CHACO 149 



the main occupations of the region, but the existence 

 of the dry woodlands is an indication of further possi- 

 bilities in the west. Orchards of subtropical and medi- 

 terranean fruit-trees may take the place of the forests, 

 and indeed have already done so to a certain extent. 

 Orange orchards, amongst others, find here very favour- 

 able conditions, and a kind of mediterranean agri- 

 culture is followed. Sugar-cane is extensively grown 

 in Tucuman. 



Alto Parana-Paraguay. The land which is limited 

 by the lower course of the Rio Paraguay and of the Alto 

 Parana differs alike from the Brazilian highlands and the 

 Chaco, from the campos of Matto Grosso and the campos 

 and swamps of Corrientes : it constitutes a natural region. 



Covering the southern lower terraces of the plateau 

 of Matto Grosso, and sinking abruptly along a bluff 

 down to the alluvial plain of the Paraguay River, it is 

 on the whole gently undulating and seldom rises above 

 1.000 feet in elevation. 



The climate is equable, though hot in summer. The 

 rainfall, fairly well distributed throughout the year, 

 ranges from 50 inches on the banks of the Paraguay to 

 80 inches on the Alto Parana : dew is very abundant 

 at night, and the seasonal rhythm is well marked. This 

 is typically a moist subtropical region. 



It is correspondingly covered with luxuriant forests 

 in its eastern moister half, and in that respect may be 

 compared with the middle belt of the eastern Andes 

 or, farther afield, with the lower belt of the Chinese 

 Alps. Lianas, epiphytes, and palms of great variety 

 and large size show above a particularly dense and 

 tall undergrowth. Many of the tall trees of the canopy 

 shed their foliage for a short time in winter, whilst the 



O ' 



undergrowth, almost a forest in itself, is thoroughly 



