OK, Students! Listen up and learn something new. Below is a guide to the
hot part of the Basin and ranges from the southern end of the Sierra Nevada and the north-northeastern side of the Transverse Ranges to Nevada and Arizona. Click here or hit your back button to return to the main Mojave Desert page.

Geomorphology. Widely separated short ranges in desert plains. Contains isolated mountains, plateaus, alluvial fans, playas, basins and dunes. Basin and Range geomorphic province.

Lithology. Cenozoic nonmarine sedimentary and granitic rocks and alluvial deposits, and precambrian rocks of all types.

Soil Taxa. Aridisols and Entisols in combination with thermic or hyperthermic soil temperature regimes and aridic soil moisture regimes on foothills and valleys. Contains areas with salt affected soils. Aridisols and Entisols in combination with thermic or mesic soil temperature regimes, and aridic or xeric soil moisture regimes on mountains.

Vegetation. Predominant potential natural communities includes the Creosote bush series, Creosote bush -white bursage series, Allscale series, Mixed saltbush series, Iodine bush series, Joshua Tree series, Shadscale series, Black bush series, Mesquite series, California Juniper series, Singleleaf pinyon - Utah juniper series and White fir series (high peaks).

Fauna. Mammals include desert bighorn sheep, desert kit fox, coyote, spotted skunk, spotted bat, black-tailed jackrabbit, ground squirrels, kangaroo rat and white footed mouse. Birds includes eagles, hawks, owls, quail, roadrunners, finches, warblers and orioles. Reptiles include desert tortoise, several species of rattlesnakes and chuckawalla lizard.

Elevation. 280 feet below sea level to 7900 feet above sea level.

Precipitation. 3 to 8 inches. Mostly occurs as scattered high intensity storms of short duration.

Surface Water Characteristics. Mostly bedrock controlled channels in mountains that carry seasonal flows to alluvial channels below. Most channels terminate in basins within the section. Some of the eastern part drains toward the Colorado River. A few reservoirs occur on the Colorado River.