Argentine pampas and gauchos. pampas argentine pampas

Pampas (Pampas) - South American steppes, endless expanses overgrown with tall and dense grass. The soils here are very fertile, and this circumstance almost destroyed the pampas when European settlers reached it and began to cultivate such vast territories that the indigenous people - the Indians - did not even dream of.

The natural area of the pampas (Spanish) Pampa) is located in South America, mainly in the center and east of Argentina, partly in Uruguay and Brazil, between 29-39 ° S. sh. The natural boundaries of the pampas: from east to west - from the Atlantic coast to the foothills of the Andes, from north to south - from the mountains of Ceeras de Cordova and beyond the Rio Negra.

THE LEGENDARY STEPPE

The pampas have always played an important role in the lives of the locals. For the Indians, these steppes were a separate vast world, for the Spanish colonialists - huge expanses for work, for the modern inhabitants of the region - a real breadbasket.

The Pampas are the plains of South America that go beyond the horizon, covered with a grassy carpet. About the features of the relief of these steppes, located mainly in the La Plata basin, and indicates their name - from the language of the Quechua Indians "pampa" is translated as "plain". From the north, the Gran Chaco region approaches the Pampas, from the south - Patagonia, from the west - the Andes. To the east of the steppe region is the Atlantic Ocean.

In Indian mythology, the pampa was associated with the infinity of life in general and the frailty of the existence of an individual living being in it in particular. Before the advent of Europeans, horses were not found here, and therefore the pampa seemed to the Indians almost the universe.

The pampa, in terms of landscapes, vegetation, wildlife, and how its territories are used for economic purposes, is similar to the steppes of Eurasia and the prairies of North America. The Pampas differ from the steppes of Eurasia only in the absence of negative temperatures in winter.

The relief of the pampas changes from a plain, like a table, to ridges of hills that break into a lowland, in which, due to the drying of water, salt marshes have formed that do not allow a single blade of grass to break through. The elevation difference from northwest to southeast is about 480 m.

When the Spaniards discovered the pampas in the 16th century, they were amazed at the vast open spaces before them. The Spaniards mastered the pampas and the surrounding territories with varying success: they entrenched themselves in the region, but the natives of the pampas successfully restrained the expansion of the Spaniards and more than once drove them out of the cities they founded.

Over the centuries of human development of the pampas, the local flora has changed beyond recognition. This was due to the fact that local lands were famous for their fertility, which was used by the locals. Large areas were set aside for arable land and sown pastures. As a result, natural vegetation has been largely replaced by agricultural crops, including wheat. Man even changed the usual treeless landscape of the pampas, planting well-established maple and poplar.

However, despite the fact that most of the pampas have long been mastered by man, in some places, in hard-to-reach places, areas of virgin nature have been preserved. Also, small islands of wild vegetation remained in the right-of-way of railways and roads, along the banks of rivers.

The farther from the ocean with its moist air masses, the more arid the pampas become, and the soils become less fertile, many salt marshes appear. Between them, rocky areas are noticeable, covered with high - under three meters - thorny bushes.

All wild animals of the pampas can be divided into three groups. First, those that can move quickly in search of water and food: the pampas deer, the pampas cat, and the flightless rhea bird. Secondly, those who can live by burrowing into the turf and the ground: nutria, whiskey-sha, armadillo. Thirdly, cattle and horses, which were brought by the Spaniards: the animals multiplied enormously and completely ran wild.

NURSING ARGENTINA

Much of the Argentine wheat and corn crop is grown in the pampas.

Pampa is still a vital agricultural region today. Livestock breeders especially prosper, as it is convenient to sow fodder grasses here.

The Pampas is the main economic region of Argentina. About 85% of wheat and corn crops, over 60% of livestock are located here. Most of the agricultural products of the pampas are intended for export, mainly to European countries.

Yet the task of growing crops is not as easy in these parts as it seems. The cultivation of the pampas requires significant irrigation, which is not possible everywhere due to the remoteness of the rivers. In addition, humid air masses in these places are capricious and can easily get rid of moisture right above the ocean without reaching the pampas.

Starting from the 17th century. in the pampas, a completely special type of local population was formed - shepherds-gauchos: descendants from marriages of Europeans with Indians, but with a predominance of the blood of the latter. Gauchos constantly live in nature, they are distinguished by incredible endurance and strength, as well as pride on the verge of arrogance.

