DO NOT EDIT--Changes must be made through “File info” CorrectionKey=TX-A SECTION 1 Physical UNITED STATES G u 30°N l f TEKS 3A, 3B, 3C, 4D, 4E, 4F, 5A, 5B, Geography r 5C, 6A, 6B, 21B, 21C, 22D e B v i A . R R J i s R A S u o R i I o q E h i o o What You Will Learn… C a c G R S f n If lived there... A Y r YOU R B I a o r L A E a n C d I C R v F M o e O a R You live on Mexico’s Pacific coast. Sunny weather and good beaches A l A Main Ideas R i f D N o R M I r 25°N A n E MEXICAN A 1. Mexico’s physical features bring tourists year-round. Now you are on your way to visit a cousin ia O D C PLATEAU R include plateaus, mountains, C E I in Puebla, in the highlands. To get there, you will have to take a bus Tr D O opic E R and coastal lowlands. of Ca N ncer I T E 2. Mexico’s climate and vegeta- along the winding roads of the steep Sierra Madre Occidental. This A N L T A tion include deserts, tropical L 90°W rugged mountain range runs along the coast. You have never been Gulf of Mexico Yucatán . forests, and cool highlands. R Channel io o R S c 3. Key natural resources in to the interior of Mexico before. an u n 95°W YUCATÁN 20°N tia a Cozumel g P Mexico include oil, silver, o PENINSULA Island Rio Lerm gold, and scenic landscapes. a Caribbean What landscapes will you see on your trip? Popocatépetl Bay of 17,887 ft (5,452 m) Campeche Sea N Bals Us 85°W a um S s River IE a The Big Idea RR ISTHMUS OF G ci W E A ri nta MA ja R. DR TEHUANTEPEC lv E D a Mexico is a large country with S EL SUR R PACIFIC iv 15°N e different natural environments in BUILDING BACKGROUND Mexico is part of Latin America, a region r OCEAN Gulf of CENTRAL its northern, central, and south- Tehuantepec in the Western Hemisphere where Spanish and Portuguese culture AMERICA 115°W ern regions. 105°W 100°W shaped life. Mexico is also part of North America, along with the United States and Canada. Unlike its northern neighbors, Mexico’s Key Terms and Places landscape consists mainly of highlands and coastal plains. Río Bravo (Rio Grande), p. 192 peninsula, p. 192 Baja California, p. 192 Gulf of Mexico, p. 192 Physical Features Yucatán Peninsula, p. 192 Mexico, our neighbor to the south, shares a long border with Sierra Madre, p. 193 the United States. Forming part of this border is one of Mexico’s few major rivers, the Río Bravo. In the United States this river is called the Rio Grande. At other places along the U.S.–Mexico border it is impossible to tell where one country ends and the Use the graphic organizer online other country begins. to organize your notes on Mexico’s HRW Middle School World Geography physical geography. mg7fvs_mexmap003aa Bodies of Water Mexico: Physical Locate Mexico on the map on the following page and see that, Final pass--7/5/05 except for its border with the United States, Mexico is mostly surrounded by water. Mexico’s border in the west is the Pacific Ocean. Stretching south into the Pacific Ocean from northern Mexico is a narrow peninsula, or piece of land surrounded on three sides by water, called Baja California. To the east, Mexico’s border is the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf of Mexico is separated from the Caribbean Sea by a part of Mexico called the Yucatán (yoo-kah-TAHN) Peninsula. 192 CHAPTER 8 DO NOT EDIT--Changes must be made through “File info” CorrectionKey=TX-A Mexico: Physical UNITED STATES G Regions The rugged Mexican u 30°N l f Plateau covers much of Mexico. r e 1. Name What feature extends B v i A . R R J into the Gulf of Mexico? i s R A S u o R i I o q E h i o o 2. Analyze Where in Mexico C a R c G S f n A Y R B r I a o r L A E a n would it be easiest to cross C d I C R v F M o e O a R A from the Pacific Ocean to the l A R i f D N o R M I r Gulf of Mexico? 