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Gebel Elba
Mountains and Wadis of the Eastern Desert
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Gebel Uweinat and  Gilf Kebir
Sands and Dunes of  the Western Desert
Western Desert Depressions and Oases
Western Desert Mediterranean Coast
Mediterranean Marine  Habitats
 

Although the Western Desert is essentially a flat rocky plateau, much of its vast expanse is covered by eolian (wind blown) sand and the Great Sand Sea of Egypt is part of one of the largest sand-covered areas on earth. The Great Sand Sea extends from the Libyan border west of Siwa Oasis in a generally southerly direction touching the oases of Farafra and Dakhla on the east and ending at the Gilf Kebir at its southernmost tip.
      The sand dunes, which cover a large part of the Western Desert, have a variety of forms and complexity that depend on the wind regime and sand abundance. In the north, longitudinal dunes known as seif (sword) or irq predominate, while to the south barchan or crescent-shaped dunes are more common. Some other forms, such as parallel wavy dune complexes are found but are less common. Dunes move at a more or less fixed rate in the direction of the prevailing wind. Thus, the southernmost fingers of the Great Sand Sea are encroaching on the wadis of Gilf Kebir.
      Between large longitudinal seif dunes there are often inter-dune valleys that can support a wealth of plant and animal life. Mobile dune types are less well supplied with wildlife. Phytogenic mounds that form round such plants as Nitraria retusa, Calligonum comosum or Tamarix spp. add greatly to this habitat's diversity and create niches for animals and birds.
      The waterless expanse of this desert is home to an assemblage of animals that are well adapted to living without water and gain their moisture from their food. Many animals have evolved behavioral or morphological features that enable them to survive the extremely hot climate or for locomotion on soft sand. The Lesser Sand Viper, Cerastes vipera, which can easily be confused with hornless specimens of the Horned Viper, Cerastes cerastes, is only found in sandy habitats. Another denizen of the sands is the Sandfish, Scincus scincus, so named because of its habit of "swimming" through the sand.
      A number of birds inhabit the sands especially the Hoopoe Lark, Alaemon alaudipes, which is easily distinguished from other larks by the long, slightly curved bill that gives it its name and also by its remarkable display flight.
      Mammals of the region include the now extremely rare Slender-horned Gazelle, Gazella leptoceros. This animal lives largely on such plants as Nitraria retusa, Cornulaca monacantha and Calligonum comosum. An immensely appealing animal of the sands is the tiny Fennec Fox, Vulpes zerda, which may be one of the most well adapted desert carnivores in the world. They dig rather deep burrows so that exposure to heat during the day is reduced to a minimum and appear to be the only desert carnivores that can live entirely without water. In the southwest of the Great Sand Sea, immediately to the north of Gilf Kebir, the curious phenomenon known as Libyan Desert silica glass is found. The pieces of glass can be pale green or creamy in color, can be clear or opaque and weigh from a few grams to seven or eight kilograms. These beautiful pieces of glass, lying between the sand dunes, are natural formations and studies during most of the twentieth century have failed to reveal their origin. In 1998, it was discovered that a giant lime-green scarab, the centerpiece of King Tutankhamun's jeweled, ceremonial pectoral was not, as had previously been thought, made of chalcedony but was Libyan Desert silica glass.
 
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Long-footed Lizard, Acanthodactylus longipes

The long digits of this lizard are fringed with scales, which give it its name. It occupies soft sand dunes where it can move extremely fast in order to evade predators. During the heat of the day it will stand on tiptoe to avoid its body making contact with the hot sand. It subsists mainly on small insects.