Climate, Vegetation and Climate, Vegetation and Human Environment Human Environment

InteractionInteractionLatin AmericaLatin America

Varied ClimateVaried Climate

Climate is affected by three different things

1) The vast size of Latin America

2) Large changes in elevation across the continent

3) Warm currents from the Atlantic and Cold currents from the Pacific

Tropical WetTropical Wet

• Rain Forests- form a distinct ecosystem, or a community of plants and animals, within Latin America (Amazon Rain Forest)

• More than 2 million square miles

• More than 2500 different types of trees and a vast amount of unique animals (anacondas, jaguars, piranhas)

Dry Climate ZonesDry Climate Zones

• Semiarid- Dry areas with some rain. Mostly the grass covered plains of areas like Argentina and Uruguay

• Desert- Found in Northern Mexico, Peru

• Atacama Desert- Chile• Argentina’s southern

zone, Patagonia, also contains a desert.

Other climatesOther climates

• Humid Subtropical- Buenos Aires, Argentina

• Mediterranean- Parts of Chile

• Marine West Coast-Parts of Argentina

• Highlands-Areas near the mountains

Slash and Burn Slash and Burn

• Cutting trees, brush and grass and burning the debris.

• Provides nutrients to soil, but soil can become exhausted and overused

• Occurring in the Amazon

Terraced FarmingTerraced Farming

• Growing crops on hillsides or mountains slopes

• Used by the Incas in Peru and the Aztecs in Mexico

UrbanizationUrbanization

• Argentina, Chile and Uruguay have become very urbanized

• Large cities include– Sao Paulo and Rio de

Janeiro, Brazil– Buenos Aires,

Argentina– Lima, Peru

TourismTourism

• Has become a dominant business in Latin America

• Problems with congestion and pollution have occurred because of this

• Many governments have run-up large debts trying to build resorts

• Income gap between the tourists and residents within the country