Chihuahuan Desert

Chihuahuan Desert
Chihuahuan desert landscape in Big Bend National Park
Location map of Chihuahuan Desert
Ecology
RealmNearctic
BiomeDeserts and xeric shrublands
Borders
Geography
Area501,896 km2 (193,783 sq mi)
Countries
States
Coordinates30°32′26″N 103°50′14″W / 30.54056°N 103.83722°W / 30.54056; -103.83722
Oceans or seasNon
RiversRio Grande
Climate typeHot desert (BWh) and hot semi-arid (BSh)
Conservation
Conservation statusVulnerable
Global 200Yes
Protected35,905 km2 (13,863 sq mi) (7%)[1]

The Chihuahuan Desert (Spanish: Desierto de Chihuahua, Desierto Chihuahuense) is a desert ecoregion designation covering parts of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It occupies much of far West Texas, the middle to lower Rio Grande Valley and the lower Pecos Valley in New Mexico, and a portion of southeastern Arizona, as well as the central and northern portions of the Mexican Plateau. It is bordered on the west by the Sonoran Desert, the Colorado Plateau, and the extensive Sierra Madre Occidental range, along with northwestern lowlands of the Sierra Madre Oriental range. Its largest, continual expanse is located in Mexico, covering a large portion of the state of Chihuahua, along with portions of Coahuila, north-eastern Durango, the extreme northern part of Zacatecas, and small western portions of Nuevo León. With an area of about 501,896 km2 (193,783 sq mi),[1] it is the largest hot desert in North America.[2] The desert is fairly young, existing for only 8000 years.[3]

  1. ^ a b Dinerstein, Eric; Olson, David; et al. (2017). "An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm". BioScience. 67 (6). pp. 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b. doi:10.1093/biosci/bix014. PMC 5451287. PMID 28608869.
  2. ^ Wright, John W., ed. (2006). The New York Times Almanac (2007 ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books. pp. 456. ISBN 0-14-303820-6.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NMSU was invoked but never defined (see the help page).