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caribou, in zoology

(Encyclopedia)caribou, name in North America for the genus (Rangifer) of deer from which the Old World reindeer was originally domesticated. Caribou are found in arctic and subarctic regions. They are the only deer...

camel

(Encyclopedia)camel, ruminant mammal of the family Camelidae. The family consists of three genera, the true camels of Asia (genus Camelus); the wild guanaco and the domesticated alpaca and llama, all of South Ameri...

lemming

(Encyclopedia)lemming, name for several species of mouselike rodents related to the voles. All live in arctic or northern regions, inhabiting tundra or open meadows. They frequently nest in underground burrows, par...

llanos

(Encyclopedia)llanos yäˈnōs [key], Spanish-American term for prairies, specifically those of the Orinoco River basin of N South America, in Venezuela and E Colombia. The llanos of the Orinoco are a vast, hot reg...

Tryon, William

(Encyclopedia)Tryon, William, 1729–88, English colonial governor in North America. After a distinguished army career he was appointed (1764) lieutenant governor of North Carolina and succeeded (1765) Arthur Dobbs...

prairies

(Encyclopedia)prairies, generally level, originally grass-covered and treeless plains of North America, stretching from W Ohio through Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa to the Great Plains region. The prairie belt also e...

Canadian Shield

(Encyclopedia)Canadian Shield or Laurentian Plateau lôrĕnˈchən [key], U-shaped region of ancient rock, the nucleus of North America, stretching N from the Great Lakes to the Arctic Ocean. Covering more than hal...

Asunción

(Encyclopedia)Asunción äso͞onsyōˈn [key], city, S Paraguay, capital of Paraguay, on the Paraguay River. It is the principal port and chief industrial and cultural center of Paragua...

Cordilleras

(Encyclopedia)Cordilleras kôrdĭlˈərəz, Span. kōrdēyāˈräs [key] [Span., originally=little string], general name for the entire chain of mountain systems of W North America, extending from N Alaska to Nicar...

Hall, Basil

(Encyclopedia)Hall, Basil, 1788–1844, British naval officer and traveler. In the service from 1802 to 1823, he commanded vessels on scientific assignments and voyages of exploration. He wrote of them in his Accou...