chaparral
/ˌʃapəˈral
/ /ˌtʃapəˈral/noun [mass noun] North American
Vegetation consisting chiefly of tangled shrubs and thorny bushes.This species lives exclusively in or near sandy soils within coastal dune and scrub communities and maritime chaparral....
- Also important are mountain tops or ‘sky islands,’ and in some cases deep, shady canyons, that support chaparral, woodlands, or other communities that are relics of more temperate periods.
- The thick chaparral of a remote region in the Sespe Wilderness, part of the Los Padres National Forest, in Ventura, California, has concealed a lost herd of desert bighorn sheep for more than five years.
Origin
Mid 19th century: from Spanish, from chaparra 'dwarf evergreen oak'.