Sonoran Desert

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
This article needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)
Image:Mojave-sonoran deserts.png
Map of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts.
Image:Sonoran desert mountains.jpg
Mountains in the Sonoran Desert
Image:Dusk on Desert.jpg
Anaglyph (3D photograph) of Saguaro National Park at dusk.

The Sonoran Desert (sometimes called the Gila Desert after the Gila River or the Low Desert in opposition to the higher Mojave Desert) is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the Mexican state of Sonora. It is one of the largest and hottest deserts in North America, with an area of 311,000 km² (120,000 mi² ). The desert contains a variety of unique plants and animals, such as the saguaro cactus. On January 17, 2001, 2,008 km² (496,337 acres) of the Sonoran Desert was set aside as the Sonoran Desert National Monument for the purpose of enhancing resource protection.[1]

Contents

[edit] Location

The Sonoran Desert wraps around the northern end of the Gulf of California, from northeastern Baja California through southeastern California and southwestern Arizona to western Sonora. It is bounded on the west by the Peninsular Ranges, which separate it from the California chaparral and woodlands and Baja California desert ecoregions of the Pacific slope. To the north, the Sonoran Desert transitions to the cold-winter Mojave, Great Basin, and Colorado Plateau deserts. To the east, the deserts transition to the coniferous Arizona Mountains forests and Sierra Madre Occidental forests at higher elevations. The Sonoran-Sinaloan transition subtropical dry forest marks the transition from the Sonoran Desert to the tropical dry forests of Sinaloa.

The desert's sub-regions include the Colorado Desert and Yuma Desert. In the 1951 publication, Vegetation of the Sonoran Desert, Forrest Shreve divided the Sonoran Desert into seven regions according to characteristic vegetation: Lower Colorado Valley, Arizona Upland, Plains of Sonora, Foothills of Sonora, Central Gulf Coast, Vizcaino Region, and Magdalena Region. (see An Overview of the Sonoran Desert, external link below). Many ecologists now consider Shreve's Vizcaino and Magdalena regions, which lie on the western side of the Baja California Peninsula, to be a separate ecoregion, the Baja California desert.

[edit] Ecology

The Sonoran Desert includes 60 mammal species, 350 bird species, 20 amphibian species, 100+ reptile species, 30 native fish species, and more than 2000 native plant species. This desert is the only place in the world where the famous saguaro cactus grows in the wild. Despite the common stereotype that it does not rain in deserts, the Sonoran Desert is considered the wettest desert in the world, receiving 3 to 15 inches per year [2] (depending on location in the desert).

[edit] Flora

Many plants not only survive the harsh conditions of the Sonoran Desert, but they actually thrive. Many have evolved to have specialized adaptations to the desert climate. The Sonoran Desert includes such plant from the agave family, palm family, cactus family, legume family, and many others.

[edit] Population

The desert is home to seventeen aboriginal American cultures.

The largest city in the Sonoran Desert is Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.A. This metropolitan area in central Arizona is the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States, with a population of 4 million.[3] In the North Phoenix area, desert land is developed at a rate of approximately 4,000 m2 (1 acre ) per hour.[4] The next largest cities are Tucson, in southern Arizona, U.S.A., with a metro area population of around 900,000,[3] and Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico, whose municipality also has a population of around 900,000. The municipality of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico has a population of around 700,000.[5][6]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Sonoran Desert National Monument, Bureau of Land Management, U. S. Department of the Interior. Accessed on line October 21, 2007.
  2. ^ Sonoran DesertEncyclopædia Britannica Online
  3. ^ a b Table 1: Annual Estimates of the Population of Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 (CBSA-EST2006-01), United States Census Bureau, 2007-04-05. Accessed 2007-09-11.
  4. ^ Make No Small Plans, Adelheid Fischer, ASU Research magazine. Accessed on line October 15, 2007.
  5. ^ Principales resultados por localidad 2005, Instituto Nacional de Estadística Geografía e Informática (Mexico). Accessed on line October 15, 2007.
  6. ^ Population Projections, state government of Baja California, Mexico. Accessed on line October 15, 2007.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Links to parks and recreational areas within the Sonoran Desert


v • d • e
General sub-fields of Physical Geography
Image:Land ocean ice cloud hires.jpg
v • d • e
Deserts
AfricaBayuda Desert · Chalbi Desert · Danakil Desert · Eastern Desert · Ferio Desert · Kalahari Desert · Libyan Desert · Namib Desert · Nubian Desert · Nyiri Desert · Richtersveld · Sahara · Ténéré · White Desert
AntarcticaAntarctica
AsiaAral Karakum · Badain Jaran Desert · Betpak-Dala · Dzoosotoyn Elisen Desert · Gobi Desert · Hami Desert · Indus Valley Desert · Karakum Desert · Kum-tagh Desert · Kyzyl Kum · Lop Desert · Ordos Desert · Qaidam · Registan Desert · Saryesik-Atyrau Desert · Taklamakan Desert · Tengger Desert · Thal Desert · Thar-Cholistan Desert · Tottori Sand Dunes · Ustyurt Plateau
Australia and
New Zealand		Barsuki Desert · Gibson Desert · Great Sandy Desert · Great Victoria Desert · Little Sandy Desert · Painted Desert · Rangipo Desert · Simpson Desert · Strzelecki Desert · Tanami Desert · Western Desert
EuropeBardenas Reales · Błędów Desert · Deliblatska Peščara · Hálendi · Oltenian Sahara · Ryn Desert · Tabernas Desert
Middle EastAd-Dahna Desert · Arabian Desert · Dasht-e Kavir · Dasht-e Lut · Dasht-e Margoh · Dasht-e Naomid · Judean Desert · Nefud  · Rub' al Khali · Negev · Syrian Desert · Tihamah
North America
and Hawaii		Agate Desert · Alvord Desert · Amargosa Desert · Baja California Desert · Black Rock Desert · Channeled scablands · Chihuahuan Desert · Colorado Plateau · Escalante Desert · Great Basin · Great Salt Lake Desert · Jornada del Muerto · Kaʻū Desert · Mojave Desert · Nk'mip Desert · Owyhee Desert · Painted Desert · Smoke Creek Desert · Sonoran Desert · Tule Desert (Nevada)
South AmericaAtacama Desert · La Guajira Desert · Médanos de Coro National Park · Monte Desert · Patagonian Desert · Sechura Desert · Tatacoa Desert
See also: List of deserts and List of deserts by area
v • d • e
Colorado River system
Dams and aqueducts
(see US Bureau of Reclamation)
Natural features
Tributaries
Major reservoirs
Dependent states
Designated areas

Coordinates: 32°15′36″N, 112°55′34″Wbn:সোনোরান মরুভূমি ca:Desert de Sonora de:Sonora-Wüste et:Sonora kõrb es:Desierto de Sonora eo:Sonora-dezerto fa:بیابان سونورا fr:Désert de Sonora it:Deserto di Sonora nl:Sonorawoestijn ja:ソノラ砂漠 pl:Pustynia Sonora pt:Deserto de Sonora ro:Deşertul Sonora ru:Сонора (пустыня) fi:Sonoran aavikko sv:Sonoraöknen uk:Сонора (пустеля)

Retrieved from "http://india.smashits.com/wikipedia/Sonoran_Desert"
Views
Personal tools

Toolbox