US Landforms
The Coastal Plains are covered with swamps
and estuaries. Piedmont is covered
with hard rocks, which meets softer
coastal plains. The Appalachian Highlands
offers gaps and thin, stony soil
for farmers. h Bodies of Water: The East and
Southern United States' bodies
of water are none other then the Atlantic Ocean
and the Gulf of Mexico. h
Climate: The climate of this area offers hotter and
longer summers and the
winters are colder and harsher. Precipitation is fairly
even. Heavier
precipitation is found in the warmer months. h Plants: The plants
found in
this part of the United States are mostly needle-leaf and hardwood.
Here are
the examples of needle-leaf plants listed in our book: cedar, spruce,
and
leaf shedding. Here are the examples of hardwood: elm, oak, maple,
ash,
hickory, pine, and cypress. These are very popular in the Eastern and
Southern
part. h Animals: Black bears, deers, moose, foxes, wildcats, and
muskrats are
mostly found in this area. a The Central Heartland: h Landforms:
The Central
Plains include vast grasslands that rise gradually toward the
forested foothill,
Ozart Mountains, semi-deserts, and bleaker and emptier
prairies. The Great
Plains rise gradually to meet the Rocky Mountains, which
are interrupted by
steep hills and gullies known as the Badland. h Bodies of
Water: There are only
two bodies of water in the Central Heartland and they
are the Mississippi River
and the Great Lakes. h Climate: In the summer it
can reach about 100 degrees
Fahrenheit and drop to -40 degrees Fahrenheit.
The ocean has a moderating
influence on weather patterns. This section of the
U.S. is known for its extreme
climates. The annual rainfall is moderate but
less plentiful then the Atlantic
seaboard. The Mississippi River has a steady
rainfall. The Great Plain has a
limiting amount of rainfall that some regions
are semi-desert. h Plants: This
section's plants are forested, grassland, and
partly desert. The grass grows
about 1-2 feet. h Animals: The animals in this
area are buffaloes, pronghorns
(American antelope), prairie dog, ground
squirrel, jack rabbit, coyotes,
mountain lions, and wolves. a American West:
h Landforms: The Rocky Mountains
are one of the many landforms in this area.
The Rockies contains 52 peaks and
has a Continental Divider (a ridge). This
ridge separates the Mississippi River
and the Gulf of Mexico, the Arkansas,
the Platte, the Rio Grande, and the
Pacific and Colorado River. The
intermountain Region offers high plateaus,
basins, deep canyons, and wide
deserts. The most important part of this region
is the Great Basin and the
Colorado Plateau. Everything in this area is low
relief and low elevation
landscape, except for the Great Basin. Its elevation is
over 4,000 ft. and
has an enormous appearance of a bowl. The Pacific Coast has
few natural
harbors and mountains that run parallel to the coast of Central
California.
Further inland are higher peaks like the Sierra Nevada. Central
Valley is a
valley that runs half the size of the state. h Bodies of Water: The
body of
water in America West is only the Pacific Ocean. There are also
important
rivers, which are Columbia, Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Colorado
(important
water resource). h Climate: The climate in the Rockies is cool, short
summers
and cold winters. There is heavy precipitation in this area.
The
Intermountain Region lacks precipitation; the temperature ranges from
summer to
winter are extreme. Most of California has a medditeranean climate
with mild and
wet winters and dry and sunny summers. h Plants: The Rockies
has many plants
including junipers, pines, aspen, fir, and spruce flourish.
The desert areas
have patches of steppe grass, scrub, sagebrush, mesquite
trees, species of
cactuses, and colorful flowers. The Pacific has palm trees,
grapes, olives, and
redwood. h Animals: The Rockies has grizzly bears, wild
goat, and longhorn
sheep. The desert has roadrunners, peccaries (wild pig),
kangaroo rats, Gila
monsters, birds, and lizards. The Pacific offers
black-tailed deer, Roosevelt
elk, salmon, abolones, otters, and sea
lions.