Today, the pampas are quite densely populated: three-quarters of the population of Argentina is concentrated here. The largest city in the middle of the Argentine pampas is Rosario, which is also the third largest in the country.

This is an important railway junction (in the pampas - three-quarters of the entire railway network of Argentina) and a seaport. This is the ocean gate of the pampas: ships reach Rosario along the Parana River, on which it stands. Rosario is known throughout the world as the city where the Latin American revolutionary and commander of the Cuban Revolution Ernesto Che Guevara (1928-1967) was born.

The next largest is the Argentine city of La Plata. The city was built specifically as the capital of the province of Buenos Aires and was founded in 1882: this date is considered the year of the founding of La Plata. In terms of the city, it is a set of geometric figures that make up city blocks and squares. The economy of the city is entirely dependent on the maintenance of city institutions and trade.

A hundred years older is the city of Lujan, popularly nicknamed the “Capital of Faith”: here is the neo-Gothic basilica of the Virgin Mary of Lujan, the patron saint of Argentina, and up to six million pilgrims from all over the country annually visit.

The third largest city in the Pampas, Santa Fe, is the commercial, financial and transport center of a rich agricultural region specializing in the production of grain, vegetable oil and, of course, beef. However, the flat position of the city has one tangible drawback: from time to time, the Rio Salado overflows as a result of heavy rains, which leads to catastrophic floods.

ATTRACTION

Natural:

■ Rufino, Costanera Sur, Sierra del Tigre, El Curral, Mar del Plata, Mar Chiquita municipal reserves.

■ Lihyu Ka-lel and Luro National Reserves.

■ Estrikta-Ot-Amendi Nature Reserve.

■ the provincial reserves of Sambó-rombon, Rincón de Ajo.

■ Costero del Sur Biosphere Reserve.

■ Estancia el Destino and Campos del Tuyu private reserves.

■ Lagoon Las Tunas.

■ dunes of the Atlantic coast.

City of Lujan (Argentina):

■ Neo-Gothic Basilica of Our Lady of Luhansk (1889-1937).

■ Enrique Oudaondo Museum Complex.

■ Abbey of San Benito.

City of Santa Fe (Argentina):

■ National University of the Coast (1889).

■ Municipal Theater (1905).

■ Tunnel named after Raul Uranga-Carlos Sylvester Begnis (under the Parana River, 1969).

■ Center for Space Observation, Zoo Experimental Station Esmeralda Farm.

■ Historical Park of the Caiasta District.

CURIOUS FACTS

■ In the scientific literature, there is a special term "grassland", which refers to a type of herbaceous vegetation with a predominance or significant participation in the herbage of cereals. In addition to the South American pampas, grasslands include the steppes of the former USSR, the Hungarian Pashta, the prairies of North America, the grassy spaces of South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

■ Pampas grass cortaderia is very unpretentious, quickly adapts to changes in the environment, which is why it has become a widespread ornamental plant throughout the world. Bushes of pampas grass can reach a height of 3 m, grow up to 40 years or more. Each plant is capable of producing more than a million seeds in a lifetime, and is considered a dangerous weed in many countries where it has been introduced.

■ The locals came up with a derivative of the name of the pampas - "pampero", which means a strong cold wind in the area of the La Plata estuary, blowing from the southwest from July to September and accompanied by severe thunderstorms. The yield often depends on the behavior of the pampero: the pampero flies with extraordinary speed and causes severe cold snaps, frosts and even snowfall.

■ In 1812, the national flag of Argentina was raised in Rosario for the first time. In memory of this event, an obelisk was erected in the center of the city.

■ The flag of the city of La Plata (Argentina) is probably the only one of its kind: it is a schematic plan of city streets, blocks and squares.

■ There are few rivers and lakes in the pampas, so farmers mainly use groundwater, which is at a depth of 30 to 150 m.

■ The unofficial capital of the gaucho is the Argentine town of San Antonio de Areco: there is a museum of the gaucho, and every year in early November a traditional festival is held with horse riding competitions, dancing and cooking asado - Argentinean meat.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Location: southeast of South America, south of Argentina, coast of the Atlantic Ocean.

