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    South America 2.o

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    South America 2.o

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    South-America-2.o

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    South America 2.o

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    Cultural Geography

    Historic Cultures

    The historic cultures of South America developed in connection with distinct


    regional landscapes. The three principal regions of early development were
    the Pacific coast, suited to fishing and trading societies; the major rivers of
    the Amazon basin, with abundant water, plant, and animal resources; and
    the Andes, where mountains provided security.

    South America and North America are named after


    Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci, who was the first European to suggest
    that the Americas were not part of the East Indies, but an entirely separate
    landmass. The portions of the landmass that lie south of the Isthmus of
    Panama became known as South America.

    The fauna of South America includes a variety of animals:


    • Mammals, such as anteaters, tapirs, jaguars, maned wolves, howler
    monkeys, spider monkeys, capybaras, sloths, giant anteaters, and
    Peruvian hairless dogs.
    • Reptiles, such as caimans, anacondas, iguanas, and arapaimas.
    • Amphibians, such as poison dart frogs and the red-eyed tree frog.
    • Birds, such as the harpy eagle, rheas, macaws, albatrosses, and
    anhingas.
    • Insects, such as ants, Asian lady beetles, and bark beetles.

    South America possesses a distinctive plant life. The biotic region is


    called the Neotropics, and its faunal realm the Neogaean.
    • The region extends southward from the Tropic of Cancer and
    includes Central and South America—even the temperate
    southern portion.
    • There are some similarities between South America’s
    vegetation and that of other continents, as a result of past
    geologic developments.
    • The pattern of distribution within the continent is complex
    because of the variety of climatic and ecological zones.
    • The northern tropical regions are the richest in diversity, while
    the southern regions and the western Andean highlands are
    much impoverished, despite some differentiation.

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