Download Mr. Burton

Mr. Burton
7.1 Notes
Please grab out a blank sheet of
paper and a writing utensil.
Big Idea
• Mexico is a large country with different
natural environments in its northern,
central, and southern regions.
Rio Bravo
• Mexico shares a long border with the southern
United States.
• The Río Bravo, called the Rio Grande in the
U.S., runs along part of this border.
• The Río Bravo is one of Mexico’s few major
rivers.
Bodies of Water
• Bordered by the Pacific Ocean in the West
and the Gulf of Mexico in the east
• Stretching south from northern Mexico is
a peninsula, or piece of land surrounded
by water on three sides, called Baja
California.
• The Yucatán Peninsula separates the
Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean Sea.
Plateaus and Mountains
• Much of interior is a region called the Mexican
Plateau.
• Two mountain ranges, the Sierra Madre Oriental
in the east and the Sierra Madre Occidental in the
west, are part of the Sierra Madre, or “mother
range.”
• The Valley of Mexico, where Mexico City is
located, lies between these two ranges in the
south.
• The mountains south of Mexico City include
volcanoes. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes
are a threat to that region.
Coastal Lowlands
• The land slopes down to the coast from
highlands in central Mexico.
• The Gulf coastal plain is wide and flat.
▫ This region has good soils and climate
for farming.
• The Yucatán Peninsula is mostly flat.
▫ Erosion of limestone created caves and
sinkholes that are often filled with water.
Mexico’s climate and vegetation include deserts, tropical
forests, and cool highlands.
• The great variety of climates produces different
vegetation.
• Changes in elevation cause climates to vary
within short distances.
• The Mexican Plateau can have cool temperatures.
• The southern coastal areas have warm
temperatures and summer rainy seasons that
support tropical forests that cover 25 percent of
Mexico.
• The climate in the Yucatán Peninsula is hot and
dry, supporting scrub forest.
• Most of northern Mexico is dry and made up of
deserts and grasslands.
Natural Resources
• Mexico has rich natural resources.
• The southern and coastal plains and the Gulf of
Mexico have oil.
• Mexico’s mines yield gold, silver, copper, lead,
and zinc.
• Mexico produces more silver than any other
country in the world.