arid regions
Parched land areas
Arid regions are areas receiving very little rainfall—typically less than ten inches annually—where evaporation exceeds precipitation.
Deserts are the most familiar arid regions, but the term also covers semi-arid zones like steppes and scrublands.
Much of the American Southwest qualifies as arid region.
The phrase appears most often in scientific and geographic contexts discussing climate, agriculture, or water resources.
- cactusSpiny desert plant
- desertTo leave behind completely
- dry heatHigh temperature, low humidity
- bone dryTotally devoid of moisture
- droughtProlonged water scarcity
xerophyte · sparse vegetation · sand dunes · nomads · rain shadow · xeriscaping · arroyo · evaporation · water scarcity · water hole · mesa · wadi · steppe · salt flat · badlands · irrigation · nocturnal activity · aquifers
- regionsregions, area, areas, zone, zones
- Southwestmesa, Monument Valley, Arizona, New Mexico, Grand Canyon
- Central AsiaKazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan
- raptor habitatsaeries, eyries, cliff face, cliffs, cliff faces
- water cyclewater cycle, precipitation, evaporation, condensation, rain
arid regionswetlands
Water-saturated terrain
humid regions · rainforests · tropical rainforests · tropical regions · monsoon regions
arid regionsrainforests
Wet, dense tropical woodlands
jungle · fertile lands · temperate forests · breadbaskets · dense forests