Zud

A Zud ( _mn. Зуд) is a Mongolian term for the extreme conditions which exist after a hot summer is followed by a cold winter; it can include dust storms as well as blizzards. They usually happen once or twice a year; people are killed every year in these storms.

The ground can become frozen so hard that animals cannot graze and water cannot be easily extracted. Although Mongolia is a country with a continental climate and low precipitation, occasionally freak and extreme snowfalls can cause herd animals to drown in the snow.

The natives sometimes further differentiate between a black, a white, and an iron/ice zud. The black zud is caused by sparse food in summer and a cold winter in which many animals die of starvation. The white zud is caused by very heavy snow fall, which makes it impossible for the livestock to feed on the otherwise accessible frozen grass, hence they too starve. The iron/ice zud is brought about by rain which freezes and covers the land in ice hindering the animals from feeding on any grass or herbs.

References