Thrill of the chase: Desert lions have an unusal variety of prey — from birds to seals to giraffe — and oryx is one of their top four meals of choice. Taken from Vanishing Kings — Lions of the Namib Desert, by Dr Philip Stander
The Namib Desert is many things that cannot be quantified. It is stunningly beautiful, vast and full of wonder. But other aspects of the Namib can be defined. It is the oldest desert in the world. It is the second driest desert (the Atacama takes first place) and its development started some 20 million years ago.
Strangely enough, it is the stability of the Antarctic continent over the past 35 million years that has played the most pivotal role in the formation of the Namib. Since the time of maximum ice cover in the Antarctic, the cold Benguela current has fully developed in the South Atlantic Ocean and it is since then that a full arid climate has prevailed in the Namib.