OZCAR-RI AMMA-CATCH Gourma Mesosite - Mali

The Gourma mesoscale site (Mali) is part of the AMMA-CATCH observation network. Its characteristics are as follows :a 30000 km² endoreic area in semi arid climate. The studies are dedicated to vegetation monitoring in a pastoral environment.

Last modified

2024-03-04 09:03:49

General Characteristics and Status

Site Status

Stand-by

Year Established

2004

Observed properties

Affiliation and Network Specific Information

Affiliation

Recommended Citation

AMMA-CATCH (2003): AMMA-CATCH observatory: Gourma mesoscale site (30 000 km2) in the Sahelian pastoral zone, Mali. IRD, CNRS-INSU, OSUG, OMP, OREME. doi:10.17178/AMMA-CATCH.mali

Photos

AMMA-CATCH Mali : Hombori Site durig the wet season. Photo : Eric Mougin

Geographic

Centroid/Representative Coordinates

Latitude: 16 Longitude: -1.5

Size

ca. 3000000.00ha

Elevation (average)

290.00msl

Elevation (min)

260.00msl

Elevation (max)

1155.00msl

Download

Site information [.json]

Centroid/representative coordinates [.shp] [.kml]

Bounding Box [.shp] [.kml]

Boundaries [.shp] [.kml]

Site Details

Ecosystem and Environmental Characteristics

GEO-BON Biome

Terrestrial

Biome

Savanna

Ecosystem Type

Grasslands

Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands

Air Temperature: Average Annual

30.00°C

Precipitation Annual

310.00mm

Geology

The underlying geology of the Gourma region includes Precambrian sandstones and schists eroded into a peneplain surface with occasional plateaus of hard sandstones that have resisted erosion.

Vegetation

The vegetation of the Gourma comprises a herbaceous layer almost exclusively composed of annual plants, among which grasses dominate, and scattered bushes shrubs and low trees. Cropped land (mainly millet) only extends in the southern half of the Gourma site over a few percent of the land.

Soils

Three main categories of soils : sandy soils (60% of the area), shallow soils on rock and hard pan outcrops (20%) and fine textured soils in low lands (20%).

Hydrology

The Gourma is globally endorheic. Surface runoff feed temporary ponds. These ponds and the local shallow water tables supplied by some of them are the major water resources for the Gourma population and their livestock.

Type, Design and Scale

Site Type

Platform

Design of Experimentation

no experimentation

Scale of Experimentation

plot scale

Design of Observation

only observation

Scale of Observation

entire catchment

Equipment