Contents 



10 VVliito Mists anJ Lmcrald Hills 



The Central Pacific Coast Ranges and Park- 

 lands, the Sierra Nevada, and the Cascades 



11 The Great Grass Sea 



The Steppes, Prairies, and Bottomlands of the 

 Central Plains and Plateaus 



12 Land of the Bayous 



The Delta of the Mississippi 



148 



160 



Foreword 6 



Map of North America: The Belts of Vegetation 8 



Map of North America: The Natural Provinces 9 



13 Flatwoods and Everglades 172 



Peninsular Florida 



14 Land of the Mesquite 186 

 The East Chaparrals of the North and South 

 Scrub Belts, and the Deserts of the Rio Grande 



1 Doorway to North America lO 



The Arctic Ice Raft. Greenland, the Islands, and 

 the Barren Lands of Keewatin and Ungava 



2 Lemmings. Meteorites, and Belugas 26 



The Labradorian Peninsula. Tundra. Spruce 

 Forests, and the St. Lawrence Valley and Gulf 



3 Moose. Spruce, and Muskeg 38 



The Canadian Northwest Territories or Lake 

 District 



4 Mammoths. Volcanos. and Mountains 50 



The Aleutian Islands, Alaska, and the Yukon 



5 Trees, Fjords, and Salmon 68 



British Columbia and the Yukon 



6 The Heartland 78 



The Great Lakes. Central Lowlands, and 

 Interior Highlands 



7 Many Green Mountains 



The Appalachians from Maine to Alabama, and 

 the Eastern Piedmont 



8 Sand Dunes and Sea Gulls 



The Northeast Coastal Fringe 



9 The Great Southern Pine Belt 



The Coastal Lowlands from Cape Hatteras to 

 the Mississippi and the Western Timberlands 



92 



15 Alps. Deserts, and Canyons 196 



The South Montane Block with the Colorado 

 and Wyoming Basins and the Sacramento- 

 Guadalupe Ranges 



16 Towering Peaks and Gushing Geysers 2i6 



The North Montane Block or United States 

 Rockies, and the Blue Mountains 



17 Saline Lakes and Alkaline Flats 230 



The Great Basin or Gray Deserts, and the 

 Guttered Scablands 



18 Hummingbirds and Kelp Beds 244 



North America's "Mediterranea" in Southern 

 and Baja California 



19 The Empire of the Cactuses 254 



The Sonoran and Red Deserts 



20 Brown Rocks and White Sands 268 



The Hot Deserts of theTularosa and Chihuahua, 

 and the Deserts and Scrublands of the Central 

 Mexican Plateau 



21 The Mexican Sierras 280 



The East and West Sierras Madre and Coastal 

 Plains, and the Sierra del Sur 



An Explanation and Glossary of Special Terms 290 

 Index 294 



Photographic Credits 299 



