East / Central Africa Vocabulary

1. savanna - tropical grassland with few trees

2. basin - broad, flat valley

3. canopy - unbrella like forest covering so thick sunlight rarely reaches the forest floor

4. refugees - people who flee to another country to escape danger or disaster

5. steppe - dry, treeless plain often found on the edge of a desert

6. tsetse fly - causes a deadly disease called sleeping sickness

7. industrialization - to base the economy more on industry and less on farming

8. nature preserve - land set aside by government to protect land or animals

9. poaching - illegal hunting of protected animals

10. escarpments - steep cliffs that tower on both sides of a valley

11. free enterprise system - people can start and run business without government interference

12. cassava - plant whose roots are ground into flour to make bread

13. sisal - plant fiber used to make rope or twine

14. habitat - type of environment in which a particular animal species lives

15. eco-tourists - people who travel to other countries to view their natural wonders

16. plantains - a kind of banana

17. autonomy - self governed

18. watershed - region that is drained by a river

19. endangered species - a plant or animal threatened with extinction

20. deforestation - cutting down too many trees too quickly