The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert that covers most of the Southwest United States in Arizona and California and Northwest Mexico in Sonora, Baja California and Baja California Sur. This is the hottest desert in Mexico. It has an area of ​​260,000 square kilometers (100,000 sq mi). The western part of the US-Mexican border passes through the Sonoran Desert.
In phytogeography, the Sonoran Desert lies within Sonora Floristic Province in the Madrean Region in southwestern North America, part of the Holarctic Kingdom in the north west. The wilderness contains a variety of unique and endemic plants and animals, such as saguaro ( Carnegiea gigantea ) and organ pipe cactus ( Stenocereus thurberi ).
Video Sonoran Desert
Location
The Sonoran Desert encloses around the northern tip of California Bay, from Baja California Sur (El VizcaÃÆ'no Biosphere Reserve on the middle west coast and the Pacific, sub-Central Gulf Coast on the east to south), north through most of Baja California, excluding western central mountains ocean and west coast of the Pacific, through southeastern and southwestern California and southern Arizona to western and central parts of Sonora.
It is bordered on the west by the Peninsula, which separates it from California chaparral and forest (northwest) and the Baja California Desert (Vizcaino subregion, central and southeast) of the Pacific ecoregion. To the north in California and northwest Arizona, the Sonoran Desert changes to the cooler plains, the Mojave plateau, the Great Basin, and the Colorado Plateau plateau.
To the east and southeast, the desert transitions to Arizona mountain forests include pine forests and the Sierra Madre and Sierra Madre Occidental at higher altitudes. To the south, Sonoran-Sinaloan's subtropical dry forests are a transition zone from the Sonoran Desert to the tropical dry forests of the Sinaloa state of Mexico.
Maps Sonoran Desert
Sub-region deserts
The desert sub-region includes the Colorado Desert in southeastern California; and the Yuma Desert in the north-south-east of the Colorado River in southwest Arizona. In the 1957 publication, Sonoran Desert Vegetation , Forrest Shreve divided the Sonoran Desert into seven distinct vegetation areas: Lower Colorado Valley, Upland Arizona, Sonora Plain, Foothills of Sonora, Central Gulf Coast, VizcaÃÆ'no County, and Magdalena County. Many ecologists now consider the territory of VizcaÃÆ'no and Magdalena Shreve, located on the western side of the Baja California Peninsula, to become a separate ecoregion, the Baja California Desert.
In the southern Sonora desert in Mexico, the Gran Desierto de Altar, with its reservoirs, is 2,000 square kilometers (770Ã, sqÃ,Â,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,- mi) from the desert and mountain areas. The Pinacate National Park includes the only area of ​​the Erg mound that is active in North America. The closest town to Reserva de la Biosfera el Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar is Puerto PeÃÆ'  ± asco (a.k.a. 'Rocky Point') in the state of Sonora, Mexico.
- Sub-region
Desert Sonora Desert includes:
- Colorado Desert
- Great Altar Desert
- Lechuguilla Desert
- The Tonopah Desert
- Yuha Desert
- Yuma Desert
Ecology
The Sonora Desert includes 60 species of mammals, 350 bird species, 20 species of amphibians, over 100 species of reptiles, 30 native fish species, more than 1000 species of native bees, and more than 2,000 native plant species. The Sonoran Desert in southeastern Tucson and near the Mexican border is a vital habitat for the only population of jaguars living in the United States. The Colorado River Delta used to be an ecological hotspot in the Sonoran desert, triggered by fresh water flow through the Colorado river in this dry area, but the delta has been greatly reduced due to the upstream creep and upstream use.
Flora
Many plants not only survive, but thrive in harsh conditions in the Sonoran Desert. Many have evolved to have a special adaptation to the desert climate. The mute rainfall disorder of Sonoran Desert produces more plant species than any other desert in the world. The Sonoran desert includes the plant genera and species of the agave family, the palm family, the cactus family, the legume family, and many others.
Sonoran is the only place in the world where the famous saguaro cactus ( Carnegiea gigantea ) grows in the wild. Cholla ( Cylindropuntia spp.), Beavertail ( Opuntia basilaris ), porcupine ( Echinocereus spp.), Fishhook ( Ferocactus wislizeni ), prickly pear ( Opuntia spp.), cereus nightblooming ( Peniocereus spp.), and organ pipe ( Stenocereus thurberi ) is another cacti taxa found here. Cactus provides food and homes for many desert mammals and birds, with striking flowers in red, pink, yellow, and white, bloom most often from late March to June, depending on species and seasonal temperatures.
