The Hoggar Mountains (;

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

: ''idurar n Ahaggar'') are a

highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

region in the central

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

in southern

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

, along the

Tropic of Cancer The Tropic of Cancer, also known as the Northern Tropic, is the Earth's northernmost circle of latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. This occurs on the June solstice, when the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun ...

. The mountains cover an area of approximately 550,000 km². The Hoggar Mountains are home to the Ahaggar National Park. The tallest peak in the range and Algeria, Mount Tahat, is located in the park area, which covers approximately .

Geography

This mountainous region is located about south of the capital,

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

. The area is largely rocky

desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...

with an average elevation of more than above sea level. The highest peak, Mount Tahat, is at . The mountains are primarily composed of metamorphic rock approximately 2 billion years old, although there are areas where more recent volcanic activity has laid down much newer rock. Several of the more dramatic peaks, such as Ilamen, are the result of erosion wearing away extinct volcano domes, leaving behind the more resistant material that plugged the volcanic cones. HoggarTopography

Assekrem is a famous and often visited point where Charles de Foucauld built a hermitage in 1911. The highlands are believed to be one of the main sources of the Tamanrasset River, an ancient river that flowed during the African humid period, and named after the main city near the Hoggar Mountains, Tamanrasset, built in a desert valley or wadi that was part of the ancient watercourse.

Environment

The Hoggar Mountains range typically experiences hot summers, with a cold winter climate. Temperatures fall below freezing in the winter. Rainfall is rare and sporadic year-round. However, since the climate is less extreme than in most other areas of the Sahara, the mountains are a major location for

biodiversity Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...

, including a number of relict species. The Hoggar Mountains are part of the West Saharan montane xeric woodlands

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

Flora and fauna

Vegetation in this area includes trees such as '' Vachellia tortilis'', '' Vachellia seyal'', '' myrtle'' and ''

Tamarix aphylla ''Tamarix aphylla'' is the largest known species of '' Tamarix'', with heights up to . The species has a variety of common names, including Athel tamarisk, Athel tree, and Athel pine. It is an evergreen tree, native across North, East, and Centr ...

'' which are scattered throughout the area. Other plants may include '' Citrullus colocynthis'' and '' Calotropis procera''. Slightly to the west of the Hoggar range, a population of the endangered African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus'') remained viable into the 20th century, but is now thought to be

extirpated Local extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinctions. Local extinctions mark a chan ...

within this entire region. Relict populations of the West African crocodile persisted in the Hoggar Mountains until the early 20th century. Analysis of collected scat in 2006 showed the presence of the Northwest African cheetah in the region. Between August 2008 and November 2010, four individuals were recorded by camera traps. A single cheetah was filmed and photographed by Algerian naturalists in 2020 in the national park in the Atakor volcanic field. The park also contains a population of herbivores such as the saharan subspecies of the barbary sheep and the Dorcas gazelle. The park has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

because it supports significant populations of spotted, crowned and Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse, Pharaoh eagle-owls, pallid harriers, greater hoopoe-larks, bar-tailed and desert larks, pale rock martins, fulvous babblers, white-crowned and mourning wheatears, desert sparrows and trumpeter finches.

History

Prehistoric settlement is evident from extant rock paintings dating to 6000 BC. The Hoggar

Massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

is the land of the Kel Ahaggar Tuareg. The

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

of Tin Hinan, the woman believed to be the matriarch of the Tuareg, is located at Abalessa, an oasis near Tamanrasset. The hermitage of Charles de Foucauld, which continues to be inhabited by a few Catholic monks, is at the top of the Assekrem plateau in the Hoggar Mountains. Underground atomic tests were conducted by France in the mountains in the 1960s.

References

External links

A website about the parkPark data on UNEP-WPMCAhaggar National Park - The Biodiverse Home of the Saharan Cheetah
{{Authority control National parks of Algeria Important Bird Areas of Algeria Mountain ranges of Algeria Saharan rock art Sahara Tuareg Geography of Tamanrasset Province Volcanoes of Algeria Tourist attractions in Tamanrasset Province