Administrative affiliation: Argentina (provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Rios and Cordoba), Uruguay, Brazil (state of Rio Grande do Sul).

Large cities: Rosario - 948,312 people. (2010), La Plata-740 369 people (2010), Santa Fe - 415,345 people. (2010).

Language: Spanish.

Ethnic composition: the descendants of Europeans - the majority, Indians, mestizos, mulattoes and Asians.

Religions: Christianity (Catholicism) - majority, Judaism, Islam.

Monetary units: Argentine peso, Uruguayan peso, Brazilian real.

Major rivers: Parana, Uruguay.

Neighboring countries and territories: in the west - the foothills of the Andes, in the east and south - the Atlantic Ocean, in the north - the Gran Chaco savannah.

NUMBERS

CLIMATE

From subtropical to continental.

Average January temperature: +19-24°С.

Average July temperature: +6-10°С.

Average annual precipitation: 800-950 mm, in the west - 300-500 mm.

Relative humidity: 60%.

Strong south wind pamperos and north wind - nortes.

ECONOMY

Fossils: oil, natural gas.

Industry: oil refining, petrochemical, food (meat-packing, flour-grinding).

Seaport (La Plata).

Agriculture: crop production (cereals - wheat, barley and corn, fodder grasses, vineyards), animal husbandry (cattle, horse breeding, sheep breeding).

Service sector: tourism, transport, trade.

Mostly in the subtropical zone, near the mouth of the Rio Plata. The Pampas are bounded to the west by the Andes and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. The Gran Chaco savanna extends to the north.

Pampa is a herbaceous cereal vegetation on fertile reddish-black soils that form on volcanic rocks. It consists of South American species of those genera of cereals that are widespread in Europe in the steppes of the temperate zone (feather grass, bearded vulture, fescue). The pampa is connected with the forests of the Brazilian Highlands by a transitional type of vegetation, close to the forest-steppe, where grasses are combined with thickets of evergreen shrubs. The vegetation of the pampas has been the most severely destroyed and is now almost completely replaced by crops of wheat and other cultivated plants. When the grass cover dies off, fertile gray-brown soils are formed. In open steppe expanses, fast-running animals predominate - pampas deer, pampas cat, among birds - ostrich rhea. There are many rodents (nutria, viscacha), as well as armadillos.

The pampa becomes more and more arid as it moves away from the Atlantic Ocean. The climate of the pampas is subtropical. In the east, temperature differences between summer and winter are less significant, in the west the climate is more continental.

The states whose territory is affected by the pampas are Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. The Pampa is the main agricultural region of Argentina and is mainly used for pastoralism.

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An excerpt characterizing the Pampas

“No, no, speak,” said Natasha. – Where is he?
“He was killed almost in front of me. - And Pierre began to tell the last time of their retreat, Karataev's illness (his voice trembled incessantly) and his death.
Pierre told his adventures as he had never told them to anyone before, as he himself had never yet remembered them. He now saw, as it were, a new meaning in all that he had experienced. Now, when he told all this to Natasha, he experienced that rare pleasure that women give when listening to a man - not smart women who, while listening, try or remember what they are told in order to enrich their mind and, on occasion, retell something or adapt what is being told to your own and communicate as soon as possible your clever speeches worked out in your small mental economy; but the pleasure that real women give, gifted with the ability to choose and absorb into themselves all the best that is only in the manifestations of a man. Natasha, not knowing it herself, was all attention: she did not miss a word, not a fluctuation of her voice, not a look, not a twitch of a facial muscle, not a gesture of Pierre. On the fly, she caught a word that had not yet been spoken and directly brought it into her open heart, guessing the secret meaning of all Pierre's spiritual work.
Princess Mary understood the story, sympathized with it, but now she saw something else that absorbed all her attention; she saw the possibility of love and happiness between Natasha and Pierre. And for the first time this thought came to her filled her soul with joy.
It was three in the morning. Waiters with sad and stern faces came to change the candles, but no one noticed them.
Pierre finished his story. Natasha, with sparkling, animated eyes, continued to look stubbornly and attentively at Pierre, as if wanting to understand something else that he had not expressed, perhaps. Pierre, in bashful and happy embarrassment, occasionally glanced at her and thought of what to say now in order to transfer the conversation to another subject. Princess Mary was silent. It never occurred to anyone that it was three o'clock in the morning and that it was time for bed.