Creosote bush (Larami Tridentata) and bur sage (Ambrosia dumosa ) dominate the valley floor. Indigo bush ( Psorothamnus fremontii ) and Mormon tea are other bushes that can be found. Wildflowers from the Sonoran Desert include the verbena desert ( Abronia villosa ), the sunflower desert ( Geraea canescens ), and the roses of the night.
Rise from valley to bajadas, various subtrees such as velutina velutina, palo verde ( Parkinsonia florida ), iron wood desert ( Olneya tesota ), desert willow ( Chilopsis linearis ssp. arcuata ), and the spines of crucifixion ( Canotia holacantha >) is common, as well as multi-stemmed ocotillo ( Fouquieria splendens ). Shrubs found at higher altitudes include whitethorn acacia ( Acacia constricta ), fairy duster, and jojoba. In the desert subdivision found in Baja California, cardon cactus, elephant trees, and boojum trees occur.
Palm fan California ( Washingtonia filifera ) is found in parts of the Colorado Desert in the Sonoran Desert, the only original palm tree in California, among many other genera and other introduced Arecaceae species. It is found in a spring-fed oasis, such as at Anza Borrego Desert State Park, Joshua Tree National Park, and Kofa National Wildlife Reserve.
Fauna
Human population
The Sonoran Desert is home to a culture of over seventeen contemporary American native tribes, with settlements on American Indian reservations in California and Arizona, as well as populations in Mexico.
The largest city in the Sonoran Desert is Phoenix, Arizona, with a 2013 metropolitan population of about 4.3 million. Located on the Salt River in central Arizona, this is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the United States. In 2007 in the Phoenix area, the desert lost ground to urban sprawl at a rate of about 4,000 square meters (1 acre) per hour.
The next largest city is Tucson, in southern Arizona, with a metro population of about 1 million, and Mexicali, Baja California, whose municipality also has a population of around 900,000. The municipality of Hermosillo, Sonora, has a population of around 700,000. Ciudad ObregÃÆ'³n, Sonora, in the southern desert, has a population of 375,800 inhabitants.
California
The Coachella Valley, located in the Colorado Desert section of the Sonoran Desert, has a population of 365,000. Many of California's famous southern desert resort towns like Palm Springs and Palm Desert are located here.
During the winter months, from November to April, daytime temperatures in Coachella Valley range from 70 ° F (21 ° C) to 90 ° F (32 ° C) and corresponding nighttime lows range from 46 Â ° F (8 Â ° C) to 68 Â ° F (20 Â ° C) makes it a popular winter resort destination. Due to its warm climate throughout the year and subtropical fruits such as mango, figs, and dates are planted in the adjacent Coachella Valley and adjacent Imperial Valley. The Imperial Valley has a total population of about 188,000 and has a climate similar to the Coachella Valley. Other cities include Indio, Coachella, Calexico, El Centro, Imperial, Palm Desert and Blythe.
illegal border crossing
Straddling just like the US-Mexican border, with a low human security level, the Sonora desert is a popular route for trying to enter without permission to the United States. The harsh conditions mean that the 3-5 day parade, usually moves at night to minimize heat exposure, often ends in death.
Parks, conservation centers, and research facilities
There are many National Parks and Monuments; federal and state reserves and wildlife sanctuaries; state, county, and city parks; and governmental or non-profit groups operated natural history museums, science research institutes, and botanical gardens and desert landscape parks.
- Index: Sonora Desert protected area
- Index: Protected area in the Colorado Desert
- Sonora Desert protection area included
Gallery
See also
References
External links
- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
- {https://www.desertmuseum.org/images/csds/sonoran_map-lg.jpg Sonora Desert Ecoregion Map]
- Sonora Desert and its subdivisions - with photos .
- Sonora desert timeline
- Sonora Desert Overview , by William G. McGinnies
- Naturalist Sonoran Desert
- Short overview of Sonora Desert Geology
- "Sonora Desert (World Wildlife Fund)". Terrestrial Ecoregions . World Wildlife Fund
- Sonora desert in bioimages.vanderbilt.edu (slow modem version)
- International Sonoran Desert Alliance
- Sonora Desert Sound)
Parks and recreation areas
- Sonoran National Monument desert: official website
- Saguaro National Park: official website
- Anza-Borrego Desert Country: official website
- Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument: official website
- Joshua Tree National Park: official website
- South Mountain Park - Preserve
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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