Niger is divided roughly into three geographic regions: the desert zone in the north, a semi-arid zone in the middle and a small fertile area in the southwest, where flows the Niger River. Its middle region forms part of the Sahel, a semi-arid band of land which runs across Africa, from coast to coast, below the Sahara Desert. The desert landscape is made up of endless stretches of sand dunes that shift in the hot winds and broad plains covered with gravel and stones. Within the Sahara, north of the 17th parallel, the Aïr Mountains rise sharply above the desert floor, at an average altitude between 500 and 900m. They form an island of Sahel climate which supports a wide variety of life, many pastoral and farming communities, and dramatic geological and archaeological sites.
The Aïr mountains themselves consist of nine almost circular massifs rising from a rocky plateau, bordered by the sand dunes and plain of the Ténéré Desert to the east. The massif is a plateau consisting of a Cambrian age erosion surface on Precambrian metamorphic rocks, punctuated by a series of flat-topped, granite intrusion peaks, which include Mont Idoukal-n-Taghès (Niger's highest point at 2022 m), Mont Tamgak (1988 m), Mont Greboun (1944 m), Adrar Bous, Fadei, Chiriet, Taghmert, Agueraguer, Takaloukouzet, and Goundai. Adrar Chiriet is a mesa located between Izane and Izouzadene, nearby to I-m-Bardaouene and Lérouana. Arig.
About the stamps
The first stamp, depicting Western Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis), is part of a series of birds, issued on February 1996. The second, depicting Onion: the viola of Galmi, is part of a series issued on 2011.
References
Aïr Mountains - Wikipedia
Niger's Geography - Water Matters
Sender: Holger & Baechir
Sent from Niamey (Niamey / Niger), on 07.03.2015
Photo: Maurice Ascani
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