Jbel Ayachi () is one of the highest mountains in North Africa, and anchors the Eastern

High Atlas The High Atlas, also called the Grand Atlas, is a mountain range in central Morocco, North Africa, the highest part of the Atlas Mountains. The High Atlas rises in the west at the Atlantic Ocean and stretches in an eastern direction to the Moro ...

in central

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. Jbel Ayachi rises to a height of 3,757 m above sea level. This mountain area provides a habitat to the

bearded vulture The bearded vulture (''Gypaetus barbatus''), also known as the lammergeier and ossifrage, is a very large bird of prey in the Monotypic taxon, monotypic genus ''Gypaetus''. The bearded vulture is the only known vertebrate whose diet consists of ...

Geography

Rather than denoting a single peak, Jbel Ayachi refers to a mountainous ''massif'' more than 20 kilometers in diameter. Conceptually a ring, the Ayachi region harbors a seasonal lake at its center and is surrounded by peaks and passes that often surpass 3000 m in elevation. During the 20th century, American climbers erected a large metal cone to mark the peak. Jbel Ayachi's second-highest peak is located in the southeast. Despite its proximity to the

Sahara Desert 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 ...

, the peaks of Ayachi remain snow-covered and cold late into the year. Snow remains on most of the peaks until late May or early June, and in a few sheltered spots may survive the entire summer. The government of Morocco published accurate topographical maps of the region in 1968, including contours, peaks, and some of the paths and springs. This can be purchased from the Division de Cartographie in major Moroccan cities. The Ayachi region is covered by the maps of the Midelt and Er-Rich districts.

Human geography

Formerly forested, the landscape has been severely affected by

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature ...

. Le déclin du Jbel Ayachi - Les moutons marocains sabotent une montagne
/ref> It is now dominated by sparse brush, loose stony soil, and sharply defined

wadis Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet ( ephemeral) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portions of alluvial fans and e ...

and ravines.

Nomadic Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the population of nomadic pa ...

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

have inhabited the mountains for many years, raising

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

and

goats The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the famil ...

and remaining largely isolated from the sedentary farmers and market towns of the plains. The

nomads Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, Nomadic pastoralism, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and Merchant, trader nomads. In the twentieth century, ...

often come into conflict with government foresters over the use of natural resources, especially trees. The heart of the nomadic community in Ayachi is the village of Tarhirat, which has no permanent dwellings but is centrally located and well-watered.

Features

References

External links

*
Trekking in Morocco - Jbel Toubkal, Jbel Mourik, Jbel Ayachi, Jbel M'Goun
{{Mountains of Morocco Ayachi Atlas Mountains

Geography

Human geography

Features

See also

References

External links