Fauna of South Africa the world’s seventeen megadiverse countries. In the extreme northwest of the country is true desert, which is the southernmost end of the Namib desert, a desert that is at least 55 million years old, making it the oldest desert in the world. This arid corner intergrades into the extensive semi-arid Karoo found across much of South Africa, covering the Northern Cape and into parts of the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and the Free State. This biome used to be extensive grassland in the past, but has become dominated by small shrubs and succulents due to centuries of overgrazing. To the
Tadjourah Region road of the region, providing a circuitous, up and down route to the capital city compared to the sea route which is approximately a fifth of the distance. It also provides the only proper road of the region into Ethiopia. This is the largest forest in the country, a semi-arid surrounded by semi-desert, with four dominant species: "Juniperus procera", "Olea africana", "Buxus hildebrantii", and "Tarchonanthus camphoratus". Elevations play a major factor in temperature, with the escarpments and plateaus on average 11°C (52°F) cooler, day or night. The climate of the coastal strip is influenced by warm ocean waters, keeping the