The nature of North America. Features of the nature of North America

North America, whose geography was mastered only in the 17th century, and then not completely, is a huge continent. It was discovered by Europeans in the 10th century. The length of North America is so great that the nature here is different not only in the south and north, but also in the western and eastern parts of the continent.

general review

Map of North America (physical) demonstrates that in the far north here, as well as on the Eurasian mainland, there are arctic deserts - the realm of ice and snow. Nothing grows on this earth, except mosses and lichens. From Alaska, north Labrador and Hudson Bay, the tundra zone begins. Here you can already find dwarf trees, shrubs and low grass. Lesotundra flows into a coniferous forest. In general, the forests of North America occupy a third of the territory of the mainland. Taiga with white and black firs, pines, balsamic firs is replaced by mixed and broad-leaved forests, in which there are lindens, maples, oaks, chestnuts. Then the forest thinens and turns south into the forest-steppe, and then - in the steppe. These areas of North America are called prairies. On the mainland there are real deserts, but they are disturbed by the mountains that cut through them.

Climatic features

The nature of North America is so diverse, because the continent is located in all climatic zones, except the equatorial belt. In winter, the weather depends significantly on solar radiation, and in the summer - on the influence of the oceans. In the north of the mainland in January, frosts reach -20 ... -25 degrees, and in the central part of Greenland can reach -55 degrees. In Alaska and most of the Hudson Bay, in the winter it gets to -15 ... -20, and in summer the air gets warmer to +5 ... + 10. In temperate regions (north of the mouth of Colombia) in winter, the temperature is -5 ... -10 degrees, and in summer it does not exceed +20. The territory from Florida to California belongs to the subtropical belt. In the Mississippian lowland, on average, it warms up to + 25 ... + 30 in the summer, and in winter frosts can reach -15 degrees.

Arctic

As the map of North America (physical) shows, the northernmost part of the continent is not at all monotonous. Depending on the relief, nature changes. Everything that is not covered by ice is impregnated with water. The color of the tundra at times even brighter than the Russian autumn forest. Oceanic ice gives an amazing color gamut with a smooth transition from white to black. Ice is often painted with greenish and blue hues. Here there are polar bears and walruses, but there are not so many birds, although the abundance of insects is a rich food for them.

More than half of the land of the American Arctic is Greenland, which is 85% covered with an ice shield. However, its coastline is not as cold as it seems to many. In the summer, people even bathe in the lakes. Flora of Greenland is very diverse and has several hundred different plant species, including birches. But, of course, mostly the land is covered with vegetation, characteristic of the tundra. Here is the smallest tree on the planet - a dwarf willow, reaching no more than 5 centimeters in height. The western coast of Greenland is more severe in nature. Here lies the ice, and the rocky beaches are cut by fjords and bays.

Boreal forests

The nature of North America is rich in forests. To the south of the tundra grow aspen-shaped poplars and spruce, south-west - spruce and pine forests, which in the south are replaced by a transition zone with coniferous and deciduous vegetation. The Canadian northern edge strikes with silent beauty at any time of the year, but in summer, when the fir forest sparkles with bright colors, it is especially beautiful here. Yukon and British Columbia are covered with a whole ocean of trees. Plants and animals of North America in this zone are represented by a variety of species. From fauna representatives there are white-tailed deer, forest bison, coyotes, beavers, moose, gray and red lynx, forest caribou, rabbits and rabbits, wolverines.

In the transition zone, coniferous trees begin to alternate with deciduous trees: oak, elder, alder, maple. The mixed forest stretches from British Columbia to the Great Lakes and on to New England. The mountains of Southern California are surrounded by meadows and covered with green forests. In the coastal zone, many exotic plants are palm trees and eucalyptus imported from Australia. In Kentucky, Alabama and Tennessee, a real broad-leaved forest grows. Through these states and Georgia, he goes to the east, to the south of Virginia. Here there are oaks, hazel, elms, birch, hornbeam, magnolia, alder, willow, maple, poplar, chestnut, ash, acacia.

The forests of the temperate belt are separated from the prairies by a strip of parkland plantations. They pass through East Texas, go around the Great Plains and cover the plains of Illinois, and then pass the Rocky Mountains and again appear in the south of British Columbia. This kind of landscape is characterized by herbs and single trees appearing among them: juniper, pine, oak, maple, spruce.

Prairies

This is called the vast spaces that occupy the entire central part of the continent. The nature of North America has changed greatly due to human exposure, and the prairies in their primordial form are now found only in small patches. The rest of the land is plowed, irrigation artificially, crossed by power lines and a network of roads. Along the rivers in the water meadows stretched the farm. Many plants and animals of North America, previously encountered here, have now disappeared or declined sharply.

In the prairies in winter it is quite cold: snow falls, winds rage. With the advent of spring, strong floods are possible. Here the best time is the first month of summer, when everything smells and blooms. In August, a drought occurs, often there are fires. And yet the corners of the prairies, preserved intact, Americans consider the edge of unsurpassed beauty. Tourists love these places no less than the sea coasts and forest parks.

The mountains

Alaska to Mexico stretches Cordillera chain, and between their ridges lie the plateau and plateau. The rocky mountains are covered with wonderful vegetation and many blue marvelous lakes are hidden. Snow on the northern slopes and in the valley valleys can not melt all summer. The mountains of Arizona, Utah and Colorado are surrounded by high plateaus. The entire region has its own climate, its nature and geological structure, its stunning fauna and flora. Many geological strata cut through one of the wonders of North America - the Grand Canyon, whose depth reaches 1800 meters, and the length of 340 kilometers. People from all over the world come here to see with their own eyes the spectacle of eternity and the greatness of nature.

Sandy coasts

In the northeast of the mainland, from Nantucket Island to Florida and around the Gulf of Mexico, there is a coastal strip with many sand dunes. In some places on the dunes grow pine, shamrock, dog rose. There are a lot of birds here: mockingbirds, blackbirds, blue herons, woodpeckers, red-winged swamp trout, oats, cormorants, gulls, ducks. Feathered feed on marine life: fish, crabs, horseshoes and so on.

Finally

The nature of North America has long been different from what it used to be. Having plowed the prairies, cut down forests, built cities, people violated the natural balance. A man destroyed a wandering pigeon, exterminated a herd of bison, and those animals that remained had to adapt to new conditions. You can see how in the streets of the city opossums turn garbage cans in search of food, raccoon raccoons near restaurants beg for scraps, and along the roads graze the wild deer, completely ignoring the rushing cars. In New York on skyscrapers nest owls and peregrine falcons, and in parks and gardens, the most diverse birds took root. That's it, the fauna of anthropogenic landscape!