Category: Algeria

2023, Algeria Selection, Sahara

Dune crest under the breath of the Sahara

Dune crest under the breath of the Sahara - Algeria

Dune crest under the breath of the Sahara – Algeria

Under the low-angled light, a dune in the Algerian Sahara dissolves into the wind, a reminder of the shifting nature of the desert.

Every year, nearly 180 million tons of dust and sand rise from the Sahara, driven by the wind. Some of these particles then begin a spectacular journey, crossing the Atlantic over thousands of miles.

Carried by the trade winds, this Saharan dust reaches the Caribbean and South America, where it settles notably over the Amazon basin. It brings essential nutrients, particularly phosphorus, which is vital for soil fertility and the maintenance of the rainforest. Without this regular influx from the desert, one of the planet’s richest ecosystems in biodiversity could not renew itself in the same way.

Thus, this sand torn from the Saharan dunes recalls a fundamental truth: even the most arid and inhospitable environments play an essential role in the balance of life, linking deserts and tropical forests within a single global cycle.

2023, Algeria Selection, Bird, Sahara

The Pale Crag Martin (Ptyonoprogne obsoleta): Messenger of the Sands

Pale Crag Martin (Ptyonoprogne obsoleta) in flight over the Algerian desert

Silent and light, it pierces the scorching air like a brown arrow.

Silent and light, the Pale Crag Martin (Ptyonoprogne obsoleta) pierces the scorching air like a brown arrow.

It traces arabesques above the dunes, a faithful companion to the wind and the light. Its fleeting silhouette seems to float between sky and earth, a reminder that even in the heart of the mineral vastness, life finds its place and dances with grace. Perfectly adapted to arid environments, this species often nests in the rocky walls of Saharan canyons and wadis.

2023, Algeria Selection, Encounters, Sahara

Desert Bonds: A Moment of Connection in Immidir (Algeria)

Two Tuareg men sharing a moment in the Immidir desert, Algeria

Their weathered faces tell as many stories as the landscape that surrounds them.

Two Tuareg men exchange looks and words in the heart of the Algerian Sahara.

Their weathered faces tell as many stories as the landscape that surrounds them—a harsh yet familiar Sahara made of stones, sand, and silence. Their dark tagelmusts (chechs) contrast with the brilliant desert light, filtered through the golden grasses of the foreground. This scene from Immidir illustrates the strength of human bonds within the mineral vastness.

2023, Algeria Selection, Encounters, Sahara

When the Desert Remembers – Algeria, Immidir Massif

When the Desert Remembers - Algeria, Immidir Massif

When the Desert Remembers – Algeria, Immidir Massif.

Beneath the golden shelter of the rock, the voices of the past still whisper in the heart of the Immidir mountains, in the Algerian Sahara.

Cave paintings stretch across the walls of a natural shelter, protected from the wind and time. Drawn in red ochre, camels, cattle, and human silhouettes form a silent fresco—a graphic memory of an ancient, humid, and vibrant Sahara. Sitting before these ancestral traces, a man of today contemplates the marks of yesterday. Between the present and the past, an invisible thread connects today’s nomads to vanished peoples, sharing the same relationship with the land, the herd, and the light. Here, rock art is not a mere vestige: it is a motionless bridge between eras, where the desert still speaks to those who know how to listen.

2023, Algeria Selection, Sahara

Rainbow Over the Rocks of the Immidir

Rainbow over Immidir - Algeria

Rainbow over Immidir – Algeria.

In the Immidir massif, south of the Algerian Hoggar, desert landscapes occasionally reveal unexpected and spectacular scenes.

Here, a partial rainbow pierces a heavy sky, even though no rain is visible on the ground. This phenomenon, caused by the diffraction of light through suspended micro-droplets, stands in stark contrast to the surrounding aridity. The rugged terrain takes on a copper hue under the low evening light, creating an ephemeral tableau where the harshness of geology meets the softness of the atmosphere. A rare encounter between two worlds that only the Sahara can offer to those who know how to watch.

2023, Algeria Selection, Sahara

Desert Memories – Human Figures from the Immidir

Traces of Humanity – Rock Art in the Immidir Massif

Traces of Humanity – Rock Art in the Immidir Massif.

In the heart of the Immidir massif, in southern Algeria, the rocks tell a story spanning thousands of years.

On the ochre walls of the desert, rock paintings and engravings bear witness to human presence at a time when the Sahara was green. Stylized human silhouettes, hunting or dancing scenes, animals now vanished from the region — every stroke, every figure reveals a fragment of life, an ancient link between humanity, nature, and the sacred. The rock art of Immidir, subtle yet powerful, extends the memory of a forgotten world.

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