Choose one of the animals listed on the page, and write a brief description of its characteristics. Be sure to discuss any ways the animal has adapted to its environment.
The Fennec Fox and Jerboa
The fennec fox, which is about the size of a common house cat, is one of the mammals that lives in the Sahara. It is the smallest member of the Canidae family, which includes dogs and wolves. The fennec fox has extremely large ears, an adaptation that cools its body by shedding excess body heat. Its large ears also help it hear prey animals moving under the sand. The fennec fox digs tunnels in sand dunes and lives in them to escape the desert heat. At night, it hunts insects, lizards, rodents, and birds. It also eats leaves, fruits, and roots. Its light-colored fur helps it keep cool as well as blend in with the desert sand. Long hairs on the underside of its paws give it traction and insulate its paws from the hot sand.
A close-up of a fennec fox. The fox has large ears and a bushy tail.
The fennec fox’s large ears help it locate prey.
The four-toed jerboa, a mouse-like rodent, is another animal that lives in the Sahara. It has long hind legs that it uses to hop distances of up to 10 feet (3 m). It also has a very long tail that it uses for balance as it walks or hops. Because of these traits, jerboas look somewhat like tiny kangaroos. During the day, jerboas stay cool in underground burrows. They come out at night to eat seeds, insects, and tender parts of plants. Jerboas have large ears that help them detect the movements of predators that hunt them. They get most of the water they need from the food they eat.
The Horned Viper and Deathstalker Scorpion
Not all Saharan animals are as appealing as the fennec fox and the jerboa. The horned viper, for instance, is a venomous snake whose bite can kill humans. The snake can grow up to 2 feet long (61 cm), and its brownish coloring helps it blend in with its surroundings. The horned viper hunts by burrowing beneath the desert sand. Then it snares birds, lizards, and small mammals when they pass close to its hiding place. Lying beneath the sand also protects the horned viper from the sun. One of the snake’s most distinctive features is sidewinding, a sideways motion in which only part of the snake’s body is on the ground. This type of motion helps it move across unstable sands. Sidewinding also minimizes contact with the hot sand.
A horned viper snake. The snake has two horns on its head.
The horned viper’s “horns” are actually scales that stand up on its head.
The deathstalker scorpion is one of the most venomous scorpions on Earth. Its bite often causes death in humans. The deathstalker is a large scorpion, usually measuring 3 to 4 inches (80 to 110 mm) in length. Deathstalkers do not have good eyesight, so they use touch to navigate their surroundings. Deathstalkers have sensory organs that can detect vibrations in the sand. At night, when the scorpions are active, they find food by tracking vibrations from the motion of their prey. The scorpions feed on insects, worms, spiders, and other scorpions.
The Addax and Camel
Although the Sahara is very dry, larger mammals also manage to make their homes there. The addax, a species of antelope with long spiral horns, is the Sahara’s largest indigenous mammal. Addaxes weigh 132–275 pounds (60–125 kg) and are nearly 4 feet (1.2 m) tall, measured at the shoulder. They have large hooves that enable them to easily walk and run in sand. Addaxes get the water they need from their diet of grasses, bushes, and other plants. Herds of addaxes used to roam throughout the Sahara, but hunting and poaching have made them a critically endangered species.
The Sahara’s largest introduced mammal is the dromedary camel, which humans first brought to the area around 3,100 years ago. People used the camels to carry goods in trade caravans because they have adaptations that are useful in the desert. Camels’ feet are thickly padded, and they can walk easily in sand. During sandstorms they can close their nostrils. In addition, their eyes are protected by a double row of eyelashes. They store fat in their humps and can go without drinking water for many days.