Map showing the location of the Atlas Mountains across North Africa (topographic and political)

The Middle Atlas (Arabic: الأطلس المتوسط) is part of the Atlas mountain range lying in Morocco, a mountainous country with more than 100,000 km or 22% of the surface rising above 2,000 meters. The Middle Atlas is the westernmost of three Atlas Mountains chains that define a large plateaued basin extensing eastward into Algeria. South of the Middle Atlas and separated by the Moulouya and Oum Er-Rbia rivers, the High Atlas stretches for 700 km with a succession of peaks among which ten reach above 4,000 meters. North of the Middle Atlas and separated by the Sebou River, the Rif mountains are an extension of the Baetic Cordillera (Baetic mountains, which include the Sierra Nevada) in the south of Spain. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (3755x1884, 1279 KB) Summary Updated Map of North Africa showing Mountains ranges and political boundaries. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (3755x1884, 1279 KB) Summary Updated Map of North Africa showing Mountains ranges and political boundaries. ... Arabic ( or just ) is the largest living member of the Semitic language family in terms of speakers. ... Map showing the location of the Atlas Mountains (colored red) across North Africa The Atlas Mountains (Arabic: ‎) are a mountain range in northwest Africa extending about 2,400 km (1,500 miles) through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and including The Rock of Gibraltar. ... Moulouya River (Wadi Muluya) is a 520 km long river in Morocco. ... Oum Er-Rbia (Arabic: ‎, the mother of spring), is a river in central Morocco. ... Village in the high atlas High Atlas, also called the Grand Atlas Mountains (or Haut Atlas), is a mountain range in central Morocco. ... Sebou is a river in northern Morocco. ... This is about a region in Morocco: RIF is also an acronym/initialism. ... The Baetic Cordillera is a mountain system in southern Spain. ... Situation of Sierra Nevada in the Iberian Peninsula. ...

Snow persists in the Middle Atlas in the winter and can appear starting at 600 m above sea level. It is a green and rainy area, with some forests. Its rock coast, particularly beautiful, is not very hospitable. The basin of the Sebou is not only the primary transportation route between Atlantic Morocco and Mediterranean Morocco but is an area, watered by the Middle Atlas range, that constitutes the principal agricultural region of the country.

Relief

Jebel Ayachi Middle Moroccan atlas - Morocco

The Middle Atlas provinces cover 23,000 km² in area, and comprise 18% of the total mountaineous surface of Morocco. The provinces of Khènifra, Ifrane, Boulmane, Sefrou, El Hajeb as well as parts of the provinces of Taza and of Beni Mellal lie in the Middle Atlas region. Béni Mellal on the Oum Er-Rbia River is designated "the doorway to the Middle Atlas." Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 532 pixelsFull resolution (1024 × 681 pixel, file size: 205 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Uploaded from the French site. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 532 pixelsFull resolution (1024 × 681 pixel, file size: 205 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Uploaded from the French site. ... Ifrane (Arabic: ‎) is a town and ski resort in the Middle Atlas region of Morocco. ... Beni-Mellal is located at the foot of the mount Tassemit (2247m), in Dir of Tadla. ...

The Middle Atlas is a solid mountainous mass of 350 km in length in the North-East of Morocco with a unique charm. Its wealth of biodiversity, both in fauna and flora, make Middle Atlas a popular tourist destination.

Its geo-mophologic structure is:

• Primarily comprised of limestone.
• Tabled rock in the west, running to elevations of 800 to 1,000 meters.
• Folded rock toward the north-east and running to elevations exceeding 3,000 m, with a highest point, the jbel Bou Naceur at 3,340 m.
• Interspersed with volcanic plateaus.

Over the mountains slopes, extensive forests of cedar spread, intersected by deep valleys. Species Cedrus deodara Cedrus libani    var. ...

Area of cedars of Khénifra

Bordered by the rich Plaine du Saïs and the cities of Fes, Meknes and Beni Mellal, the mountainous reaches of the Middle Atlas are the stronghold of Berber tribes, speaking Tamazight and living at very low population densities. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Bab Bou Jeloud, gate to the Old Medina of Fes Leather dyeing vats in Fes For specific travel tips, see the entry on Fez at http://wikitravel. ... Medresa Bou Inania in Meknes Meknes (Arabic: مكناس) is a city in northern Morocco, located 130 kilometres from the capital Rabat and 60 kilometres from Fes. ... Beni-Mellal is located at the foot of the mount Tassemit (2247m), in Dir of Tadla. ... The Amazighs (also called Berber people or Imazighen (ⵉⵎⴰⵣⵉⵖⴻⵏ), free men, singular Amazigh) are an ethnic group autochthonous to Northwest Africa and speak various Berber languages. ... The Berber languages (or Tamazight) are a group of closely related languages mainly spoken in Morocco and Algeria. ...

The Middle Atlas is crossed by one of the principal access roads to the south Marocain, connecting Fes with Tafilalet. Located at the North-East of Atlas. The Middle Atlas ends in the east at Tazekka National Park^[1], with a landscape replete with narrow canyons and caves. In the south of Sefrou, the forests of cedars, of Holm oak and of Cork Oak alternate with plates volcanoic stripped and small full of fish lakes. The jewel of the Middle Atlas is it Ifrane National Park, located in causse atlassic between Khenifra and Ifrane. Tafilalt or Tafilet (Arabic: ) is a region and the most important oasis of the Moroccan Sahara; it is also considered one of the largest oasis in the world, the oasis is entirely located along the Ziz River. ... The Tazekka National Park of Morroco was created in 1950 with an initial area of 6. ... Binomial name Quercus ilex L. The Holm Oak Quercus ilex L., also called Holly oak or Evergreen Oak, is a large evergreen oak native to the Mediterranean region. ... Binomial name Quercus suber L. The Cork Oak (Quercus suber) is a medium sized, evergreen oak tree in the section Quercus sect. ... For other uses, see Volcano (disambiguation). ... Khénifra Khenifra (Arabic: خنيفرة) is a town in northern Morocco, in the Atlas Mountains. ... Ifrane (Arabic: ‎) is a town and ski resort in the Middle Atlas region of Morocco. ...

Points of highest elevation

The Middle Atlas high point is Jbel Bou Naceur (3340 m), then Jbel Mouâsker (3277 m), in the North, and finally Jbel Bou Iblane (3172 m), which lies close to Immouzer Marmoucha.

Climate

Because of its elevation, the Middle Atlas experiences snow during the winter months and a cool climate during the summer. The town of Ifrane enjoys sufficient snow during the winter months that it provides accommodations quite rare in Africa; it is a ski resort.

Major Catchments

The Middle Atlas includes four major catchment areas:

• Le basin of Sebou: of a surface of approximately 40,000 km², discharging to the Atlantic Ocean.
• Le basin of Oum Errabiaa: extends on a surface from 35,000 km², discharging to the Atlantic Ocean.
• Le basin of Bouregreg: cover a surface of about 10,000 km², discharging to the Atlantic Ocean.
• Le basin of Moulouya: takes its source in the Almssid region and drains both the Middle and the High Atlas, with a watershed of 74,000 km², discharging to the Mediterranean.

The Middle Atlas contributes abundant and the relatively regular flows to these rivers. Reserviors have been developed for flood control, to improve tourism, and to create water reserves supporting the development of the arboriculture important to the agricultural industry of the region. The Moulouya is the longest river of Morocco. ...

References and notes

Coordinates: 33°30′N, 4°30′W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...