Amy Hutto

Carlos Guzman

Linh La

Tracey Mach

Nam Nguyen

S I E R R A N E V A D A

OVERVIEW - HISTORY

Approximately 400 miles long and 50 miles

wide

One of the most popular regions in the state of California

THE SIERRA NEVADA REGION INCLUDES:• 3 National Parks

• 20 Wilderness areas

• 2 National Monuments

BUSINESSES & ORGANIZATIONS• Sierra Entertainment

• Sierra Nevada Brewing Company

• Sierra Bullets

• Sierra Club

Even the state of Nevada was named for this mountainous region!

EARLY INHIBITERS – NATIVE AMERICANS• Inhabited as early as 500 CE

• Northern Paiutes – East Side

• Mono and Sierra Miwoks – Western Side

• Kawaiisu – South Side

Chief Winnemucca - Pauites

Sarah Winnemucca (daughter) Pauites writer, lecturer

Captain John of the Pauites

Mono Indians

EXPLORERS OF THE SIERRA NEVADA• Began by the Europeans and

Americans in 1827

• Pedro Fages - First European to sight range in 1772

• Bolton Coit Brown – Explored Kings River in late 1800s

• Joseph N. LeConte – Mapped Kings Canyon National Park in early 1900s

• James S. Hutchinson – Climbed Palisades and Mt. Humphreys in early 1900s

MORE EXPLORERS OF THE SIERRA NEVADA• John C. Fremont and Kit Carson – Lake Tahoe in the mid 1899s

• Josiah Whitney & others – Yosemite National Park in the mid 1899s

• 1912 – USGS (United States Geological Survey) published first maps of the Sierra Nevada

John C. Fremont Kit Carson Josiah Whitney

CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH (1848 – 1855)

EARLY ADVOCATES FOR THE SIERRA NEVADA

“None of Nature's landscape are ugly so long as they are wild” (John Muir from Our National Parks)

John Muir (1838 – 1914)Advocate, Conservationist, Author

EARLY ADVOCATES FOR THE SIERRA NEVADA

Ansley Adams (1902 – 1984)Photographer, Environmentalist

CLIMATE• The topography of the Sierra Nevada

have influence on the climate which causes a rain shadow effect.

• The rain shadow effects occurs when air flows eastward from the ocean towards the Sierra Nevada. This air is then cooled and compressed as it rises over the range releasing moisture and causing heavier precipitation on the slope facing the coast.

• The Western slope receives about 75% precipitation and the Eastern slope only receives 20%.

PRECIPITATION EFFECT

Eastern Slope Western Slope

• Adiabatic cooling is a major cause for climate in the Sierra Nevada as well because air at higher elevations is condensed, so it’s not able to hold as much moisture or oxygen molecules.

• As a result, there is less oxygen at higher levels making it harder for wildlife to survive.

• Also, air that is cooled becomes more drier and is chilled because as it rises the temperature drops rapidly creating strong winds.

• These strong winds are caused by the “Venturi Effect.” As cool air rises and passes through mountain gaps velocity levels increase because of narrow openings causing dry and strong winds.

CLIMATE CONTINUED

GEOLOGY• The Sierra Nevada is the largest Mountain range in the United

States and the most topographic feature in California.

• It is 400 miles long and 50 miles wide.

• It is mostly made up of granite rocks that started to form during the Mesozoic Era.

• The Sierra Nevada is considered a young mountain range.

BIRTH OF THE SIERRA NEVADA• The Sierra Nevada was formed when the North American plate pushed

westward over the Pacific Ocean plate, as a result, subduction caused magma from volcanic eruptions from the continental crust to rise and cool into granite magma.

• As the mountains rise erosion starts to carve the rocks and give it shape. They turned the flat and wide hills into steeper and higher elevation ranges.

• There is major uplift in the eastern side of the range which has caused a steeper slope along the west and has dismantled away older metamorphic rocks.

GOLD IN SEDIMENT DEPOSITS• During the time when the magma formation occurred it caused hot water to

rise to the ocean’s surface, this hot water had composites of gold and quartz.

• As the hot water rises to the surface, there is a composition of liquid gold and quartz that gets engraved into the veins of rocks in the sediment and then gets cooled.

• Erosion occurred which caused these engraved rocks to get left behind in the banks of rivers and springs.

• One of the major reasons why the Gold Rush in California occurred was because was because gold was discovered in the American River near Sutter’s Mill.

FLORA

Kit-Kit-dizze (Chamaebatia foliolosa)Greenleaf Manzanita

(Arctostaphylos patula)

FLORA

Flannel Bush (Fremontodendron californica)

Western Azalea(Rhododendron occidentale)

FLORA

Sierra Gooseberry(Ribes roezlii)

FLORA

Giant Sequoia, also known as Giant Sierra Redwoods

Sequoiadendron giganteum

The largest living things in the

world!!

FAUNA – FOOTHILL WOODLAND

• California Ground Squirrel

• Great Horned Owls

• Red-tailed Hawk

• Burrowing Owls

• California Quail

FAUNA – YELLOW PINE FOREST• Gilbert’s Skink

• Steller’s Jay

• American Robin

• American Black Bear

• Mule Deer

FAUNA – LODGEPOLE- RED FIR FOREST

• Cassin’s Finch• Hermit Thrush• Marten• Northern Flying Squirrels• Lodgepole Chipmunk

FAUNA – RIPARIAN HABITAT• Lorquin’s Admiral

• Western Tiger Swallowtail

• Belted Kingfisher

• Zephyr Angelwing

• Pale Swallowtail

CONSERVATION ISSUES- Yosemite Valley government protection (1864).- Endangered spp.- Invasive spp.

ENDANGERED SPECIES

California Tiger Salamander(Ambystoma californiense)

Sierra Nevada Red Fox(Vulpes vulpes necator)

Giant Sequia(Sequoiadendron giganteum)

INVASIVE SPECIES

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum)

Yellow star- thistle

(Centaurea solstitialis)

Northern Snakehead

(Channa argus)