North America Geography 9: Physical Features Flashcards
Costal Plains
Starts around the top of USA, ends Gulf of Mexico
Costal Plains: Topography
Swamps and marshes
200 meters above sea- subject to flooding
Costal Plains: Climate and Vegetation
Climate varies
Sandy, jungles
Great Lakes
Smallest region
Near St. Lawrence River
Great Lakes: Climate and Vegetation
Humid
Fertile soils
Great Lakes: Topography
Rolling Landscape, flat plains
Escarpments
Appalachian Region
East Coast
Appalachian Region: Topography
Old mountains
Rolling hills
Appalachian Region: Climate/Vegetation
Fertile plateaus + river valleys
Climate affected by the two ocean currents
Heavily forested
Interior Plains
Between Appalachian and Rockies (USA), Canadian Shield and Rockies (Canada)
Interior Plains: Topography
Great plains are higher in elevation than Central Lowland, gently rolling plains
Not entirely flat
Interior Plains: Climate/Vegetation
Continental climate (Extreme) Deciduous evergreens, tall prairie grasses
Intermountain Region
Between Rockies, Coast Mountains, Cascades and Sierra Nevada
Intermountain Region: Climate/Vegetation
Lots of streams, high plateaus/mountains
Climate is affected depending on where you are
Arctic: Topography
Combination of lowland and mountains
Flat
Glaciers
Arctic: Climate/Vegetation
Severe (winter = 10 months), no precipitation
Few life, no trees
Canadian Shield
Volcanic Mountains, platform rocks
Canadian Shield: Topography
Glaciers removed soil, dams, center is much lower than outsides
Canadian Shield: Climate/Vegetation
Climates depend on where you go Boreal forests (paper/lumber industry)
Western Cordillera
West Coast of NA, Rocky mountains are most easterly
Western Cordillera: Topography
Newer mountains, twice as high as the Appalachian
Rocky mountains, James, Hudson Bay, Arctic ocean, gulf of Mexico
Western Cordillera: Climate/Vegetation
Maritime climate (influenced by water) Vegetation varies