25°N A n E MEXICAN A ia O D C PLATEAU R HRW Middle School World GeographyC E I Tr D O opic E R of Ca mg7fvs_mexmap003ba N ncer I T E A N Mexico Physical Locator L T A L 90°W Final pass – 7/5/05 Gulf of Mexico Yucatán . R Channel io o R S c an u n 95°W YUCATÁN 20°N tia a Cozumel g P o PENINSULA Island ELEVATION Rio Lerm a Caribbean Feet Meters Popocatépetl Bay of 13,120 4,000 17,887 ft (5,452 m) Campeche Sea 6,560 2,000 N Bals Us 85°W a um S s River 1,640 500 IE a RR ISTHMUS OF G ci 656 200 W E A ri nta MA ja R. DR TEHUANTEPEC lv (Sea level) 0 0 (Sea level) E D a S EL SUR R Below Below PACIFIC iv 15°N e sea level sea level OCEAN Gulf of r Tehuantepec CENTRAL 0 150 300 Miles AMERICA 115°W 105°W 100°W 0 150 300 Kilometers Projection: Lambert Conformal Conic Plateaus and mountains cover much of Mexico. Here, the volcano HRW Middle School World Geography Popocatépetl rises mg7fvs_mexmap003ca above a mountain Mexico Physical Legend valley. Many people Replacement Final pass – 7/13/05 live and farm in the Plateaus and Mountains mountain Much of the interior landscape of Mexico valleys. consists of a high, mostly rugged region called the Mexican Plateau. The plateau’s lowest point is more than a half mile above HRW Middle School World Geography sea level. Its highest point is close to two mg7fvs_mexmap003aa miles above sea level. The entire plateau Between the two ranges in the south FOCUS ON Mexico: Physical spreads between two mountain ranges lies the Valley of Mexico. Mexico City, READING Final pass--7/5/05 that rise still higher. One range, the Sierra the country’s capital, is located there. The What do you think the text will Madre Oriental, lies in the east. The other, mountains south of Mexico City include discuss next? the Sierra Madre Occidental, lies in the towering, snowcapped volcanoes. Volcanic west. Together, these two mountain ranges eruptions, as well as earthquakes, are a and another shorter one in southern threat there. The volcano Popocatépetl Mexico make up the Sierra Madre (SYER-rah (poh-puh-cah-TE-pet-uhl) near Mexico City MAH-dray), or “mother range.” has been active as recently as 2010. MEXICO 193 DO NOT EDIT--Changes must be made through “File info” CorrectionKey=TX-A Coastal Lowlands Climate and Vegetation From the highlands in central Mexico, the From snowcapped mountain peaks to land slopes down to the coasts. Beautiful, warm, sunny beaches, Mexico has many sunny beaches stretch all along Mexico’s different climates. You can see Mexico’s eastern and western coasts. The plain that climate regions on the map below. This runs along the west coast is fairly wide great variety of climates results in several in the north. It becomes narrower in the different types of vegetation. south. On the east side of the country, the ACADEMIC In some areas, changes in elevation VOCABULARY Gulf coastal plain is wide and flat. The soils cause climates to vary widely within a vary to be and climate there are good for farming. short distance. For example, the areas of different Locate the Yucatán Peninsula on the high elevation on the Mexican Plateau map on the previous page. As you can see can have surprisingly cool temperatures. this region is also mostly flat. Limestone At times, freezing temperatures reach as far rock underlies much of the area. Erosion south as Mexico City—even though it is there has created caves and sinkholes, located in the tropics. Mexico’s mountain steep-sided depressions that form when valleys generally have mild climates, and the roof of a cave collapses. Many of these many people have settled there. sinkholes are filled with water. The valleys along Mexico’s southern coastal areas also have pleasant climates. READING CHECK Summarizing What are Warm temperatures and a summer rainy Mexico’s major physical features? season support the forests that cover about 25 percent of Mexico’s land area. Tropical Mexico: Climate rain forests provide a home for jaguars, monkeys, anteaters, and other animals. Climate Types While most of southern Mexico is Humid tropical Tropical savanna warm and humid, the climate in the Desert northern part of the Yucatán Peninsula is Steppe hot and dry. The main vegetation there is Highland Gulf of California scrub forest. 0 200 400 Miles 25°N 0 200 400 Kilometers Tropic of Cancer Projection: Lambert Conformal Conic HRW-MS Geography Maps Gulf of PACIFIC OCEAN Mexico mg7fvs_mexmap005ba20°N A Tropical Climate Mexico Climate Map Locator N A tropical savanna climate Final pass – 7/5/05 supports lush vegetation W E along Mexico’s southern S 15°N beaches.