Images Dated 25th September 2010

Ancient camel thorn trees (Vachellia erioloba) in fog in Dead Vlei, Sossusvlei, Namib-Naukluft National Park, Namib Desert, Namibia

Vachellia erioloba (camel thorn, giraffe thorn is a tree of southern Africa in the family Fabaceae. Its preferred habitat is the deep dry sandy soils in parts of South Africa, Botswana, the western areas of Zimbabwe and Namibia. The tree can grow up to 17 meters high. It is slow growing, very hardy to drought and fairly frost resistant. The wood is dark reddish brown in color and extremely dense and strong. It is a good for fires, which leads to widespread clearing of dead trees and the felling of healthy trees. It produces ear shaped pods, favored by a large number of herbivores including cattle. The seeds can be roasted and used as a substitute for coffee beans

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