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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 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 ...
History of environmental action. Gold miners excavate an eroded bluff with jets of water at a placer mine in Dutch Flat, California sometime between 1857 and 1870. California's Mediterranean climate makes vegetation susceptible to wildfires through the dry summers. Aboriginal Californians used fire to control brush, promote growth of seed ...
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 ...
The Sierra Nevada subalpine zone occurs between 2,450–3,660 metres (8,000–12,000 ft), and is characterized by an open woodland of several conifer species, including whitebark pine, lodgepole pine, western white pine, mountain hemlock, and Sierra juniper. The vegetation and ecology is determined by the harsh climate, with extensive snow and ...
Coastal scrub. [] Northern coastal scrub consists of shrublands found at elevations below 1,500 feet (460 m) on bluffs, terraces, dunes, and hills near the coast. This habitat is often subject to wind and maritime fog. The shrubs are mostly evergreen, small-leaved, and sclerophyllous.
Ecology of the San Francisco Estuary. The San Francisco Estuary together with the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta represents a highly altered ecosystem. The region has been heavily re-engineered to accommodate the needs of water delivery, shipping, agriculture, and most recently, suburban development. These needs have wrought direct ...
California oak woodland is a plant community found throughout the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of California in the United States and northwestern Baja California in Mexico. Oak woodland is widespread at lower elevations in coastal California; in interior valleys of the Coast Ranges, Transverse Ranges and Peninsular Ranges; and ...