Terek-Kuma Lowland

a lowland in eastern Ciscaucasia that forms the southwestern part of the Caspian Lowland. The lowland has a maximum elevation of 100 m; the eastern half lies below sea level. The lowland is divided into three parts: the Kuma sandy-loam and loam plain in the north, the sandy massif of Terek-Kuma north of the Terek, and the delta of the Terek and Sulak rivers in the southeast. Semidesert landscapes predominate. There are plavni (submerged floodplains with growths of cattails and reeds) in the depressions of the delta. Most of the land is used as pasture. The lowland has oil and gas deposits.