Zacatecas - Geography

Geography

Zacatecas is the eighth largest Mexican state with an area of 75,539 km² (29,166 sq mi). Occupying about 3.9% of the total land area of the nation. It is a bit larger than the country of Panama but smaller than the Czech Republic. It is located in the north-central region of Mexico and is bordered by the states of Durango to the northwest, Coahuila to the north, Nayarit to the west, San Luis Potosí and Nuevo León to the east, and Jalisco, Guanajuato and Aguascalientes to the south.

The State stretches from the Sierra Madre Oriental in the northeast, through the Central Plateau which makes up the most part of the state, to the Sierra Madre Oriental in the southwest. There is also a small portion of the state in the extreme southeast that is part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. The average elevation is 2,100 meters with the highest points being: Sierra El Astillero at 3,200 m, Sierra de Sombrerete at 3,100 m, and Sierra Fria at 3,030 m. The Cañón del Río Juchipila is the lowest point in the state at 840 m.

There are two river basins in the state, the one that empties at the Pacific and the interior basin that lacks an exit to the sea and instead flows north towards the state of Coahuila. Some of the most important rivers include the Aguanaval, Juchipila, Atengo-San Andrés, Jerez, Valparaiso, Tlatenango, San Francisco, Villanueva, Palomas, and Bolaños.

There are forest of pines and evergreens in the sierras; in the valleys and plains there is a great abundance of mesquite, maguey, cactus, agave, pastures, huisache, and many other semi-desertic plants. An interesting tree that occurs in Zacatecas is the Elephant tree, Bursera microphylla.

In the sierras there are many wild boar, white-tailed deer and hares; in the valleys and plains it is common to find coyote, badgers, quails and ducks. The extreme northern part of the state is the southern fringe of the Chihuahuan Desert and as such is rich and diverse in biology. This desert is home to a large amount of cacti and is one of the most ecologically diverse deserts on earth.

The average temperature in the state is 17°C (62.6°F) with the maximum average around 30°C (86°F) being reached in may and the lowest at 3°C (37.4°F) in January.