The Gobi Desert
Singapore International School, Chan Tin Nok, Non-Fiction: Group 2
W
hen you hear the word “desert”, you usually think of large, never ending expanses
of hot sandy land, occasionally dotted with lush green cacti and almost no
wildlife at all. Well, deserts are usually teeming with strange and exotic life...if
you know where to look. The Gobi Desert is no different, except that it is an arid
cold desert, due to its location in the North and height, which is around 1520 meters from sea
level from its higher areas. Estimated to be 1,295,000 km² large, the Gobi Desert is the fifth largest
desert in the world and the most anhydrous area in Asia. Occasionally, albeit rarely, frost or even
snow can be seen capping the topmost of the tallest dunes. Even so, it is still considered by most
experts as a desert, as it fulfills the requirement of having an average of less than 10 inches of
rainfall per year. [J1]
Despite the frigid winters and scorching summers with the temperatures bouncing up and
down from -40 degrees Fahrenheit to 122 degrees Fahrenheit respectively; the Gobi Desert is
surprisingly bursting with hidden life. The soil is of the sandy type, dry and nutrient-lacking.
One of the most vital plants is the Saxaul tree. Since the Saxaul tree stores water in its reserves
behind a thin yet firm layer of bark, both the animals and humans in the Gobi rely on it as one
of the scarce sources of water among the sand. Another plant, the Saltwort, lives in a specific
region of the Gobi, as it is able to withstand the high salt content in the unique Salt Desert region.
Described to be weed-like, the saltwort plant is one of the rare plants with the ability to thrive in
the Salt Desert.
Only the toughest animals can call the Gobi its abode. One of them, the smallest in the sandy
and rocky expanse, is the jerboa. Equipped with powerful hind legs like a miniature kangaroo’s, it
can travel up to ten feet with one leap. Another advantage would be the long tail it has to keep its
balance upon the rocky landscape of the Gobi.
The snow leopard which habits the cooler areas of the Gobi, is known for its beautiful fur coat,
which is white in color with rosettes (little dark gray and black spots) all over their powerfully
built bodies, except for both the underside of the throat and the belly of this magnificent creature.
According to research, they used to be extremely abundant, yet when the human population
began to increase, the number of these majestic creatures have gradually dwindled.
The nomadic people who live in the Gobi are almost completely isolated from the rest of the
world, and thus have developed their own culture. Their unique lifestyle is ever-changing; they
follow their herds’ movement, as the animals can lead them to better pastures. They live in a
ger, which is simply a perfectly round tent made with a wooden lattice and panels. And instead
of water, the nomads drink mostly milk from their own goats, camels, and cows. A traditional
meal of the nomads is mutton soup with noodles, which is paired with a warm glass of milk.
Wood carving is an interesting aspect of their culture, The nomadic people of the Gobi Desert are
extremely versatile and are able to cope with the many hardships the Gobi throws at them.
A famous tale, the story of Marco Polo’s travel down the Silk Road, well known throughout
the continents, talks of an Italian man, Marco Polo, who travels from his hometown, Venice, and
goes to China via the ancient Silk Road, which is a transcontinental trade route which connects
China, Central Asia, the Uighur Empire, Persia, India, Arabia, and Europe, with silk, gold, jade,
