Ethiopian Highlands with Ras Dashan in the background.

The Ethiopian Highlands are a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia, Eritrea (which is sometimes referred to as the Eritrean Highlands), and northern Somalia (Somaliland) in northeastern Africa. The Ethiopian Highlands form the largest continuous area of its altitude in the whole continent, with little of its surface falling below 1500 m (5000 ft), while the summits reach heights of 4600 m to 4900 m (15,000 to 16,000 ft). It is sometimes called the Roof of Africa for their height and large area covered.^[1] Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2848 × 2136 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2848 × 2136 pixel, file size: 1. ... Ras Dashan is the highest mountain in Ethiopia reaching an elevation of 4,623 metres (15,158 ft). ... Teff field at the base of a small hill in the Eritrean Highlands. ... Motto لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله  (Arabic) Lā ilāhā illā-llāhu; muhammadun rasÅ«lu-llāhi  (transliteration) There is no God but Allah; Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah And also : Justice, Peace, Freedom, Democracy and Success for All Anthem Saamo ku waar Capital Hargeisa (1941-1960) (1991-present) Official languages Somali and... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ...

The Highlands are divided into northwestern and southeastern portions by the Great Rift Valley, which contains a number of salt lakes. The northwestern portion, which covers the Tigray and Amhara Regions, includes the Semien Mountains, part of which has been designated a national park. Its highest peak, Ras Dashan (4533 m), is the highest peak in Ethiopia and the fourth-highest in Africa. Lake Tana, the source of the Blue Nile, also lies in the northwestern portion. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Map of Ethiopia highlighting the Tigray region. ... Map of Ethiopia highlighting the Amhara region. ... The Simien Mountains lie in northern Ethiopia, north east of Gonder. ... Semien Mountains National Park is one of the National Parks of Ethiopia. ... Ras Dashan is the highest mountain in Ethiopia reaching an elevation of 4,623 metres (15,158 ft). ... Lake Tana (also spelled Tana, Amharic: ጣና ሐይቅ Ṭānā Hāyḳ,Lake Tana, originally Tsana, Geez ጻና Ṣānā; sometimes called Dembiya after the region to the north of the lake) is the source of the Blue Nile and is the largest lake in Ethiopia. ... Map of the Blue Nile (in Spanish) The Blue Nile (Amharic: ዓባይ; transliterated: ʿAbbay, but pronounced Abbay; Arabic: النيل الأزرق; transliterated: an-Nīl al-Āzraq) is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. ...

The southeastern portion's highest peaks are located in the Bale Zone of Ethiopia's Oromia Region. The Bale Mountains, also designated a national park, are nearly as high those of Semien, with peaks over 4000 m, such as Tullu Demtu (4337 m and the second-highest peak in Ethiopia) and Batu (4307 m). Bale is one of the 12 Zones in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. ... Map of Ethiopia highlighting the Oromia region. ... The Bale Mountains are a range of mountains in the Oromia Region of southeast Ethiopia, south of the Awash River. ... The Bale Mountains National Park is a national park in the oromia region of southeast Ethiopia. ...

Geology

The Ethiopian Highlands began to rise 75 million years ago, as magma from the earth's mantle uplifted a broad dome of the ancient rocks of the African Craton. The opening of the Great Rift Valley split the dome of the Ethiopian Highlands into three parts; the mountains of the southern Arabian Peninsula are geologically part of the ancient Ethiopian Highlands, separated by the rifting which created the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and separated Africa from Arabia. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Arabian Peninsula Emirets towers in United Arab Emirates; the eastern part of Arabian Penisula The Arabian Peninsula (in Arabic: شبه الجزيرة العربية, or جزيرة العرب) is a peninsula in Southwest Asia at the junction of Africa and Asia consisting mainly of desert. ... Location of the Red Sea The Red Sea is an inlet of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia. ... Gulf of Aden in 1860 The Gulf of Aden (Arabic: خليج عدن; transliterated: Khalyj Adan) is located in the Indian Ocean between Yemen on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula and Somalia in Africa. ...

