The Succulent Karoo ecoregion has been called the worlds most extraordinary desert, a designation that has earned it a place as the worlds only biodiversity "hotspot" that is entirely arid. The number of plant species in the region is unparalleled anywhere else in the world for an area this size, and at least 40 percent of these species are endemic. Most are succulents--plants with thick, fleshy tissues that can store water. One-third of the world's 10,000 species of succulent plants grows in this ecoregion. While the animal diversity does not compare to the spectacular plant diversity, a wide variety of arachnids, beetles, and reptiles can be found among the succulents. And several species of moles live beneath the ground, including some whose range is limited to the ecoregion.
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