There are places that we have heard a lot about, but have little idea what it is. The same can be said about the pampas in South America. An interesting name is known to many by the lines from the song. But, as it turned out, there are no bison in the pampas, but there are many other interesting animals and plants.

What is a pampa (pampas)?

Such an interesting name hides a concept that is quite ordinary for us - steppes. They, in fact, are the pampas. The only difference is that they are located in only one place on the planet - in South America. The Pampa extends in the southern part of the meridional trough between the Brazilian Highlands and the Andes. It surrounds the La Plata estuary on all three sides, and in the southeast and east it goes to the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the pampas are in Uruguay, as well as the northeastern region of Argentina and southern Brazil.

Relief and geological structure

Steppes (pampas) are flat or hilly flat terrain. The relief is characterized by the alternation of meridional Hercynian and Precambrian ridges, which is expressed in a combination of deep basins and flat plains. The eastern pampa gradually merges with the so-called Western, or Dry, which is bounded from the west by the blocky ridges of the Precordillera. They are separated from each other by low areas of the earth's crust (grabens). Their bottom drops to a depth of 2000 meters, they can be completely or partially filled with salt marshes, salt lakes or swamps.

Climatic conditions

Pampa is located in the subtropical climate zone, therefore, almost throughout the year, this territory is influenced by air masses coming from the Atlantic Ocean. Precipitation (about 2000 mm per year) is distributed evenly, droughts are extremely rare. However, the plains of the Dry Pampas begin to experience the influence of the continental climate. Precipitation decreases (300-500 mm), becomes less uniform, most of it occurs in summer.

Having an idea of what a pampa is and where it is located, it is easy to guess that this area is characterized by hot summers: the temperature ranges from 25 to 45 °C. It reaches its maximum value in the interfluve of Parana and Uruguay. The area is characterized by hot and humid winds from the north. Average temperatures in winter are also positive, but in some places there may be frosts and even frosts (up to -10 ° C in the territory of the humid pampas). Snow falls very rarely and immediately melts, no cover is formed.

The territory between the rivers is well watered by the numerous tributaries of the Uruguay and the Parana. However, moving further, it can be noted that on the territory of the wet pampas, the number of rivers is much less, and in the dry, they are completely temporary and full-flowing only during heavy rains. But there are many salty reservoirs and groundwater, which could not but affect the flora and fauna.

The flora of the pampas

Now the pampas of South America are almost completely used for agricultural purposes (arable land, pastures and villages near them). Natural vegetation and ecosystems are preserved only in a small area. The flora is rich, here the dominant position is occupied by cereal plants (about 1000 species). Vegetation is directly dependent on soil and rainfall. So in Uruguay and southern Brazil, forests predominate. They form mainly in river valleys. The forest is characterized by evergreen species (araucaria, bamboo, rhomboid yodina, quebracho, etc.) and creepers.

In the open spaces between the rivers, they are replaced by cereal plants, and the territory of the wet pampas is completely occupied by them. Of particular note is such a view as or cortaderia Sello (pictured above). It is a perennial plant reaching a height of up to 4 meters. Forms large tufts resembling bumps. For its high external decorativeness and spectacular flowering (panicles can be white, pinkish or purple in size up to 40 cm), it has gained high popularity among gardeners and flower growers. The dry pampa is characterized by low rainfall, so it looks like a typical semi-desert, the soils are less and less fertile, and a large number of salt marshes appear. Here the vegetation is very poor and is represented by thorny bushes, cacti.

Animal world of the pampas

The fauna has also undergone strong changes due to human economic activity. It is not the largest group that should include those that are able to move quickly (in search of food, water and shelter). These are a few predators (including puma and pampas deer, mustangs (once introduced by the Spaniards and feral horses), azar opossums, etc.

The pampas are more characterized by an abundance of species of birds and rodents. Most of the birds are classified as migratory. They come to the pampas to nest and hatch chicks. Let us mention only a few species: ipikaha, ibis, tinamou, etc. The latter species outwardly resembles the partridge familiar to everyone, only the color of the plumage is brighter. Also, one of the ancient birds, the Nandu ostrich (pictured), belongs to the inhabitants of the pampas. Of the rodents, it is worth noting the nutria, viscacha.

