OPEN KITES IN THE
CENTRAL SAHARA

The finds in Algeria are relatively recent. I discovered the first structures there in summer 2019. In contrast to the classic desert kites, which intercept the game on their migrations with long guide fences, the funnels here are quite short and often lead uphill from a gully or hollow to end after only a few metres in one or more small boxes. Since this area used to be a landscape full of lakes and ponds criss-crossed by watercourses, I spontaneously hypothesise that these formations may have been hippopotamus traps. The hollows may have been watercourses from which hippos came ashore at night to graze. Short guide walls were sufficient to lead the animals into the trap pits at their end.

This is one of the few kites in Central Sahara that doesn't end in a pitfall but leads to the edge of a rocky cliff. Herd animals were probably hunted here, which fell down at the end of the funnel and were collected at the ground (Position: 24.8448,0.87288).

Algeria: Adrar / Tamanrasset

(Geographical coordinates below the pictures.)

25.06948, 0.67181	25.0683816, 0.6716647	25.0650376, 0.6678495	25.0635845, 0.665457
25.0430324, 0.6872936	25.0392127, 0.6900934	25.0359717, 0.684206	24.6084, 2.20553
24.68555, 2.43041	24.77157, 1.57514	24.629082, 1.466479	24.633407, 2.289538
24.634627, 2.360647	24.651358, 1.469559	24.663601, 1.501652	24.673705, 1.507395
24.674743, 2.359328	24.706667, 1.522245	24.708258, 1.552447	24.710930, 1.566865
24.769128, 1.026876	24.711962, 2.454968	24.721263, 1.558672	24.728104, 1.565968
24.730052, 1.961585	24.740002, 1.417788	24.742790, 1.422594	24.751986, 1.497656
24.755466, 1.477678	24.757085, 1.475817	24,758191, 1,574922	24.758544, 1.568613
24.759260, 1.572103	24.764062, 1.570664	24.771962, 1.451210	24.784414, 1.462802
24.814805, 1.435115	24.824632, 1.428531	24.884538, 1.542816	25.148322, 1.544674
25.149627, 1.543998	25.164024, 2.588969	25.263346, 1.499622	25,097296, 1,584476
25,094493, 1,587271	25,151347, 1,565622	24,999494, 1,312840	25,001250, 1,627001
24,988344, 1,649853	26.010138, 3.573275	26.011716, 3.565645	26.015340, 3.558226
26,113787, 3,458506	26,116164, 3,459167	24,811981, 1,056265	24,824531, 1,075669
24,690777, 2,015618	25,063027, 2,640517	25,070852, 2,669406	25,069455, 2,666763
25,006710, 2,678090	24,999164, 2,644848	25,173757, 2,608040	25,174961, 2,607050
25,233355, 2,592981	25,082485, 2,779521	25,322373, 1,711369	25,999663, 4,106488
24,819685, 1,362230	24,787525, 1,377485	26,521119, 0,706748	26,282030, 3,824879

More kites in Algeria at: Western-Sahara >

These pictures are only a small selection. All the objects I found are included in the following download (Google Earth required): Download placemarks of about 1,350 kites >

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Kites in Western Sahara >

OPEN KITES IN THE CENTRAL SAHARA

Algeria: Adrar / Tamanrasset

OPEN KITES IN THE
CENTRAL SAHARA