Nogai Steppe

Nogai Steppe

 

a semidesert plains region in Ciscaucasia, between the Terek and Kuma rivers, lying mainly in the northern Dagestan ASSR. The elevation drops from 170 m in the west to 28 m below sea level in the east. Most of the Nogai Steppe consists of large sandy tracts, and the chief types of vegetation are wormwood and saltworts. About 70 percent of the steppe is used primarily as winter pasture for sheep. The Terek-Kuma Canal, along the region’s western border, supplies water to the steppe.