Africa

Africa is the second largest continent. It has an area of 11,707,000 square miles (30,308,252 sq km). The Nile River in Africa is the longest river in the world. The largest desert in the world, the Sahara, is also in Africa.

Africa was called the Dark Continent when it was first explored by Europeans in the 1800s. Most African countries were colonies of different European countries until the 1950s. Today there are many independent African countries.

African has many different climates and types of land. The desert are dry and sandy. Foxes and rabbits live there. In central Africa there are dense jungles, which are hot and rainy. Monkeys, chimpanzees, and gorillas live there. Many unusual African animals live in the large wild areas called the grassland. Some of these are antelope, zebras, giraffes, lions, elephants, and rhinoceroses. Africa is also the home of ostriches, crocodiles, cobras, and pythons.

Tourists on camera safaris come to central and southern Africa to see the wildlife. Africa’s scenery is wonderful. Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is a magnificent mountain peak. It is the highest spot in Africa, 19,340 feet (5,895 m) tall.