| Deserts of the World
The table below compares the sizes
of the world's largest deserts. See Types of Deserts
for more information about individual deserts throughout the world.
| World's
Largest Deserts |
| Desert |
Location |
Square
Miles |
Square
Kilometers |
| Sahara |
North Africa |
3,500,000 |
9,065,000 |
| Gobi |
Mongolia-China |
500,000 |
1,295,000 |
| Kalahari |
Southern Africa |
225,000 |
582,000 |
| Great Victoria |
Australia |
150,000 |
338,500 |
| Great Sandy |
Australia |
150,000 |
338,500 |
|
Deserts
of North America
| Deserts
of North America |
Name
Location |
Size |
Physical
Features |
Some Plants
& Animals |
Special
Facts |
Chihuahuan
North Central Mexico and Southwestern United States
(Arizona, New Mexico, Texas) |
175,000 mi2
455,000 km2 |
High plateau covered by stony areas and sandy
soil. Many mountains and mesas. |
cacti, chihuahuan flax, creosote bush, lechuguilla,
mesquite, mexican gold poppy
coyote, diamondback rattlesnake, javelina, kangaroo rat,
roadrunner |
Largest North American desert. Big Bend National
Park located here; more species of birds seen in Big Bend than in any other
National Park in the U.S. |
Great Basin
Western United States (Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and
Utah) |
158,000 mi2
411,000 km2 |
Covered by sand, gravel, and clay.
Many moutains ranges, basins, and large expanses of salt
flats. |
greasewood, sagebrush, shadscale
bighorn sheep, jackrabbit, pocket mouse, poor-will, pronghorn
antelope, sage thrasher, side-blotched lizard |
Great Salt Lake located here. |
Mojave
Southwestern United States (Arizona, California, Nevada) |
25,000 mi2
65,000 km2 |
Covered by sandy soil, gravelly pavement,
and salt flats. |
creosote bush, desert sand verbena, joshua
tree, mesquite
bighorn sheep, chuckwalla, coyote, jackrabbit, sidewinder,
zebra-tailed lizard |
Death Valley located in this desert. |
Sonoran
Southwestern United States (Arizona, California) and
parts of Mexico (Baja Peninsula, Sonora) |
120,000 mi2
312,000 km2 |
Covered by sand, soil, and gravelly pavement.
Gets more rain than any other North American desert. |
agave, coulter's globemallow, creosote bush,
desert mariposa lily, mesquite, ocotillo, paloverde, saguaro
coati, elf owl, gila monster, kangaroo rat, pack rat,
roadrunner, sidewinder, tarantula |
Most complex animal-plant community of any
desert. |
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Botanical Garden
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