Eastern Desert

The Eastern Desert is an important natural region of Egypt, which is also known by the name of Arabian Desert. Though apparently, the desert in this part of Egypt is the same as that of the deserts of the Sinai Peninsula and the Western Desert, the soil is different. The region is differently composed of Volcanic rocks such as granite to the southern part and sedimentary rocks in the northern part. Also, the Eastern desert comprises of sharp mountains and hills of an average elevation of 1,900 meters. The Eastern desert region can be differentiated into the Red sea coast region, the desert region in between the sea and the hills and the Red sea hills.

This desert covers about 21 % of the total land area in Egypt but accounts for less than one percent of the total population count in Egypt. The chief inhabitants of the Eastern desert, since thousands of years, have been the nomadic tribes, popularly called Bedouins. They roam the desert and survive on its scant vegetation. Life in the Arabian Desert is harsh as there is no oasis and the temperature is scorching. Yet, there is no dearth of life forms. Nature has its own way of evolving depending on the place and the Eastern desert region is home to several endemic mammals and reptiles. Some of the fauna in the Eastern desert include the wild hares, gazelles, fennecs, ibex, gerbils, and hyrax.

Though the Eastern deserts are not much favorite to the majority of the Egyptian population, it is nevertheless rich in mineral deposits. The important mineral ores found in the region are tin, phosphate, manganese, quartz, emeralds, gold and uranium to name the most important of them all.