PHYSICAL & HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

MEXICO
Location:
Using an atlas, write the absolute location and relative location of Mexico. Use Mexico City as
the reference point for absolute location.
Absolute:

Relative:

Map Work
Using an atlas, label the
following locations and
geographical features on the
map below:

Sierra Madre Oriental, Sierra

Madre Occidental, Sierra Madre
Del Sur, Baja California, Central
Plateau, Yucatan Peninsula, Gulf
of Mexico, Pacific Ocean, and
Mexico City.

Climate:
Read the following paragraphs
about the climate of Mexico and
answer the questions below:
Northwestern Mexico and inland northern areas are drier than the rest of the country. It is hot
in the summer and north winds can make inland northern Mexico chilly in winter, with
temperatures sometimes approaching freezing. Inland at higher elevations, the climate is also
dry and temperate, and the mountain peaks are often capped with snow.
The Tropic of Cancer cuts across Mexico near Mazatlan and Ciudad Victoria and south of the
tropic it’s hot and humid all year long along the coastal plains on either side of the country. The
hot, wet season runs from May to October with the hottest and wettest months falling between
June and September for most of the country. Low-lying coastal areas are wetter and hotter than
elevated inland ones. Though the hottest summer extremes are generally found on the coastal
plains, temperatures in the Altiplano and the Plataforma Yucateca often reach higher than 100
degrees F (38 degrees C).
In the east, rainfall is high on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Madre Oriental and on the
northern side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec . On the Yucatan peninsula, along the mainland
Pacific coast, along the Gulf coast north of Veracruz and in the Depresion de Balsas, annual
rainfall reaches 30 inches (80 centimeters) or more. Mexico ’s highest rainfall totals are in
northeastern Chiapas and along the Gulf coastal plains of Tabasco with over 98 inches (250
centimeters) per year.
From http://www.questconnect.org/mexico_cc_geography_climate.htm

1. What causes chilly winters in northern inland Mexico?

2. Which Tropic does Mexico cross?

3. What is the average rainfall for most of Mexico?

Population Pyramid:
Write two observations using the
population pyramid:
Observation One:

Observation Two:

Observation Three:

Land Use:
Create a chart to the right using the following statistics about land use in Mexico. Make sure to
include all the aspects of a proper graph.
 arable land: 12%
 permanent crops: 1%
 permanent pastures: 39%
 forests and woodland: 26%
 other: 22% (1993 est.)

Religions:
Create a chart to the right using the
following statistics about the distribution of
religions in. Make sure to include all the
aspects of a proper graph.
 nominally Roman Catholic 89%,
 Protestant 6%
 other 5%

Flag & Stats:

Using an atlas, fill in the following statistics
and draw the flag of Mexico.
 Area:
Population:
Capital:
Languages:
Highest Point (with height):

Lowest Point (with depth):

Definitions:
Write the definitions to the following words:
hacienda:

Sierras: