one of the six major biogeographic areas of the world defined on the basis of its characteristic animal life. It extends south from the Mexican desert into South America as far as the subantarctic zone. It includes such animals as the llama, tapir, deer, pig, jaguar, puma, a variety of opossums, many rodents and fishes, and extremely rich insect and bird populations. The vegetational division roughly corresponding to the region is called the Neotropical kingdom. Among the conspicuous plants are ornamental grasses, ancestors of garden flowers, agaves, the rubber tree, and a variety of trees.