Content deleted Content added
JrGoesGaming (talk | contribs) No edit summary Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit |
|||
(177 intermediate revisions by 89 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{Short description|Largest desert in North America}}
{{Infobox ecoregion
|name = Chihuahuan Desert
|image = Big Bend National Park PB112611.jpg
|image_size =
|image_alt =
|caption = Chihuahuan desert landscape in [[Big Bend National Park]]
|
|map_size = 250
|map_alt =
|map_caption = Location map of Chihuahuan Desert
|ecozone = [[Nearctic realm|Nearctic]]
|biome = [[Deserts and xeric shrublands]]
|animals =
|bird_species =
|mammal_species =
|border = [[Arizona Mountains forests]]
|border1 = [[Colorado Plateau shrublands]]
|border2 = [[Edwards Plateau savanna]]
|border3 = [[Meseta Central matorral]]
|border4 = [[Sierra Madre Occidental pine–oak forests]]
|border5 = [[Sierra Madre Oriental pine–oak forests]]
|border6 = [[Sonoran Desert]]
|border7 = [[Tamaulipan matorral]]
|border8 = [[Tamaulipan mezquital]]
|border9 = [[Western short grasslands]]
|area = 501,896
|country = [[Mexico]]
|country1 = [[United States]]
|state = [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]]
|state1 = [[Coahuila]]
|state2 = [[Durango]]
|state3 = [[Nuevo León]]
|state4 = [[Sonora]]
|state5 = [[Zacatecas]]
|state6 = [[Arizona]]
|state7 = [[New Mexico]]
|state8 = [[Texas]]
|region_type =
|elevation =
|geology =
|seas = Non
|rivers = [[Rio Grande]]
|climate = [[Hot desert climate|Hot desert]] (''BWh'') and [[hot semi-arid climate|hot semi-arid]] (''BSh'')
|soil =
|conservation = Vulnerable
|global200 = Yes
|habitat_loss =
|habitat_loss_ref =
|coordinates = {{coord|30|32|26|N|103|50|14|W|scale:5000000|display=inline,title}}
|protected = {{cvt|35,905|km2|sqmi}} (7
|protected_ref = )<ref name = dinerstein>{{cite journal |first1=Eric |last1=Dinerstein |first2=David |last2=Olson |first3=Anup |last3=Joshi |display-authors=2 |title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm |journal=BioScience |volume=67 |issue=6 |year=2017 |at=pp. 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014 |pmid=28608869 |pmc=5451287 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
|embedded =
}}
The '''Chihuahuan Desert''' ({{lang-es|Desierto de Chihuahua}}, {{lang|es|Desierto Chihuahuense}}) is a [[desert]]
==Geography==
[[File:Chihuahuan Desert from South Rim BIBE.jpg|left|thumbnail|The terrain mainly consists of [[Drainage basin|basin]]s broken by numerous small [[mountain range]]s.]]
There are
According to the [[World Wide Fund for Nature]] the Chihuahuan Desert may be the most biologically diverse desert in the world as measured by species richness or endemism. The region has been badly degraded, mainly due to grazing.<ref name="WWF">{{WWF ecoregion |id=na1303 |name=Chihuahuan desert|
==Climate==
The desert is mainly a [[rain shadow]] desert because the two main mountain ranges
Owing to its inland position and higher elevation than the [[Sonoran Desert]] to the west, mostly varying from {{convert|480| to |1800|m|0|abbr=on}} in elevation,<ref name= EOE >{{cite web | url = http://www.eoearth.org/article/Chihuahuan_desert | title = Chihuahuan Desert | publisher = Encyclopedia of Earth | access-date = February 16, 2013}}</ref> the desert has a slightly milder climate in the summer (though usually daytime June temperatures are in the range of {{convert|32|to|40|C|F|abbr=on|disp=or}}), with mild to cool winters and occasional to frequent freezes.<ref name= NPS1 /> The hottest temperatures in the desert occur in lower elevation areas and valleys, including near the Rio Grande from south of El Paso into the Big Bend, and the Bolson de Mapimi.<ref name= EOE /> A subtropical temperature regime describes lower elevations in the Texas Big Bend region up to the Presidio and Candelaria areas, then southward into similar elevations, while a warm temperate temperature regime describes higher elevations and further north. The average annual temperature in the desert varies from about {{convert|13|to|22|C|F}}, depending on elevation and latitude.
The mean annual precipitation for the Chihuahuan Desert is {{convert|235|mm|in|abbr=on}} with a range of approximately {{convert|150|–|400|mm|0|abbr=on}}, although it receives more precipitation than most other warm desert ecoregions.<ref name= NMSU /> Nearly two-thirds of the arid zone stations have annual totals between {{convert|225|and|275|mm|in|abbr=on}}.<ref>[http://museum.utep.edu/chih/pdf/chihuahuanclimate.pdf Chihuahuan Climate] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060906101600/http://museum.utep.edu/chih/pdf/chihuahuanclimate.pdf |date=September 6, 2006 }}, Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute</ref> Snowfall is scant except at the higher elevation edges. Northern and eastern portions have more definite winters than southern and western portions, receiving a portion of winter precipitation as snowfall most winters.<ref name= NPS1 />
==Flora==
[[File:Antelope, Otero Mesa NM.jpg|left|thumbnail|A [[Pronghorn|Pronghorn antelope]] among [[yucca]]s in the [[Otero Mesa]].]]
