The East Saharan montane xeric woodlands form an archipelago of high mountains rising abruptly from the surrounding Sahel and southern Sahara, restricted to the Massif de l'Ennedi and Massif du Kapka in northeastern Chad and the nearby Jebel Marra massif in western Sudan. Cooler and wetter than the desert below, these uplands shelter relict Laperrine's olive trees (Olea europaea subsp. laperrinei) alongside Senegalia mellifera thorn trees in the canyons, riparian woodland, and a grass-and-herb flora typical of the Sahel belt. The climate is transitional and Sahelian, far drier on the lower slopes but receiving substantially more rain at higher altitudes, with most precipitation falling in the summer months. The ecoregion is a refuge for desert wildlife, with the red-fronted gazelle as its flagship species and a famous relict population of West African crocodiles, estimated at only around ten individuals, surviving in the permanent water of the Guelta Archei in the Ennedi. For gardeners, the hardy, drought-adapted Laperrine's olive is the standout native, a wild relative of the cultivated olive clinging on in these isolated mountain valleys.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 17.0°N, 23.0°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
11a-12b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
11b-13a
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.9°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Deserts & Xeric Shrublands
Realm
Palearctic
Approximate area
10,761 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the deserts & xeric shrublands biome
Arid and semi-arid lands where low, erratic rainfall and high evaporation limit vegetation to drought-adapted shrubs, succulents, and sparse grasses. Day-to-night temperature swings are large, and life is finely tuned to water scarcity.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 52
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other deserts & xeric shrublands ecoregions to explore: