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Home , Antilles, Caribbean, Caribbean Sea, Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles

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SECTION 1 Physical Gulf of a ATLANTIC id r lo TEKS 3A, 3B, 3C, 4D, 4E, 5A, 5B, F Geography Tropic of of B Cancer raits 5C, 6A, 6B, 21B, 21C, 22D St A H A

90°W M A What You Will Learn… S If YOU lived there... 20°N Yucatán Peninsula Main Ideas You live in San José, the capital of . But now you are DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1. Physical features of the visiting a tropical forest in one of the ’s national parks. You G AND r include volcanic high- e a make your way carefully along a swinging rope bridge in the ­forest t e r lands and coastal plains. A n ST. KITTS AND t i l l e L N s e 2. The climate and vegetation canopy—40 feet above the forest floor! You see a huge green s s e W r ST. LUCIA of the region include forested E 70°W 80°W making its way along a branch. A brilliantly colored

highlands, tropical forests, S ST. VINCENT AND THE A n and humid lowlands. flies past you. t il le 3. Key natural resources in the Lake s 10°N Nicaragua AND region include rich soils for What other creatures might you see in the forest? Canal , a few minerals, COSTA RICA and beautiful . PANAMA The Big Idea Building Background Nearly all the of Central The of Cen- America and the Caribbean lie in the . That means they gener- tral America and the Caribbean ally have warm climates and . Many people like to includes warm coastal lowlands, cooler highlands, and visit these countries because of their physical beauty. tropical forests.

Key Terms and Places Physical Features isthmus, p. 212 Sandy beaches, volcanic mountains, rain forests, clear blue , p. 212 water—these are images many people have of archipelago, p. 213 Greater , p. 213 and the Caribbean islands. This region’s physical geography is , p. 213 beautiful. This beauty is one of the region’s greatest resources. , p. 214 Central America The region called Central America is actually the southern part of . Seven countries make up this region: Belize, Use the graphic organizer online Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and to take notes on the physical Panama. As you can see on the map, Central America is an HRW-MS Geography Maps ­geography of Central America and isthmus , or a narrow strip of land that connects two larger land mg7fvs_islmap003aa the Caribbean. Caribbean and Central America Physical Map areas. No place on this isthmus is more than about 125 miles Replacement Final pass--7/19/05 (200 km) from either the Pacific Ocean or theCaribbean Sea. A chain of mountains and volcanoes separates the Pacific and Caribbean coastal plains, and only a few short rivers through Central America. The ruggedness of the land and the lack of good water routes make travel in the region difficult.

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Central America and the Caribbean: Physical ELEVATION Feet Meters 13,120 4,000 6,560 2,000 1,640 500 a id r 656 200 lo F () 0 0 (Sea level) Tropic of of Cancer aits B Str A Below Below H sea level sea level A

90°W M A 0 200 400 Miles CUBA S

20°N Yucatán 0 200 400 Kilometers Peninsula Projection: Azimuthal Equal-Area HAITI DOMINICAN JAMAICA REPUBLIC ANTIGUA G AND BARBUDA HRW-MS Geography Maps r Hispaniola e a mg7fvs_islmap003baBELIZE t e r A n ST. KITTS AND NEVIS GUATEMALA t i l l e L Caribbean and CentralN America Locator s e DOMINICA s HONDURAS s Final pass – 6/20/05 e W r ST. LUCIA E 70°W 80°W Caribbean Sea HRW-MS Geography Maps

S EL SALVADOR ST. VINCENT AND NICARAGUA THE GRENADINES A BARBADOS nmg7fvs_islmap003ca t GRENADA il Caribbean and Centralle America Physical Lake s 10°N Nicaragua Panama Legend Canal Replacement final pass--7/20/05 PACIFIC OCEAN COSTA RICA PANAMA Gulf of Panama

Location The countries of Cen- tral America and the Caribbean have easy access to the sea. 1. Locate On which is Haiti located? 2. Contrast How do you think life in Honduras differs from Coastal plains, like this life in ? one in Cuba, are found in Central America and the Caribbean islands.

The Caribbean Islands There are two main island groups in the FOCUS ON Across the Caribbean Sea from Central Caribbean. The four large islands of Cuba, READING America lie hundreds of islands known as Jamaica, Hispaniola, and make How are the HRW-MS Geography Maps Greater and mg7fvs_islmap003aa the Caribbean islands. They make up an up the (an-ti-leez). Many CaribbeanLesser and Antilles Central America Physical Map different? archipelago (ahr-kuh-pe-luh-goh), or large smaller islands form the Lesser Antilles. Replacement Final pass--7/19/05 group of islands. Arranged in a long curve, They stretch from the to the Caribbean islands stretch from the Trinidad and Tobago. A third island group, southern tip of to northern South the Bahamas, lies in the Atlantic Ocean America. They divide the Caribbean Sea southeast of Florida. It includes nearly 700 from the Atlantic Ocean. islands and thousands of reefs.