Pampas and human activities

For the first time, Europeans learned about what a pampa was at the beginning of the 15th century. The local population was engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding in this territory long before that. Approximately in the 16-17 centuries, a special stratum of the population formed - the shepherds of the gauchos. They led a semi-nomadic lifestyle and are most often compared to North American cowboys. The first gauchos were the children of the locals from the Spaniards. To date, as already mentioned, human activity has changed the ecosystem beyond recognition, there are practically no untouched corners left. Now it is one of the most important agricultural regions, as well as the main economic region of Argentina. Pampa is characterized by its dense population. So, 75% live in this territory. The largest cities are Rosario, La Plata, Lujan, Santa Fe.

About 85% of corn and wheat are planted on the territory of the pampas, more than 60% of the total livestock is grown. Most of these products are exported from Argentina to European countries.

To the question of what the pampas are, now we can safely answer: agricultural land. In this connection, there were two reductions in natural vegetation and degradation of the steppe from overgrazing. But the authorities of several countries are trying to improve the situation and preserve the ecosystem, at least in protected areas.

As I already wrote, a week ago our Tambov adventurers returned from a three-week trip to Argentina and Chile. In Chile, they captured only a small piece - the Atacama Desert. Argentina, on the other hand, was driven along from the north to the extreme south, from the border with Bolivia to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego. Without false modesty, I will say that Shlyakhtinsky knows how to put people on South America. Those who traveled with me once come back here several times. To different countries, of course. Although some manage to eat twice a year in Peru, for example. A month later, on January 31, I fly with the Tambovites and the Lipchans who have joined to Venezuela and Brazil until March.

But speech, actually, about another. Today's communication with our wanderers prompted me to make a post about Argentina. One or two more in the future. Africa has already fucked you up, friends, hasn't it?
Pampa, by the way!

From the Atlantic Ocean to the foothills of the Andes, and from the river La Plata to the Rio Negro, there is a flat area where there is nothing to stop the eye. Pampa is a word, a word borrowed from the Quechua Indian language and meaning "plain". Its landscape is monotonous, and the surface seems absolutely flat, although in reality it imperceptibly rises to the west from 200 meters at Buenos Aires to 500 meters at Mendoza. In other places, its level slightly rises near individual mountains, which suddenly appear before the traveler, like islands in this boundless ocean of land.
Covering approximately 80,000 square kilometers, the original pampa is the result of a gigantic accumulation of loose products of destruction of the rocks of the Andes, which for many centuries brought mountain streams and rivers here. The wind blowing away the smallest particles of this material also played a role in this accumulation. Sedimentary strata, whose thickness reaches almost 300 meters near Buenos Aires, and in some places much more, completely buried the ancient landforms. The absence of any noticeable slope does not favor the formation of a permanent runoff. Thus, the appearance of the pampa can be explained by the play of the gigantic forces of nature, which once sculpted the relief, and then repeatedly remade their creation. In this respect, the real pampa resembles the Indo-Gangetic plain, although the natural conditions in South Asia are quite different from those in Argentina.

The absence of any noticeable slope of the surface does not favor the formation of a permanent system of rivers. Rainwater accumulates in clay areas, collects in depressions and forms more or less permanent lagoons - swamp lakes. The rivers for the most part originate in the Pampinian Sierras, but as they move along the plain they lose their strength, and many of them dry up near the foothills. Rivers often change course, leaving their floodwaters behind in swampy depressions. Some of these lagoons, such as Colorado near the city of Bahia Blanca, are below sea level, and the wind obviously played a significant role in creating their bed.

Differences in climate between the western and eastern parts of the pampas also explain the difference in their soils. The western, hotter part is arid and covered with stunted vegetation, and vast expanses are completely bare.
In the eastern part, which receives more rainfall, there is a dense vegetation cover. The difference in climate has certainly had a big impact on agriculture. According to the definition of botanists, the pampas are a huge treeless steppe. Its landscape is utterly monotonous, and the traveler soon gets the impression that he is constantly circling the same plains.

