Karoo

Folded rocks in the Little Karoo, South Africa. Owing to the movements of tectonic plates, horizontal rock layers (strata) are folded or bent. The folded rock may fracture, producing lines of weakness. These weaknesses or faults are exploited by rivers and other agents of erosion, and are more easily broken down than unfractured rock.

Two areas of semi-desert in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, divided into the Great Karoo and Little Karoo by the Swartberg Mountains. The two Karoos together have an area of about 260,000 sq km/100,000 sq mi.

The Karoo lies between the coastal mountains and the Orange River basin. It is characterized by small flat-topped hills (Afrikaans koppies or kopjies). The Great Karoo lies between the Nieuwveld and the Swarteberg mountain ranges, and is crossed by a railway. In the dry season the Karoo is a dry scrub, but after the rains the soil is covered with vegetation, which makes rich pasturage for sheep.