1. Chapter 12: South America
Sec. 1: Natural Environments

2. Landforms
12 countries
Andes Mountains- collision of Nazca and S. American plates
tepuis- high plateaus left by erosion
plains cover most of S. America
llanos- large plains (Columbia and Venezuela)
Pampas- wide grasslands

4. Rivers Amazon- 4,000 miles long (largest in vol)
dilutes sea water 100 miles off shore
Orinoco and Parana (longest of 3)

5. Climate
Tropical rain forests- Amazon Basin (rains 150 inches per year)
wet summers, dry winters
driest region- Atacama Desert
trap fog for water
El nino- Pacific warmer and climate wetter
La nina- Pacific waters colder

6. Elevations Zones Tierra Caliente- (0-3,000) Bananas, rice, sugar cane
Tierra Templada- (3,000-6,000) coffee, corn, wheat
Tierra Fria (6,000-10,000) potatoes, wheat
Paramo (10,000-16,000) potatoes, grasslands
Tierra Helada (16,000- up) Snow

7. Natural Resources Rivers dammed generate electricity
Rain forest- rubber and timber
Brazil- gold, silver, iron
Chile- copper
Colombia-emeralds
Venezuela-oil
tar sands- sand layers that contain oil (cooked out of rock)

8. Parana River

9. The Andes: World's Longest Mountain Range

10. Wildlife of S. America

11. The Nazca Lines