Climate - Vegetation Afro-Asian Mediterranean and Red Sea Coastal La
Deserts are unique ecosystems with their own biotic and abiotic components, and are often rich in renewable natural resources, the appropriate management of which can contribute significantly to the sustainable management of desert regions for the welfare
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Afro-Asian Mediterranean Coastal Lands
1.1 Introduction The Mediterranean gave birth to the whole world: all the world is her debt (Semple, 1932). Modern civilization traces back to seeds of culture-matured in the circle of the Mediterranean lands and transplanted thence to other countries whence they have been disseminated over the world. The Mediterranean Sea with its bordering lands has been a melting-pot for the peoples and civilization, which have rushed into it from continental hinterlands. It has been a catchment basin, and also a disturbutionary’s center for its composite cultural achievements. This double role in history is an outgrowth of its geographical location and its relation to the neighboring continents. Because of its geography and history, the Mediterranean Basin is an unique original region: the sea itself (Mediterranean means “in the midst of the land”), the complex and tortuose of landscape that surrounds it. Its unique climate, have all influenced the extraordinary development of the prehistoric civilization along its shores. Such development has deeply marked an irreversible-fragile environment with limited resources. Branigan and Jarrett (1975) stated that a significant role in the evolution of a succession of civilization have been played by the Mediterranean Sea and its surrounding lands. To Mesopotamia, Babylon, Syria, Palestine and Egypt, the Mediterranean was the Great Sea, their knowledge being confined to the Levant. To the ancient Greeks it became Mare Interim, “the interior sea” and later the Italians named it Mare nostrum (our sea). The name “Mediterranean” generally used at the beginning of the Christian era. It describes this almost landlocked sea and gives some prominence to the terra, the land that surrounds it. We may quote what is written by Semple (1932): Mediterranean civilization has given the world standards. These are embodied in classical culture and Christianity, and still represent ideals of achievement and conduct. The new faith born of a narrow tribal beliefs from the hill country of Judea and Galilee, emerged as a principle of universal brother-hood from the gradual calming of local religious incidents to an active intercourse between all parts of the Mediterranean Basin under the Pax Romana. The Mediterranean Basin with its fantastic variety of landscapes, people, plants and animals, is one of the most complex regions on Earth in terms of geological,
M.A. Zahran, Climate–Vegetation, Plant and Vegetation 4, C Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010 DOI 10.1007/978-90-481-8595-5_1,
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1 Afro-Asian Mediterranean Coastal Lands
history, geographic, morphology and natural history. It is characterized by various habitats: high mountains, seashores, coastal wetlands, desert wadis, coastal dunes, small islets, dry scrublands, moist fir forests, grasslands etc. Diversity of living organisms between these habitats is obvious (Blondel and Aronson, 1999). The Mediterranean climate is characterized by prolonged and intense summer drought of at least 2 or 3 and up t
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