The Chisos Mountains are a mountain range located in the Big Bend area of West Texas, United States. The mountain range is contained entirely within the boundaries of Big Bend National Park. This is the only mountain range in the United States to be fully contained within the boundary of a national park. It is also the southernmost mountain range in the mainland United States.
The highest point in the Chisos Mountain range is Emory Peak at 7,825 ft (2,385 m) above sea level.
Video Chisos Mountains
Location
The Chisos Mountains are located in Big Bend National Park. The range of mountains extends twenty miles from Punta de la Sierra in the southwest to Panther Junction in the northeast. An extensive trail system and permit-required backcountry campsites are maintained by Big Bend National Park for its visitors. The Northeast Rim and Southeast Rim trails are closed from February 1 through May 31 along with some of the backcountry campsites along these trails to protect the local peregrine falcon population.
The mountain area is partly forested (recovering from logging and overgrazing prior to the area's inclusion in the National Park System in the 1930s), and surrounded by the Chihuahuan Desert. The nearby towns include Study Butte, Terlingua, Fort Stockton, 135 miles north, Alpine, 105 mi (169 km) northwest and Presidio, about 100 mi (160 km) west. Two Mexican towns (Boquillas and Santa Elena) border the park; and cross-border access was reopened in 2011.
Maps Chisos Mountains
Etymology
One of the multiple possibilities of the origin of the name is the option that it stems from hechizos, a Castilian word meaning "enchantment". Another possibility is the option that the word originated from chisos, a Native American word meaning "ghost" or "spirit".
Peaks
- Emory Peak 7,825 ft (2,385 m)
- Lost Mine Peak 7,535 ft (2,297 m)
- Toll Mountain 7,415 ft (2,260 m)
- Casa Grande Peak 7,325 ft (2,233 m)
Climate
- Elevation: 5,300 feet (1,615 m)
Wildlife
- Ornithology
- Birds of the Chisos Mountains include 81 total known species that live within six different plant associations. The six plant associations along with the number of known species within them include: the Arroyo-Mesquite-Acacia Association (31 species), the Lechuguilla-Creosotebush-Cactus Association (13 species), the Sotol-Grass Association (32 species), the Deciduous Woodland Association (42 species), the Pinyon-Juniper-Oak Association (32 Species), and the Cypress-Pine-Oak Association (24 species).
- Myrmecology
- Ants of the Chisos Mountains include 81 total known species within 29 different genera.
See also
- Big Bend (Texas)
- Chihuahuan Desert
References
External links
- Chisos Mountains from the Handbook of Texas Online
- U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Chisos Mountains
- Photos of West Texas and the Llano Estacado
- Geologic Map of the Chisos Mountain, Big Bend National Park United States Geological Survey
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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