e
10
Even in tropical regions, the climate and vegetation of mountains differ
considerably from what would be considered normal for the area. Kenya's
Mount Kenya, only about ten miles from the Equator, has fifteen glaciers. The
windward side of a mountain usually has a much lower temperature and a much
heavier rainfall than the leeward side. The leeward side is often known as a "rain
way the
shadow," and is a desert. Most mountains have what is called a timber line, a line
above which no trees grow. Immediately below that line, even in the Torrid Zone
where one would expect palm trees and tropical vegetation, the vegetation and
trees are more the deciduous types of the Temperate.
stupa