The absence of trees in the primitive pampa can be attributed to the fact that there is compacted soil and insufficient soil aeration. Another reason may lie in the lack of precipitation in the summer. Man, however, managed to acclimatize various types of woody vegetation here, such as eucalyptus, casuarina, maple tree, summer oak, ash and poplar. These trees have transformed the landscape of the pampas, especially around populated areas.

To the west, the vegetation of the pampas changes: starting from the central part of the province of San Luis to the Rio Colorado, it resembles the flora of the arid Chaco - an area bordering the pampas in the north. In their natural state, the plains are covered with drought-resistant vegetation, mainly thorny shrubs from one to three meters high, such as yarilla, various prosopis, chanyar, chuquieragua and acacias. Between thickets of stunted trees and shrubs stretch vast expanses of bare land. Cereal grasses are rare here, and the number of species of other herbaceous plants is even more limited.
Despite the thickness of the alluvial deposits in the pampas, the mountains were still not completely buried under them. Separate ridges, composed of very ancient rocks, rise up among the plains and basically play the role of "water towers", from which rivers rush down in all directions.

The main role is played by the Sierras de Córdoba and the San Luis Massif, separated by the Conlar Basin. Where the slopes of the Sierras receive sufficient rainfall, they are covered with forest, and the wettest areas with subtropical vegetation. Above 1200 meters, forests are found only in well-protected gorges. Until the middle of the 19th century, the Sierras played an important role in the economy of Argentina. The rivers flowing from them contributed to the development of agriculture and farming, which were engaged in by the large population of this region.
The great similarity in the economic development of the Argentine pampas and the North American prairie strikes anyone who studies the problems of economic geography. It catches the eye of a simple traveler. When the plane flies over the pampas, it seems that you are heading from Chicago to Denver. Both the pampas and the prairies are gigantic plains covered with grassy communities characteristic of temperate zones.
The local fauna, in particular birds, also resembles the fauna of the prairies in some ways. In particular, this applies to water birds that teem in marshes and other bodies of water. Of the numerous ducks, we will focus primarily on the black-headed duck (Heteronetta atricapilla), which is distributed from the central regions of Chile to southern Brazil and further to Argentina. Outwardly, the black-headed duck resembles a teal, it has many features in common with ducks (Oxyura). But instead of building its own nest, the black-headed duck lays its eggs in the nests of other ducks or in the nests of very few birds related to it - palmedes, macaws, gulls, and even birds of prey. With her habits, of course, she resembles cuckoos.

Another very remarkable and typical inhabitant of the pampas is the teru-teru, the Argentine plover (Belonopterus cayanensis). Its plumage is mostly gray, but the belly is white and the head is black. As soon as the plover senses danger, it emits a deafening cry. If a person crosses this territory during the nesting period, a pair of plovers pursue him, both birds circling above him, emitting an alarm shrill cry. The wet eastern pampas are the true domain of these birds, which love grassy plains with plenty of water. Peons often collect plover eggs, but this species is still incredibly abundant. In the 19th century, many of these birds were slaughtered for shipment to Europe in salted or frozen form.
We should also mention the crested palamedia (Chauna torquata), which differs from other representatives of the anseriformes order. Palamedeans are usually found in pairs on the banks of rivers and swampy lakes. They emit a loud cry that sounds like "cha-cha". The dissonant cries of chaya (the local name for the bird) combined with the raucous cries of the teru-teru form the "music" of the pampas.

: 34°36′00″ S sh. 57°53′59″ W d. / 34.6°S sh. 57.899722° W d.(G) -34.6 , -57.899722

Aerial view of the pampas

Pampa is a herbaceous cereal vegetation on fertile reddish-black soils formed on volcanic rocks. It consists of South American species of those genera of cereals that are widespread in Europe in the steppes of the temperate zone (feather grass, bearded vulture, fescue). The pampa is connected with the forests of the Brazilian Highlands by a transitional type of vegetation, close to the forest-steppe, where grasses are combined with thickets of evergreen shrubs. The vegetation of the pampas has been the most severely destroyed and is now almost completely replaced by crops of wheat and other cultivated plants.

The pampa becomes more and more arid as it moves away from the Atlantic Ocean. The climate of the pampas is temperate. In the east, temperature differences between summer and winter are less significant, in the west the climate is more continental.