The creosote bush (''[[Larrea tridentata]]'') is the dominant plant species on gravelly and occasional sandy soils in valley areas within the Chihuahuan Desert. The other species found with creosote bush depend on factors including the soil type, elevation, and degree of slope. Viscid acacia (''[[Vachellia vernicosa]]''), and tarbush (''[[Flourensia cernua]]'') dominate northern portions, while broom dalea (''[[Psorothamnus scoparius]]'') occurs on sandy soils in western portions. ''[[Yucca]]'' and ''[[Opuntia]]'' species are abundant on slopes and uplands in most areas, while Arizona rainbow cactus (''[[Echinocereus polyacanthus]]'') and Mexican fire-barrel cactus (''[[Ferocactus pilosus]]'') inhabit portions near the US–Mexico border.
[[Herbaceous plant]]s, such as bush muhly (''[[Muhlenbergia porteri]]''), blue grama (''[[Bouteloua gracilis]]''), gypsum grama (''[[Bouteloua breviseta|B. breviseta]]''), and hairy grama (''[[Bouteloua hirsuta|B. hirsuta]]''), are dominant in desert grasslands and near the mountain edges including the Sierra Madre Occidental. Lechuguilla (''[[Agave lechuguilla]]''), honey mesquite (''[[Prosopis glandulosa]]''), ''[[Opuntia macrocentra]]'' and ''[[Echinocereus pectinatus]]'' are the dominant species in western [[Coahuila]]. Ocotillo (''[[Fouquieria splendens]]''), lechuguilla, and ''[[Yucca filifera]]'' are the most common species in the southeastern part of the desert. Candelilla (''[[Euphorbia antisyphilitica]]''), ''[[Mimosa zygophylla]]'', ''[[Acacia glandulifera]]'' and lechuguilla are found in areas with well-draining, shallow soils. The shrubs found near the Sierra Madre Oriental are exclusively lechuguilla, guapilla (''[[Hechtia glomerata]]''), Queen Victoria's agave (''[[Agave victoriae-reginae]]''), sotol (''[[Dasylirion]]'' spp.), and barreta (''[[Helietta]] [[Helietta parvifolia|parvifolia]]''), while the well-developed [[herbaceous layer]] includes grasses, [[Fabaceae|legumes]], and cacti.
Desert or arid grasslands comprise 20% of this desert and are often mosaics of shrubs and grasses. They include purple three-awn (''[[Aristida purpurea]]''), black grama (''[[Bouteloua eriopoda]]''), and sideoats grama (''[[Bouteloua curtipendula]]''). Early Spanish explorers reported encountering grasses that were "belly high to a horse"; most likely these were big alkali sacaton (''[[Sporobolus wrightii]]'') and tobosa (''[[Pleuraphis mutica]]'') along floodplain or bottomland areas.<ref name="WWF"/>
The United Nations Environment Programme reported in 2006 that nearly half of the bird, mammal, and butterfly species in the Chihuahuan Desert are expected to be replaced by other species by 2055 due to climate change.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EEz8yAMp7SAC&pg=PR7|title=Global Deserts Outlook|publisher=United Nations Environment Programme|year=2006|isbn=9789280727227}}</ref>
==Protected areas==
A 2017 assessment found that {{cvt|35,905|km2|sqmi}}, or 7%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas.<ref name = dinerstein/> Protected areas include [[Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge]] in Arizona; [[Janos Biosphere Reserve]], [[Médanos de Samalayuca Natural Protected Area]] and [[Cañón de Santa Elena Flora and Fauna Protection Area]] in Chihuahua; [[Cuatro Ciénegas Basin]], [[Ocampo Flora and Fauna Protection Area]], and part of [[Maderas del Carmen|Maderas del Carmen Biosphere Reserve]] in Coahuila; [[Mapimí Biosphere Reserve]] and [[Cañón de Fernández State Park]] in Durango; [[Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge]], [[Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge]], [[Carlsbad Caverns National Park]], [[Carrizozo Malpais]], [[Oliver Lee Memorial State Park]], [[Organ Mountains–Desert Peaks National Monument]], [[Petroglyph National Monument]], [[Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge]], and [[White Sands National Park]] in New Mexico; and [[Big Bend National Park]], [[Big Bend Ranch State Park]], Black Gap Wildlife Management Area, [[Franklin Mountains State Park]], and part of [[Guadalupe Mountains National Park]] in Texas.
==Gallery==
<gallery
File:Creosote Larrea tridentata.JPG|Young [[Larrea tridentata|creosote bush]] (''Larrea tridentata'')
File:VanHornTX 2008.jpg|[[Yucca]],
File:Agave lechuguilla habitus.jpg|Lechuguilla (''[[Agave lechuguilla]]'')—one of the indicator plants of the Chihuahuan Desert
File:Spring Water coahuila MEXICO - panoramio.jpg|Poza Azul, one of many a springs in the [[Cuatro Ciénegas Basin]] in central [[Coahuila]], Mexico (2009).
</gallery>
== See also ==
{{div col|colwidth=23em}}
*[[List of deserts by area]]
*[[List of ecoregions in the United States (WWF)]]
*[[List of geographical regions in Texas]]
Line 99 ⟶ 106:
*[[Pecos River]]
*[[Samalayuca Dune Fields]]
*[[Sky islands]]
*[[Solitario]] formation
Line 105 ⟶ 111:
*[[Trans-Pecos]]
*[[West Texas]]
{{div col end}}
==References==
{{
==External links==
{{Commons category|Chihuahuan Desert}}
*{{WWF ecoregion |id=na1303 |name=Chihuahuan desert}}
*[http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/ecoregions/51303frame.htm Chihuahuan Desert images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu] ([http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/ecoregions/51303.htm slow modem version])
*[http://www.pronaturane.org/eng/ecoregions/chd.htm: Pronatura Noreste in the Chihuahuan Desert]{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
Line 117 ⟶ 124:
{{Deserts}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Chihuahuan Desert| ]]
Line 141 ⟶ 149:
[[Category:Geography of Nuevo León]]
[[Category:Geography of Zacatecas]]
[[Category:Madrean Region]]
|