Physical Geography
of Latin America
Chapter 9
Mountains and Highlands
† Landforms affect the way
people live
„
Mountains
‡ protected isolated
communities
‡ Act as a barrier to
movement from the
coastal areas to the
interior
„
Æ coastal areas are
more densely settled
1
Plains and Lowlands
† Llanos
„ Large grassy – treeless – plains
used for gazing and farming
„ Columbia & Venezuela
† Cerrado
„ Savannas with flat terrain and
moderate rainfall
„ Undeveloped interior of Brazil
† Pampas
„ Grasslands with rich soil
„ Northern Argentina, Uruguay
Rivers in Latin America
† No major river systems in Central America
or the Caribbean
„
Rio Grande (US & Mexico)
„
Amazon (Brazil)
‡
‡
„
Starts in the Andes – 4,000 miles to
Atlantic Ocean – more than 1,000
tributaries
Orinoco (Venezuela)
‡
„
North America
About 1,500 miles long – home to one of
the few remaining areas of Native
Americans (Yanomamo)
Paraná (Paraguay and Argentina)
‡
‡
Starts in the Andes – 3,000 miles long
Río de la Plata – estuary of Paraná and
Uruguay Rivers
2
Major Islands of the Caribbean
† Three major groups of
islands
„
„
„
The Bahamas
‡ Hundreds of islands off
coast of Florida
‡ Capital / largest city =
Nassau
Greater Antilles
‡ Cuba, Jamaica,
Hispaniola, Puerto Rico
Lesser Antilles
‡ Smaller islands south east
of Puerto Rico
„
Windward Islands &
Leeward Islands
3
Cuba
Resources of Latin America
†
Natural resources
„
Mineral resources
‡
‡
‡
‡
‡
‡
‡
‡
„
†
Gold
Silver
Iron
Copper
Bauxite
Tin
Lead
Nickel
South America is one of
the world’s leaders in
mineral resource
extraction
Other natural resources
„
„
Rainforest
Fishing and agriculture
„
Energy resources
‡
‡
‡
‡
‡
„
„
Oil
Coal
Natural gas
Uranium
Hydroelectric power
Venezuela and Mexico
have major oil
reserves
Brazil produces
hydroelectric power on
their many rivers
4
Rainforest plants and animals
† Terms to know
„ Llanos
„ Cerrado
„ Pampas
„ Mineral resources
„ Energy resources
„ Estuary
„ Bauxite
„ Hydroelectric
5