2. Andes Mountains The Andes run the entire length of South America, from the humid tropics of the Caribbean to the ice fields of Patagonia. The longest north-south mountain range in the world, the Andes encompass a tremendous range of ecosystems and are home to a rich variety of plant and animal species and human communities.
3. subduction In this cross section of the Earth in the Southern Hemisphere, the map shows a subduction zone that has created the Peru-Chile Trench at the western edge of South America and the Andes Mountains along the west coast of South America.
4. Plate tectonics processes, caused by the subduction of the Nazca plate beneath the South American plate produced the Andes.
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6. Volcanoes At 19,350 feet, Ecuador’s Cotopaxi is the world's tallest active volcano
9. highlands As the elevation changes in the Andes, so does the climate. While it may be 90°and raining at the base, it can be dry and below zero at the summit.
19. Paramo A neotropical Andean ecosystem located in the high Andes region, between the upper forest line and the permanent snow line. Typical páramo vegetation around L ake Caricocha, Mojanda, Ecuador. Espeletia (Frailejón) plant in the Venezuelan páramo.
20. Cordillera Oriental Montane forests tamandua Lush forests of this semi-tropical ecoregion carpet the middle-to-high elevations of the northern Andes and surrounding foothills.
21. Cock of the Rock Male Andean Cock-of-the-rock species found in humid Andean forests
The Andes run the entire length of South America, from the humid tropics of the Caribbean to the ice fields of Patagonia. The longest north-south mountain range in the world, the Andes encompass a tremendous range of ecosystems and are home to a rich variety of plant and animal species and human communities.
It also shows the Mid-Atlantic Ridge which is spreading the Atlantic Ocean making it wider.
The boundary between the two plates is marked by the Peru-Chile oceanic trench.
From this convenient location, they eventually began their conquests of the surrounding area. By 1500 the Incas were the largest and richest of the ancient empires of the Americas.
