PHYSICAL
GEOGRAPHY
Peru is the third largest country in South America
located on the west coast to the continent just south of the Equator three main geographical zones; Andean highlands, the desert coast and the largely unpopulated
Peruvian Amazon.
The large rivers of Peru begin in the Andes and flow through the Montana; all are part of the Amazon system.
Among them are the Ucayali and Maranon, the two chief headstreams of the
Amazon, and the Putumayo, Napo, Pastaza, Huallaga, Apurimac, Urubamba, and
Madre de Dios. The Amazon proper begins just above the city of Iquitos. A number of rivers, all of them short, drain from the Andes to the Pacific. Most of them dry up during part of he year, but their waters are extremely important for irrigation along the coast.
Lake Titicaca, the largest freshwater lake in South America, lies in the Sierra, partly in Peru and partly in Bolivia. It occupies part of a high plateau region called the Altiplano and is about 12,500 feet (3,810 m) above sea level.
CLIMATE
• Much of the country does not have a tropical climate. Along the coast, the temperatures are mild and there is little rainfall, because of the influence of the cold Peru (Humboldt) Current offshore.
• Lima, e.g., averages 73° F. (23° C.) in
January and 61° F. (16° C.) in July and normally receives only about two inches
(50 mm) of rain each year.
• Except for humid eastern slopes, the
Sierra is a relatively dry region.
Temperatures range from
