Ennedi Plateau
The Ennedi Plateau is located in the northeast of Chad, in the regions of Ennedi-Ouest and Ennedi-Est. It is considered a part of the group of mountains known as the Ennedi Massif found in Chad, which is one of the nine countries that make up the Sahelian belt that spans the Atlantic Ocean to Sudan. The Ennedi is a sandstone bulwark in the middle of the Sahara, which was formed by erosion from wind and temperature. Many people occupied this area, such as hunters-gatherers and pastoralists. The Ennedi area is also known for its large collection of rock art depicting mainly cattle, as these animals had the greatest financial, environmental, and cultural impact. This art dates back nearly 7,000 years ago. Today, two semi-nomadic groups, mainly Muslim, live in the Ennedi during the rainy months and pass through the area during the dry season. They rely on their herds of camels, donkeys, sheep, and goats to survive.Landscape and climate
The Ennedi makes up an area of approximately 60,000 km2, as large as Switzerland, and its highest point is approximately 1,450 m above sea level. The Massif is composed of sandstone overlaying a Precambrian granite base. In the Ennedi, there are at least twenty perennial or semi-perennial springs, gueltas, and pools, but they rarely reach greater than a few dozen meters in the dry season. It is considered part of the Sahelian Acacia savanna, which extends across the entire continent which once contained diverse ungulates whose population has since been reduced. The landscape has geological structures, including towers, pillars, bridges, and arches, which serve as major tourist attractions. Interestingly, much of the sand found in the Sahara is due to the generation of dust in the Tibesti-Ennedi triangle.
Evidence of a change in climate occurred between 6000 BP, with a savanna region with ~250 mm annual rainfall, to ~150 mm annual rainfall 4300 BP. It later reached an annual rainfall of 50 mm around 2700 BP, similar to the amount of annual rainfall observed today. There are also monsoons common in the area, generating around 50–150 mm of rain per year. These natural disasters create a diverse mixture of vegetation within the area. However, precipitation allows for greater moisture in the thin soil during the winter months, with lower run-off. The mountains are also known to have a north-Sahelian climate in the southern region, with greater amounts of precipitation between the months of May and September. The rainfall is subject to the Intertropical Convergence Zone.History of protection
Just under one-tenth of World Heritage Sites are in Africa, but the site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site in February 2016. During this process, there was much debate over what should be included. First of all, two administration zones and several villages had to reach agreement on whether it was considered a part of the World Heritage Site. However, its establishment has benefited Chad by increasing income in the area from tourists who spend money to stay. Also, the Chadian government eventually reduced the size of the protected area due to oil exploration. The Ennedi suffers from high income inequality, so the use of oil reserves has allowed for better redistribution of wealth. There is believed to have been a partnership contract between the State Party and oil companies for oil exploration and the private lease of land which have raised concerns regarding the reduced amount of protected area by UNESCO. As a result to this increase in oil exploitation, there have been accidental oil spills in Chad, leaving the contamination of groundwater, accidental chemical spills, and the reduction in air quality.
African Parks assumed management of this area in partnership with the Chadian government in early 2018. African Parks intends to improve the park's infrastructure and explore the potential for tourism to amass support for this landscape and to contribute to the needs of the local people. The European Union contributed €4.7 million to African Parks, and the Dutch Postcode Lottery gave around €3 million over three years to this organization. Furthermore, about, a large portion of the Ennedi Plateau, was designated as the Ennedi Natural and Cultural Reserve by the Chadian government in January 2019.
The World Bank has also worked with the Chadians by recommending the oil-revenues-management-and-redistribution program, which states that “70% of direct oil revenues are to be allocated to priority sectors, 15% to public investments, 5% to the oil-producing department, and 10% to future generations.” However, the Chadian government has already been criticized for not abiding by the program.Geology
The plateau consists of Cambrian-Ordivician to Carboniferous sandstone on the north-facing Gondwana platform. The sandstone overlies the Pan-African basement consisting of granites, gneiss, or quartzite ridges. Glacial lineations, plus ridge-and-trough topography, record the Andean-Saharan glaciation.Fauna
Unfortunately, not a lot of studies have been conducted on Northern Chad due to security issues, harsh climatic conditions, wars, and banditry. However, researchers have found that due to a large reservoir in the area, the plateau has a rich collection of fauna. For example, there are at least 199 listed species of migratory birds that pass through the Ennedi. Other examples of fauna include the West African crocodile, also known as the desert crocodile, that once existed throughout the Sahara at a time of more abundant rainfall. A striking characteristic of this population of crocodiles is dwarfism, which developed due to their isolation, making them unusual. They survive in only a few pools in river canyons in the area, for example, the Guelta d'Archei, and are threatened with extinction. The last lions in the Sahara also survived here until they became extinct in the 1940s due to increased land use and hunting/poaching. Dorcas gazelles are still found in small numbers, but the two largest Saharan antelopes scimitar-horned oryx and addax were both hunted to extinction in Ennedi, the oryx was declared extinct in the wild in 2000, both species have been successfully reintroduced to Ouadi Rime-Ouadi Achim Faunal Reserve in central Chad, in December 2023 African Parks and Sahara Conservation, moved the first batch of 10 addax from OROA to Ennedi and released them into the reserve, more will be brought to Ennedi in the coming years, oryx reintroduction is also planned. Any surviving Sudan cheetah still alive in the wild are likely to be found in the remote regions of the Ennedi Plateau. Researchers used camera traps to identify an isolated population of North African ostrich that was discovered to still be living in the protected area. To bolster this population, African Parks rehomed 11 ostrich chicks from Zakouma National Park to the reserve. The chicks were kept in a holding facility until they reached adulthood, before being released into the greater area. There are currently 25 ostriches in Ennedi as of 2022. It has been suggested that the cryptid Ennedi tiger may also live there. Gazelles and antelopes are also known to be present in the area. Poaching and hunting have decreased the number of species in the area. Lastly, the discovery of the fish species P. senegalus and P. normani are of particular interest to researchers. The identification of these species in the Sahara desert shows the connection between the Ounianga lakes and Lake Chad. The researchers sampled during the day and the night with landing nets and other observations to conduct their study. Finally, there are only seven species of fish found in the Ennedi, according to researcher Daget.Flora
A total number of 2,173 species of flora are native to Chad, and some of the first flora researchers in the area back in the 1950s included R. Corti, H. Gillet, R. Maire, and P. Quézel. There are currently over 525 species of flora that have been listed in the Ennedi. Specifically, researcher Gillet used a classification system to describe 7 main life forms for the 526 species of flora found: 41.3% therophytes, 3.0% geophytes, 5.1% helophytes, 1.1% hydrophytes, 7.0% hemicryptophytes, 18.4% chamaephytes, 15.1% phanerophytes. Unusual species, including Rauwolfia afra, a type of tree typically found in tropical and equatorial Africa, is found in the Ennedi. Much of the vegetation is protected by the presence of deep canyons and gueltas. Only 2% of Chadian land is currently cultivated, about 50% is grazed, and cereal grains make up the main food groups. During arid periods, this site serves as a refuge for subtropical taxa, such as palms and grasses. The most common types of soils in Chad include Leptosols, Regosols, and Arenosols in the central and northern regions, and Fluvisols, Plinthosols, Planosols, Solonchaks, and Vertisols in the southern region. The Desert Locust is known for its deleterious impacts on the local flora, specifically crops and pastures.Culture
While there is a lack of absolute dates concerning the Ennedi rock art, the images can be dated from around 5000 BC onwards. The archaeological record and sites' rock art allow researchers to generate these dates because there is, unfortunately, a lack of organic materials. For instance, only one cattle jaw was found from around 630 BC. However, researchers continue to use radiocarbon dates from both charcoal and other cattle bones to age these sites. In addition, there are around six sites, and around 40 pictures have been found. Examples of petroglyphs or rock paintings have been found in the area, such as those at the "lost sight" of Niola Doa. Thousands of paintings and carvings of people and animals exist throughout the area and are estimated to be about 8,000 years old. Much of the art has been recognized with its great expression through color, with more than 86% of the art painted and 14% engraved. The art was found on the floors, on the ceilings, and the walls of shelters created by wind erosion, and they are often found in elevated positions.