Around 30 million years ago, a flood basalt plateau began to form, piling layers upon layers of voluminous fissure-fed basaltic lava flows. Most of the flows were tholeiitic basalts, save for a thin layer of alkali basalts and minor amounts of felsic (high-silica) volcanic rocks, such as rhyolite. In the waning stages of the flood basalt episode, large explosive caldera-forming eruptions also occurred. Moses Coulee showing multiple flood basalt flows of the Columbia River Basalt Group. ... Basalt Basalt (IPA: ) is a common gray to black extrusive volcanic rock. ... Tholeiite (or Tholeiitic basalt) is a type of basalt rock that is olivine-poor, and dominated by clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and iron ore. ... Felsic is a term used in geology to refer to silicate minerals, magmas, and rocks which are enriched in the lighter elements such as silica, oxygen, aluminium, sodium, and potassium. ... Rhyolite This page is about a volcanic rock. ... Satellite image of Santorini. ...

The Ethiopian Highlands eventually became bisected by the Great Rift Valley, as the African continental crust pulled apart. This rifting gave rise to large alkali basalt shield volcanoes beginning about 25-29 million years ago.^[2] This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Recently a large fissure has formed in the Afar desert. This fissure is about 15 feet wide and 37 miles long and will form a new sea in a few million years, separating the northeast part of Ethiopia from the rest of the country. MODIS satellite image of the Afar Depression and surrounding regions of the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabia, and the Horn of Africa. ...

Ecology

Because the highlands elevate Ethiopia, located close to the equator, this has resulted in giving this country an unexpectedly temperate climate. Further, these mountains catch the precipitation of the monsoon winds of the Indian Ocean, resulting in a rainy season that lasts from June until mid-September.^[3] These heavy rains cause the Nile to flood in the summer, a phenomenon that puzzled the ancient Greeks. World map showing the equator in red In tourist areas, the equator is often marked on the sides of roads The equator marked as it crosses Ilhéu das Rolas, in São Tomé and Príncipe. ... Monsoon in the Vindhya mountain range, central India A monsoon is a rainy season which lasts for several months and has lasting climatic effects. ... The wet season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. ... The Nile (Arabic: , transliteration: , Ancient Egyptian iteru, Coptic piaro or phiaro) is a major north-flowing river in Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. ... Ancient Greece is the term used to describe the Greek_speaking world in ancient times. ...

The Ethiopian Highlands share a similar flora and fauna of other mountainous regions of Africa; this distinctive flora and fauna is known as Afromontane. The Highlands are home to a number of endemic species, such as the Walia Ibex and Ethiopian Wolf. Afromontane is a term used to describe the plant and animal species common to the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. ... In biology and ecology endemic means exclusively native to a place or biota, in contrast to cosmopolitan or introduced. ... Binomial name Capra walie Rüppell, 1835 The Walia Ibex (Capra walie) is a species of Ibex that is critically endangered. ... Binomial name Canis simensis Ruppell, 1840 Map of the range of the Ethiopian Wolf. ...

At lower elevations, the highlands are surrounded by tropical savannas and grasslands, including the Sahelian Acacia savanna to the northwest, the East Sudanian savanna to the west, and the Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets to the northeast, east, south, and through the Rift Valley. Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands are a grassland biome located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and tropical latitudes. ... The location of Sahel in Africa The Sahel (from Arabic ساحل, sahil, shore, border or coast of the Sahara desert) is the boundary zone in Africa between the Sahara to the north and the more fertile region to the south, known as the Sudan (not to be confused with the country... The East Sudanian savanna is a tropical savanna ecoregion of central Africa. ...