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Volcanic Activity in Central America and the Caribbean

Plate boundary ATLANTIC Active Gulf of Mexico OCEAN Direction of plate movement Tropic of Cancer

70°W 0 200 400 Miles

90°W HRW Middle School Geography 0 200 400 Kilometers mg7fvs_islmap005ba20°N Projection: Azimuthal Equal-Area Caribbean & Central America: Volcano Locator Final pass--6/24/05 Caribbean Sea

CARIBBEANHRW-MS PLATE Geography Maps The Santa Ana vol- mg7fvs_islmap005ca60°W cano in El Salvador was formed by tectonic Caribbean and Central America: Volcano Map 10°N movements. Legend COCOS PLATE Final pass--6/20/05

N PACIFIC OCEAN W E

80°W S

Regions Movement of tectonic plates has 1. Use the Map Active volcanoes in Central America caused volcanic activity at their boundar- mostly occur at the boundary of which two plates? ies, forming both the highlands of Central 2. Explain Why are there no volcanoes in the middle America and many Caribbean islands. of the Caribbean Sea?

Many Caribbean islands are actually Climate and Vegetation the tops of underwater mountains and Central America and the Caribbean islands volcanoes. Others began as coral reefs that are generally sunny and warm. Humid were gradually pushed up to become flat tropical and tropical climates are limestone islands. Colliding tectonic plates common in the islands and on Central have pushed this region’s land up out of America’s coastal plains. On the Pacific the sea over several million years. You HRW-MS Geography Maps , much of the area’s original savanna can see these tectonic plates on the map mg7fvs_islmap005aa vegetation has been cleared. It has been above. Notice how the land followsCaribbean the and Central America: Volcanic Activity replacedReplacement by plantations final and pass--7/19/05 ranches. The boundaries of the plates. and opposite coast, along the Caribbean, has volcanic eruptions occur frequently as areas of tropical rain forest. these plates shift. When such events do Inland mountain areas contain cool, occur, they can cause great damage to the humid climates. Some mountainous parts region and its people. of Central America are covered with dense cloud forest. A cloud forest is a moist, high- Reading Check Comparing What physical elevation tropical forest where low clouds features do Central America and the Caribbean are common. These forests are home to islands have in common? numerous plant and animal species.

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Temperatures in most of Central America and the Caribbean do not change much from day to night or from summer to winter. Instead, the change in seasons is marked by a change in rainfall. Winters in the region are generally dry, while it rains Strong hurricane winds spin around nearly every day during the summers. a calm center point From summer to fall, hurricanes are a called the eye. threat in the region. These tropical storms bring violent winds, heavy rain, and high . Most hurricanes occur between June and November. Their winds and flooding can cause destruction and loss of life. Reading Check Generalizing Where would Hurricanes are rotating storms that bring heavy rain and one find the coolest temperatures in the region? winds that can reach speeds higher than 155 miles per hour (249 kph). This image shows Hurricane Isabel sweeping through the Caribbean Sea in 2003. Strong hurricanes like this one can shatter houses and hurl cars through the air. Resources The region’s best resources are its land and Analyzing How can you tell the storm is rotating? climate. These factors make an important industry. They also influence agriculture. Agriculture in the region can be Section 1 Assessment profitable where volcanic ash has enriched ONLINE QUIZ the soil. Coffee, , , and Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and Places grow well and are major crops. 1. a. Define What is an isthmus? Timber is exported from the rain forests. b. Explain How has tectonic activity affected Central Although its land and climate make America and the Caribbean islands? good agricultural resources, the region has 2. a. Describe What is a cloud forest? few mineral resources. Energy resources b. Make Inferences Why do temperatures in the region change little from summer to winter? are also limited. Central America and the 3. a. Recall What crops grow well in the region? Caribbean islands must rely on energy b. Evaluate Do you think tourists who want to go to the imports, which limits their development. are more likely to visit Guatemala or the Bahamas? Explain your answer. Reading Check Analyzing Why would Critical Thinking having few energy resources limit economic 4. Categorizing Draw a diagram like development? Central Caribbean the one here. Using your notes, America Islands write descriptive phrases about the physical features, climate, and SUmmary and PReview Central Amer- resources of both places. ica and the Caribbean islands share volcanic physical features and a warm, Focus on Writing tropical climate good for agriculture. In 5. Writing about Geography What information about the the next section you will learn about the physical geography of the region might interest readers of history and culture of Central America. your travel guide? Jot down some ideas.

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