Iztaccíhuatl–Popocatépetl National Park, also known as Izta-Popo Zoquiapan National Park,) * "Iztaccíhuatl-Popocatépetl, Zoquiapan and Anexas National Park" is a

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

on the border of the states of

México Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Puebla Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...

, and

Morelos Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cuer ...

. The park protects , surrounding Mexico's second- and third-highest peaks, the

Popocatépetl Popocatépetl (; Nahuatl: ) is an active stratovolcano located in the states of Puebla, Morelos, and Mexico in central Mexico. It lies in the eastern half of the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. At it is the second highest peak in Mexico, after C ...

and

Iztaccíhuatl Iztaccíhuatl (alternative spellings include Ixtaccíhuatl, or either variant spelled without the accent) ( or, as spelled with the x, ), is a dormant volcanic mountain in Mexico located on the border between the State of Mexico and Puebla withi ...

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...

es (respectively and ) as well as the area of the Hacienda de Zoquiapán, and its annexed areas (''anexas'') of Zoquiapan,

Ixtlahuacán Ixtlahuacán is a city and seat of the municipality of Ixtlahuacán, in the Mexican state of Colima Colima (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Colima), is one of the 31 states that make up t ...

, and the Frío de Juárez River.

Geography

The park extends north and south, following a line of volcanic peaks. Popocatépetl is the southernmost peak, the highest in the park at , and the second-highest in Mexico. It is volcanically active, with the latest eruptive period extending from 2005 to the present. Iztaccíhuatl () is north of Popocatépetl, and together form a range known as the Sierra Nevada. The valley of Río Frío, where Mexican Federal Highway 150 between Mexico City and Puebla passes through the park, is the northern end of the Sierra Nevada. The northern portion of the park covers the Sierra de Río Frío, made up of three volcanic peaks – Mount Tláloc at (4,120 m), Telapón (4060 m), and Papayo (3,600 m) Tláloc and Telapón, the northern and middle peaks, formed between 5 and 2 million years ago. Papayo, the southernmost peak in the Sierra de Río Frío, formed more recently. Rain and snowfall and glacial melt give rise to many mountain streams. The northern and western slopes drain into

Lake Texcoco Lake Texcoco ( es, