The Land of mEXICO Mexico is divided into 5 physical regions, based largely on the location of their major mountain ranges: Sierra Madre Occidental Sierra Madre Oriental Sierra Madre del Sur 3 times the size of TX City of Monterray---sierra madre oriental Copper Canyon, a series of six canyons in Mexico's Sierra Madre Mountains, is four times larger than the Grand Canyon and 300 feet deeper. It comprises 25,000 rugged square miles and occupies nearly a third of the State of Chihuahua, Mexico's largest state. The canyon has long been home to the Tarahumara Indians (the Raramuri or "people of the swiftly running feet"), who moved into the canyons hundreds of years ago to escape successive invasions by the Aztecs, Spanish, and Apaches, and have lived reclusive, subsistence lives for centuries, eschewing modern conveniences and maintaining their culture

The Sierra Madre Occidental is Mexico’s largest mountain range It is along the western coast The second largest mountain range is on the East Coast (Sierra Madre Oriental)

1. The largest region of Mexico is the Central Plateau “Mexico’s Heartland” Mexico’s most important region… Largest population/biggest cities Lies between the Sierra Madres

Some of the richest soil in Mexico is in the southern part of this plateau Plenty of rainfall---makes up Mexico’s best farmlands Corn is a staple in Mexico and is a main crop. Other crops include beans, barley, and fruits such as oranges, apples, grapes, tangerines, grapefruit, and raisins. Agave plant, used to make tequila

The most geologically unstable region Plate tectonics…Mexico is in the crossroads of 4 tectonic plates North American Plate Caribbean Plate Pacific Plate Cocos Plate As these plates collide, they pushed up mountains and have also opened the land with earthqquakes The mountainous regions here also have volcanoes among them A bad earthquake destroyed part of Mexico City in 1985 Mexico is found in the “Ring of Fire”—one of the earth’s most violent earthquake and volcano zones

2. Northern Pacific Coast Lightly populated except for Tijuana Farmland by irrigation West of the Sierra Madre Occidental Includes the arm of the Baja CA peninsula Just across the border from CA---Tijuana is one of Mexico’s largest and fastest growing cities Some great farmland in part of the region but only because of irrigation of three nearby rivers Colorado, Sonora, Yaqui No farmland on the Baja CA peninsula because it is mostly desert/mountains Mars with Cactus

The thin stretch of the Baja California peninsula is very dry and mountainous Mars with Cactus 110 degrees easy

3. Southern Pacific Coast A region best known for tourism because of its resort cities and beaches Along the narrow Southern Pacific Coast—has few opportunities for farming Acapulco Puerto Vallarta

4. Gulf Coastal Plain Region with great amounts of oil and natural gas One of world’s major oil-producing regions One of the world’s major petroleum producing regions

5. Yucatan Peninsula A flat region known for a limestone bedrock and resulting in beautiful underground caves As the rain works its way into the rock, the limestone is dissolved Numerous caverns are carved by subsurface streams….when the roof of a cavern collapses, it forms a sinkhole which is used by some as a well The Yucatan peninsula has virtually no surface streams due to its limestone foundation -- a relic of its past life as coral reef on the bottom of the ocean. Ground water sinks through the porous limestone and travels to the sea in underground rivers and caves (formed from millennia of acidified water dissolving conduits in the limestone). To date, almost sixty cave systems with more than 300 miles of passageways have been discovered.