1.  East of India, south of China  Peninsula that juts out of Asian continent, straddles the equator and fragments into a jumble of islands  Large rivers Irrawaddy, Mekong create fertile river valleys, rain forests  Mountainous islands, ancient volcanic region (part of the ring of fire)

2.  Land of peninsulas and islands formed when tectonic plates collided millions of years ago  Half of region is an archipelago (group of islands)  Half of countries located on mainland  Indochina and Malay Peninsulas make up mainland Southeast Asia  Laos only country without a coastline

3.  Indonesia largest island country  6,000 islands about 1,000 permanently settled  Singapore collection of islands  Philippines 7,000 islands about 900 settled  11 islands are 90% of country

4.  Mountains dominate southeast Asian landscape  Create geographic and physical boundaries  Separate region from India and China  Mountains on islands part of Pacific Ring of Fire  Volcanoes have left region with fertile soil, highly productive agricultural areas

5. Rivers  People rely on rivers for transportation, communication and food  River silt deposits create fertile agricultural regions  Most rivers originate in highlands of China, SE Asia and flow toward Gulf of Thailand, South China Sea  Major rivers Mekong, Irrawaddy, Chao Phraya, Hong  Sediment deposited by Mekong increases shoreline around delta by 50 feet per year  Island rivers shorter, flow in various directions

7.  Plentiful supply of fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas)  Malaysia- leader in oil, natural gas production  Oil and natural gas off coast of Borneo has made sultan of Brunei one of world’s richest people  Indonesia leading producer of oil, member of OPEC

8.  Volcanic activity has made region mineral rich  Nickel, iron, copper found across islands,  Large deposits of tin found on the mainland  Gems (sapphires, rubies) found across mainland  Pearls found in island regions  Gem and mineral industry underdeveloped in many countries

9.  Rich diversity of plant and animal life  Worlds largest flower found in SE Asia  Forests are source of income for many countries  Thailand cultivates orchids for sale on international market  Trees used for lumber and rubber production  Home to animal species found nowhere else in the world

10.  Tropical climates found across most of region  Region straddles equator  Most of region hot and rainy, effected by monsoon rain patterns  Tropical Wet Climate supports diverse ecosystems  Tropical Dry Climate affected by monsoon rain patterns  Highland climate found in mountainous regions on mainland and islands