The highlands themselves are divided into three distinct ecoregions, distinguished by elevation. The Ethiopian montane forests lie between 1,100 and 1,800 meters elevation, above the lowland grasslands and savannas. This woodland belt has several plant communities. Kolla, is an open woodland found at lower elevations, and dominated by species of Terminalia, Commiphora, Boswellia, and Acacia. Weyna dega is a woodland found in moister and higher locations, dominated by the conifers Afrocarpus gracilior and Juniperus procera. The lower portion of the Harenna forest is a distinct woodland community, with an open canopy of Warburgia ugandensis, Croton macrostachyus, and Syzygium guineense, and Afrocarpus gracilior, with wild coffee (Coffea arabica) as the dominant understory shrub. Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species Boswellia sacra (aka or )Boswellia frereana Boswellia papyrifera Boswellia serrata Boswellia is a genus of trees known for their fragrant resin which has many pharmacological uses particularly as anti-inflamatories. ... Species About 1,300; see List of Acacia species Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Linnaeus in 1773. ... Orders & Families Cordaitales † Pinales   Pinaceae - Pine family   Araucariaceae - Araucaria family   Podocarpaceae - Yellow-wood family   Sciadopityaceae - Umbrella-pine family   Cupressaceae - Cypress family   Cephalotaxaceae - Plum-yew family   Taxaceae - Yew family Vojnovskyales † Voltziales † The conifers, division Pinophyta, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. ... Binomial name Afrocarpus gracilior (Pilg. ... Binomial name Juniperus procera Hochst. ... Binomial name Coffea arabica L. Coffea arabica is a species of coffee indigenous to Ethiopia. ...

The Ethiopian montane grasslands and woodlands occupies the area between 1800 and 3000 meters elevation. The natural vegetation was closed-canopy forest in moister areas, and grassland, bushland, and thicket in drier areas. A few areas of natural vegetation remain. Drier areas covered with forests of the forest consists of Podocarpus falcatus and Juniperus procera, often with Hagenia abyssinica. In the Harenna forest, pockets of moist, closed-canopy forest with Aningeria and Olea are draped with lianas and epiphytes, while above 2400 meters, a shrubby zone is home to Hagenia, Schefflera, and giant lobelias. The evergreen broadleaved forest of the Semien Mountains, between 2,300 and 2,700 meters elevation, is dominated by Syzygium guineense, Juniperus procera, and Olea africana. Binomial name Hagenia abyssinica Willd. ... Species Olea is a genus of about 20 species in the family Oleaceae, native to warm temperate and tropical regions of southern Europe, Africa, southern Asia and Australasia. ... A liana is woody climber. ... Near Orosí, Costa Rica Epiphytes on a tree near Santa Elena in Costa Rica An example of an epiphyte assemblage of orchids and bromeliads in a garden setting in Hawaii An epiphyte is any plant that grows upon or attached to another living plant. ... Schefflera is a plant in the family Araliaceae. ... Species See text. ... The Simien Mountains lie in northern Ethiopia, north east of Gonder. ...

Above 3000 meters elevation lie the Ethiopian montane moorlands, the largest afroalpine region in Africa. The montane moorlands lie above tree line, and consists of grassland and moorland with abundant herbs and some shrubs. The Ethiopian Wolf is endemic to the montane moorlands, and is critically endangered. Afromontane is a term used to describe the plant and animal species common to the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. ... Moorland in the Pennines (England); Coarse grasses and bracken tend to dominate especially in high rainfall areas. ...

See also

• Geography of Ethiopia

Map of Ethiopia Ethiopia is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered on the north and northeast by Eritrea, on the east by Djibouti and Somalia, on the south by Kenya, and on the west and southwest by Sudan. ...

References

External links

• Ethiopian montane forests (World Wildlife Fund)
• Ethiopian montane grasslands and woodlands (World Wildlife Fund)
• Ethiopian montane moorlands (World Wildlife Fund)
• Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme

Coordinates: 12°31′60″N, 41°23′8″E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...