Geography of South America

GPS: SS6G1.a-b A. Locate on a regional political map selected countries of Latin America. B. Locate on a regional physical map selected physical features of Latin America.

E. Q. How can I locate and label selected countries and physical features of Latin America?

What are physical features? Activator What are physical features?

Physical Features Mexico Central America Caribbean Islands South America

The Andes Mountains stretch over 5,000 miles along South America’s west coast. It is the longest continuing mountain range on the earth’s surface. Has the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere. Andes Mountains

Beyond the Andes The plains in southern South America are called the Pampas. Pampas – flat area with few trees

Amazon River The Amazon River flows near 4,000 miles from the Andes to the Atlantic Ocean. No other river carries as much water to the ocean.

Deforestation is the process of cutting and clearing away trees from a forest. This increases the amount of CO2 in the air. Some believe this contributes to global warming. Deforestation

Atacama Desert The Atacama Desert is located between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountains in northern Chile. It is the driest region in the world.

Patagonia Patagonia is a region in southern Chile and southern Argentina between the Andes Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. It is made up of dry plains and plateaus.

Review Questions What is significant (important) about the Andes Mountains? What is the source of the Amazon River and where does it flow? What is deforestation? What have been some major causes and effects of deforestation in the rain forest?

Panama Canal Located on the Isthmus of Panama, the Panama Canal links the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Climate The Tropical Zone is located between 23°27’ north and 23°27’ south. This is the area between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.

El Nino A natural weather condition that causes heavy rain and flooding during the Christmas time of year.

Rainforests

Where are Rainforest? Rainforests are located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. This area is called the "tropics". The tropics is the 3,000 mile wide band around the equator.

Amazon Rainforest The Amazon is the worlds largest tropical rainforest covering 2.3 million miles. 65% of the Amazon is a jungle. 35% of the Amazon is made up of grassland.

The Amazon Rainforest gets nine feet of rain every year (rains almost everyday). 20% of the earth's oxygen is produced by the Amazon Rainforest. The Amazon Rainforest is also known as the "Lungs of our Planet."

The Amazon is home to 14,712 different species of animals. Over 60,000 different plants are native to the Amazon. 4,000 types of trees are grown in the rainforest.

The rain forest provide food, water, natural rubber, medicinal plants, and other products. Problems Soil exhaustion (soil has lost the nutrients) Deforestation

Who Lives in the Amazon? Hundreds of years ago, many Indians, or indigenous peoples, lived in the Amazon. Most lived along rivers, where canoes made transportation easy. Who else lives there now? Conquistadors Mestizos Aborigines Gringos (people from North America and Europe)

Layers of the Rainforest Emergent's: Top layer. It houses most of the birds and insects. Canopy: Home to many different types of birds, insects, reptiles, mammals, and more. Under story: A cool environment under the leaves which is where you can find many animals. Forest floor: Many animals live here. It is ground level.

Rainforest Fun Facts There are two types of rainforests the temperate and the tropical. Tropical rainforests are found close to the equator. Temperate rainforests are found along coasts of the United States.  Every second, 1 1/2 acres of land are lost every day because human are destroying and ruining them. Every day, we are losing about 137 different types of plant, animal, and insect species. A medicine man is somebody who believed to heal others by using supernatural powers, especially among Native American people.  

Most medicine men are over the age of 70. When a medicine man passes away, thousands of years of irreplaceable information is lost. More than 10 million species of animals can be found in the rainforest. One hectare of land contains over 1,500 species of plants. The Amazon covers over a billion acres! In the past, there were over 10 million Indians. Today, there are only about 200,000 left.

Review Questions Where are rainforest located? What percentage of the Amazon in jungle? The Amazon rainforest produces ___% of the worlds Oxygen. What are indigenous people? What are the four layers of the rainforest? What do you find in each one?