Kyzylkum Desert

Qizilqum Desert

The Kyzylkum Desert is spread between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, on the territory of 3 countries – Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. The area of the sandy desert is 300,000 km². The minimum amount of precipitation falls here – 100-200 mm during the year, most of which falls in winter and spring. The average temperature in July is +30 °С, in January the thermometer usually drops to +9 °С, there are cold spells up to 0 °С. Many people know the city located in the center of Kyzylkum desert – Uchkuduk. It is mentioned in the song “Uchkuduk – three wells” by the group “Yalla”. On the territory of Kyzylkum one can find vegetation, of special value are wild tulips, black and white saxauls, cherkez, kandym. Wormwood and shrubs survive on clay uplands. The fauna of Kyzylkum is mostly nocturnal and obtains water from food. The desert is home to gazelles, barkhan cats, corsak foxes, wolves, and bats.