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The low desert of southeastern California is part of the Sonoran desert ecoregion, which extends into Arizona and parts of northern Mexico. [ 2] California has two high deserts: the Mojave desert and the Great Basin Desert. The Mojave desert ecoregion is marked by the presence of Joshua trees. [ 3] The dry cold Great Basin desert of California ...
The desert region of California is characterized by low rainfall, caused by the rain shadow of mountain ranges to the west of the desert region. The Mojave Desert receives from 3 to 10 inches (76 to 254 mm) of rain per year, while the Colorado Desert receives from 2 to 6 inches (51 to 152 mm). [ 10] The driest spot in California is Death Valley ...
Caliche fossil forest on San Miguel Island, California. Caliche (/ k ə ˈ l iː tʃ iː /) - (unrelated to the street-slang "Caliche" spoken in El Salvador) - is a sedimentary rock, a hardened natural cement of calcium carbonate that binds other materials—such as gravel, sand, clay, and silt.
Chaparral in the Santa Ynez Mountains, near Santa Barbara, California. Chaparral ( / ˌʃæpəˈræl, ˌtʃæp -/ SHAP-ə-RAL, CHAP-) [ 1] is a shrubland plant community found primarily in California, in southern Oregon and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterranean climate (mild wet ...
The Sonoran Desert ( Spanish: Desierto de Sonora) is a hot desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Arizona and California ). It is the hottest desert in both Mexico and the United States. [ 3]
Geography of California. Coordinates: 37°9′58″N 119°26′58″W. Map of California topography and geomorphic provinces. California's major mountain ranges. California is a U.S. state on the western coast of North America. Covering an area of 163,696 sq mi (423,970 km 2 ), California is among the most geographically diverse states.
The ecology of the Sierra Nevada, located in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, is diverse and complex. The combination of climate, topography, moisture, and soils influences the distribution of ecological communities across an elevation gradient from 500 to 14,500 feet (200 to 4,400 m). Biotic zones range from scrub and chaparral ...
In California’s Mediterranean climate, trees, shrubs and the species they support are naturally adapted to drought. But excessive pumping from wells can push habitats beyond ecological limits by ...