Niger - Aïr et Ténéré

"Aïr et Ténéré Biosphere Reserve covers 24 million hectares in the north of Niger, in the Agadez region of the arid Saharan region. This area is one of the driest zones in the country and it encompasses two geographic regions. Aïr is a mountainous massif made of crystalline and volcanic rocks and was one of the first areas with metalworking by early mankind. Ténéré is made up of quaternary sands (fine alluviums, disc-shaped sands of aeolian origin and moving sand dunes). Several species of primates, such as olive baboon (Papio anubis), patas monkey (Erythrocebus patas), Cape Dassie (Procavia capensis) and carnivores (caracal, hyena) are relict populations of the area which date from the humid period of the Holocene era. Other species are in a precarious situation due to low population numbers, such as Loder’s gazelle (Gazella leptoceros), Dama gazelle (Gazella dama), addax and ostrich. The flora comprises about 300 higher plants. The area is also renowned for its numerous archaeological and pre-historic sites, with rock engravings indicative of ancient human settlement. Depending on the season, up to 39,000 inhabitants live within the biosphere reserve boundaries (1997), who are depending on camel and goat raising, agriculture, small businesses and handicrafts., Plundering of archaeological sites by tourists and poaching are two of the main problems the biosphere reserve is facing today." Source: UNESCO
Niger – Izouzadene – Blue Mountains is part of Air and Tenere National Park. Received this postcard from Niger.