Editing Peru (section)

== Geography ==
{{main|Geography of Peru}}
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| image1            = Manu riverbank.jpg
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| image2            = Alpamayo.jpg
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| image3            = Paracas National Reserve. Ica, Peru.jpg
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| image4            = Chachani, Peru ESA413331.png
| caption4          = Top to bottom: [[Manu National Park]] in the [[Peruvian Amazon|Amazon]], [[Alpamayo]] mountain peak, [[Paracas National Reserve]], [[Chachani]] volcanic complex.
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[[File:Rainbow Mountain Peru.jpg|left|thumb|[[Vinicunca]], also known as the Rainbow Mountain in [[Department of Cuzco|Cuzco]]]]
Peru is located on the central western coast of South America facing the Pacific Ocean. It lies wholly in the [[Southern Hemisphere]], its northernmost extreme reaching to 1.8 minutes of latitude or about {{convert|3.3|km|mi|1|abbr=on}} south of the [[equator]], covers {{convert|1285216|km²|sqmi|0|abbr=on}} of western South America. It borders Ecuador and Colombia to the north, Brazil to the east, Bolivia to the southeast, Chile to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The [[Andes]] mountains run parallel to the Pacific Ocean; they define the three regions traditionally used to describe the country geographically.<ref>Chaboo, C.S. & A. Catenazzi. 2015. Beetles (Coleoptera) of Peru: A survey of the Families. Biogeography. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 88(02):140–143.</ref>

The ''costa'' (coast), to the west, is a narrow, largely arid plain except for valleys created by seasonal rivers. The ''sierra'' (highlands) is the region of the Andes; it includes the [[Altiplano]] plateau as well as the highest peak of the country, the {{convert|6768|m|ft|0|abbr=on|adj=on}} [[Huascarán]].<ref>Andes Handbook, [http://www.andeshandbook.cl/eng/default.asp?main=cerro.asp?codigo=54 ''Huascarán''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161008051103/http://www.andeshandbook.cl/eng/default.asp?main=cerro.asp%3Fcodigo%3D54 |date=8 October 2016}}. 2 June 2002.</ref> The third region is the ''selva'' (jungle), a wide expanse of flat terrain covered by the [[Amazon rainforest]] that extends east. Almost 60 percent of the country's area is located within this region.<ref>Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú, ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico'', p. 16.</ref> The country has fifty-four hydrographic basins, fifty-two of which are small coastal basins that discharge their waters into the Pacific Ocean. The final two are the [[Endorheic basin|endorheic]] basin of [[Lake Titicaca]], and the Amazon basin, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Both are delimited by the Andes mountain range. The Amazon basin is particularly noteworthy as it is the source of the Amazon River, which at {{convert|6872|km|mi|abbr=on}}, is the longest river in the world, and covers 75% of Peruvian territory. Peru contains 4% of the planet's freshwater.

Most Peruvian rivers originate in the peaks of the Andes and drain into one of three [[drainage basin|basins]]. Those that drain toward the Pacific Ocean are steep and short, flowing only intermittently. Tributaries of the [[Amazon River]] have a much larger flow, and are longer and less steep once they exit the ''sierra''. Rivers that drain into Lake Titicaca are generally short and have a large flow.<ref>Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú, ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico'', p. 31.</ref> Peru's longest rivers are the [[Ucayali]], the [[Marañón River (Peru)|Marañón]], the [[Içá|Putumayo]], the [[Yavarí River|Yavarí]], the [[Huallaga River|Huallaga]], the [[Urubamba River|Urubamba]], the [[Mantaro River|Mantaro]], and the Amazon.<ref>Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática, ''Perú: Compendio Estadístico 2005'', p. 21.</ref>

The largest [[List of lakes of Peru|lake in Peru]], Lake Titicaca between Peru and Bolivia high in the Andes, is also the largest of South America.<ref>{{cite journal|year= 2003|title= Application of Strontium Isotopes to Understanding the Hydrology and Paleohydrology of the Altiplano, Bolivia-Peru|journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology|volume= 194|pages=281–297|doi=10.1016/S0031-0182(03)00282-7|last1= Grove|first1= Matthew J|last2= Baker|first2= Paul A|last3= Cross|first3= Scott L|last4= Rigsby|first4= Catherine A|last5= Seltzer|first5= Geoffrey O|issue= 1–3|bibcode= 2003PPP...194..281G}}</ref> The largest [[Water resources management in Peru|reservoirs]], all in the coastal region of Peru, are the [[Poechos Reservoir|Poechos]], Tinajones, San Lorenzo, and El Fraile reservoirs.<ref>{{cite web|author=Oficina nacional de evaluación de recursos naturales (previous INRENA) |title=Inventario nacional de lagunas y represamientos |website=INRENA |url=http://www.inrena.gob.pe/irh/inv_nac_lagunas_represas/inv_nac_lag_rep.pdf |access-date=3 March 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625070846/http://www.inrena.gob.pe/irh/inv_nac_lagunas_represas/inv_nac_lag_rep.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2007}}</ref>

