GEOG 110: Chapter 4 Landform Features

Yucatán Peninsula

A large peninsula in southeastern Mexico separating the Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean Sea.

Llanos

A large tropical grassland plain located east of the Andes in Colombia and Venezuela.

Iguazu Falls

Large waterfalls on the Iguazu River on the border of Brazil and Argentina.

Mexican Plateau

Located between the Sierra Madre Occidental and Sierra Madre Oriental, it is a large arid-to-semiarid plateau that occupies much of northern and central Mexico.

Lake Titicaca

South America's largest lake. It is located along the border of Bolivia and Peru.

Amazon River

South America's longest river. It is the second longest river in the world and is the largest river in terms of volume, with more water than the next seven largest rivers combined.

Altiplano

Spanish for "high plains," it is the area within the Andes Mountains in west-central South America (Peru and Bolivia) that is the most extensive area of high plateau outside of Tibet.

Pico de Orizaba

The highest peak in Mexico (18,491 ft) and the highest peak in Latin America outside of the Andes Mountains.

Andes Mountains

The longest continental mountain range in the world. It extends 4,300 miles along the western coast of South America.

Amazon Basin

The part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. It covers 2.6 million square miles, or roughly 40 percent of South America.

Rio Grande (Rio Bravo)

The river comprising the border between Mexico and the state of Texas.

Angel Falls

The world's highest uninterrupted waterfall, it is located in the Guiana Highlands of eastern Venezuela.

Atacama Desert

A desert in northern Chile. It is the driest non-polar desert in the world.

Peruvian Desert (Nazca Desert)

A desert located in southern Peru between the Pacific Ocean and Andes Mountains.

Copper Canyon

A canyon system in the Sierra Madre Occidental in western Mexico. The canyon system is larger and deeper than the Grand Canyon in the U.S.

Orinoco River

A major river of northern South America located primarily in Venezuela.

Aconcagua

A mountain in Argentina that, at 22,837 feet in elevation, is the highest mountain in the western and southern hemispheres.

Sierra Madre del Sur

A mountain range in southwestern Mexico.

Sierra Madre Oriental

A mountain range in western Mexico running from the Rio Grande on the Texas border to southern Mexico.

Sierra Madre Occidental

A mountain range in western Mexico running from the border near Arizona to southern Mexico.

Baja California Peninsula

A peninsula in northwestern Mexico. It separates the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California.

Patagonia

A region located at the southern end of South America, shared by Argentina and Chile. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountains.

Paraná River

A river in south Central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. At 3,030 miles, it is second in length only to the Amazon River among South American rivers.

Sertão

A semi-arid region in northeastern Brazil.

Guiana Highlands

A shield area in northern South America located mostly in Venezuela and western Guyana.

Panama Canal

A ship canal in Panama that cuts across the Isthmus of Panama, connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean (via the Caribbean Sea).

Tierra del Fuego

Also known as Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, it is the largest island in the Tierra del Fuego archipelago located off the southern end of South America. It is divided between Chile and Argentina.

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

An archipelago off Argentina in the South Atlantic Ocean. They are a British overseas territory, although Argentina claims the islands.

Brazilian Highlands

An extensive area of three major plateaus in eastern, southern, and central Brazil.

Pantanal

Covering as much as 75,000 square miles, it is one of the world's largest tropical wetland areas. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay.

Chimborazo

Ecuador's highest peak. Because of its location along the equatorial bulge its summit is the farthest point on the Earth's surface from the Earth's center.