What is a desert?

Imagine a place where it almost never rains. The ground is dry, and there are no puddles or rivers to splash in. That place is called a desert.

A desert is a very dry place

The thing that makes a desert a desert is not the heat — it is the lack of rain. A desert gets very little water all year long. Some deserts are full of sand. Others are full of rocks. They all have one thing in common: they are dry.

Hot deserts and cold deserts

Many deserts are scorching hot in the day, with bright sun and warm sand. But did you know some deserts are cold? In a few deserts it even snows! What matters is not the temperature — it is how little rain falls.

Clever ways to save water

Living in a desert is tricky, so the plants and animals there are very clever at saving water.

A cactus stores water inside its thick, juicy stem, like a living water bottle. Some animals hide in cool burrows during the hot day and come out at night. Others can go a very long time without drinking at all. Every desert creature has its own smart trick to stay alive where water is rare.

Wonder fact: A camel does not store water in its hump — its hump is full of fat, which helps it survive for days without food or drink!