=== Climate ===
{{main|Climate of Peru}}
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map PER present.svg|thumb|upright=1.35|[[Köppen climate classification|Köppen–Geiger climate classification]] map for Peru]]
Although Peru is located entirely in the [[tropics]], the combination of tropical latitude, mountain ranges, topography variations, and two ocean currents ([[Humboldt Current|Humboldt]] and [[El Niño Southern Oscillation|El Niño]]) gives Peru a large diversity of climates. Elevations above sea level in the country range from {{convert|−37|to|6,778|m|ft|abbr=on}} and precipitation ranges from less than {{convert|20|mm|in|abbr=on}} annually in desert areas to more than {{convert|8,000|mm|in|abbr=on}} in tropical rainforest areas.

Due to its geography, Peru can be divide into three main climates. The unbroken and relatively slim coastal region has moderate temperatures, low precipitation, and high humidity, except for its warmer, wetter northern reaches.<ref>Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú, ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico'', pp. 24–25.</ref> In the mountain region, which covers almost a third of the country, rain is frequent in summer, and temperature and humidity diminish with altitude up to the frozen peaks of the Andes.<ref>Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú, ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico'', pp. 25–26.</ref> The [[Peruvian Amazon]], covering more than half of the total area of Peru, is characterized by heavy rainfall and high temperatures, except for its southernmost part, which has cold winters and seasonal rainfall.<ref>Instituto de Estudios Histórico–Marítimos del Perú, ''El Perú y sus recursos: Atlas geográfico y económico'', pp. 26–27.</ref>

===Wildlife===
{{main|Wildlife of Peru}}
[[File:Rupicola peruvianus Gallito de roca andino Andean-Cock-of-the-Rock (male) (13995875991).jpg|left|thumb|upright=.7|[[Andean cock-of-the-rock]], Peru's national bird]]
Because of its varied geography and climate, Peru has a high biodiversity with 21,462 species of plants and animals reported as of 2003, 5,855 of them [[endemism|endemic]],<ref>Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática, ''Perú: Compendio Estadístico 2005'', p. 50.</ref> and is one of the [[megadiverse]] countries.

Peru has over 1,800 [[species]] of birds (120 [[Endemism|endemic]]), over 500 species of [[mammal]]s, over 300 species of reptiles, and over 1,000 species of freshwater [[fishes]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.peruwildlife.info/|title=Peru Wildlife: Portal for information about wildlife and ecotourism in Peru|website=www.peruwildlife.info|access-date=28 November 2016|archive-date=17 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517123112/http://www.peruwildlife.info/|url-status=usurped}}</ref><ref>Ortega, H., Hidalgo, M., Correa, E., Espino, J., Chocano, L., Trevejo, G., ... & Quispe, R. (2012). Lista anotada de los peces de aguas continentales del Peru. Estado actual del conocimiento, distribución, usos y aspectos de conservación. Lima, Perú: Ministerio del Ambiente</ref> The hundreds of mammals include rare species like the [[Puma (genus)|puma]], [[jaguar]] and [[spectacled bear]]. The birds of Peru produce large amounts of [[guano]], an economically important export. The Pacific holds large quantities of [[bass (fish)|sea bass]], [[flounder]], [[anchovies]], [[tuna]], [[crustacean]]s, and [[shellfish]], and is home to many sharks, [[sperm whale]]s, and whales.<ref name="selectlatam" /> The invertebrate fauna is far less inventoried; at least beetles (Coleoptera) have been surveyed in the "Beetles of Peru" project, led by Caroline S. Chaboo, University of Nebraska, USA and this revealved more than 12,000 documented and many new species for Peru.<ref>Chaboo, C.S. 2015. Beetles (Coleoptera) of Peru: A survey of the Families. Part I. Overview. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 88(02):135–139.</ref>

Peru also has an equally diverse [[Flora of Peru|flora]]. The coastal deserts produce little more than [[cacti]], apart from hilly [[lomas|fog oases]] and river valleys that contain unique plant life.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Dillon|first1=Michael O.|title=The solanaceae of the lomas formations of coastal Peru and Chile|url=http://www.sacha.org/solanaceae/lomas_solanaceae.pdf|website=sacha.org|access-date=28 November 2016|archive-date=13 July 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070713202506/http://www.sacha.org/Solanaceae/Lomas_Solanaceae.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
The Highlands above the tree-line known as [[Puna grassland|puna]] is home to bushes, [[cactus]], drought-resistant plants such as [[Jarava ichu|ichu]], and the largest species of [[bromeliad]]&nbsp;– the spectacular [[Puya raimondii]].

The cloud-forest slopes of the Andes sustain [[moss]], [[orchid]]s, and bromeliads, and the [[Amazon rainforest]] is known for its variety of trees and canopy plants.<ref name="selectlatam" /> Peru had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 8.86/10, ranking it 14th globally out of 172 countries.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|display-authors=1|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi-access=free}}</ref>
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