlier; in the east, within its boundaries, salt-bearing rocks of the Triassic were folded into folds. In the Anthropocene, neotectonic movements separated the Atlas system from Sicily. The fault that formed along the coast was accompanied by volcanism. Now this is a seismically troubled area. Between the Tel Atlas and the Saharan Atlas, within a tectonic basin on an ancient, rigid block, lies the High Plateau (sometimes called the Schott Plateau, or the Oran-Algerian Plateau). Thus, the surface structure of the Atlas system combines mountain ranges, high intermountain plateaus, and hilly plains composed of limestone, sandstone, and shale, which are broken through by intrusions. In the mountains, rocks are highly dislocated. The narrow coastal strip is occupied by a lowland, which expands somewhat within Tunisia.

The Atlas Mountains are characterized by strong erosional dissection. Eroded denudation inclined surfaces are widely represented; landslide, solifluction, and landslide-talus processes also occur. Proluvial plumes can be traced at the foot of the southern slopes. The Atlantic lowland is characterized by dune terrain.

The Atlas Mountains region has very diverse climatic conditions. In the north, a typical Mediterranean type of climate prevails, the interior regions are characterized by a high degree of continentality, and in the southern part the climate is tropical desert.

There is a big difference in the amount of precipitation: on the northern slopes in some places more than 1000 mm falls per year (mainly in winter), in the interior and on the leeward southern and southeastern slopes 200-400 mm, and on the border with the Sahara - 150-190 mm . There is a clearly expressed increase in aridity from west to east due to an increase in air dryness in the warm sectors of winter cyclones.

Temperature differences manifest themselves mainly in the winter season: in the Mediterranean part and in the south, average January temperatures are 10-12 ° C, on the Atlantic coast it is lower - about 5 ° C (the influence of the eastern periphery of the Azores high and the cold Canary Islands is affected), and in the interior regions up to There are negative temperatures 5 months a year, and the thickness of the snow cover in some places reaches two meters. Summer is hot (30-32°C), cooler (21-22°C) only in the Atlantic region. It is not uncommon, especially in spring, to experience strong hot Samum and Khamsin winds with sand and dust storms. in this case it can rise to 50°C.

The river network is poorly developed; most rivers do not have a permanent flow.

The winter flow of the largest rivers can reach up to 1000 m 3 /sec, and in summer it can be 1-5 m 3 /s6k.

On the internal plateaus there are drying up salt lakes - shottas (Tigr, Jerid, etc.).

The vegetation cover shows a transition from Mediterranean to tropical deserts.

In the north, forests characteristic of Mediterranean landscapes were widespread, with some types of evergreen oaks, olive, strawberry tree, Aleppo pine, thuja, Lebanese cedar, laurel, etc., which are now replaced by shrub formations - maquis, phrigana, thickets of dwarf palm (palmito ) or cultural landscapes. In Er Rif and Tel Atlas, above 1700 meters, mixed forests of summer-green Lusitanian oak, maple, pine, and Atlas cedar grow. A characteristic feature is the absence of beech, which is widespread in Europe. Above 2200 meters there are juniper thickets. The interior areas are occupied by semi-desert vegetation with a predominance of turf grasses alpha, drina, as well as wormwood and solyanka.

The soil cover corresponds to plant formations: brown carbonate soils of the Mediterranean, brown soils of mountain forests, gray-brown soils of dry steppes and semi-deserts. There are many salt marshes, and on the southern slopes there are gravelly hamad soils.

The fauna is characteristic of both the Mediterranean (macaque monkeys, mongooses, caracals, etc.) and tropical Africa (Barbary leopard, cheetah, jackal, panther); reptiles and birds are numerous. Mouflons, maned sheep, and hyraxes live in the mountains.

The region has reserves of various minerals - iron, tin, zinc, cobalt, molybdenum ores, all kinds of salts, and there is a deposit of phosphorites of world importance. have significant energy potential, but due to the extreme unevenness of flow, reservoirs have to be built to use it. The coast has recreational resources. Fertile soils and a favorable climate for agriculture in the north of the region allow many subtropical crops to be grown here - grapes, citrus fruits, fruit trees. Forests of cork oak, which produces the best cork in the world, and Atlas cedar, which produces excellent timber, are of industrial importance. Forest areas are currently greatly reduced.

The Atlas Mountains are a region of long-term development. Its nature has been greatly modified. Natural vegetation was poorly preserved, and forests were especially damaged. Previously, they occupied about a third of the area of ​​the countries in the region, now - 11%. Some tree species have been destroyed by 50-90%. Many animals have disappeared or are very few in number. In the Maghreb countries there are quite a large number of protected areas where relict groves of Atlas cedar, Numidian fir and other trees are protected. The most famous national parks, Toubkal and Jebel Bou Hedma, protect the mountain gazelle and maned sheep.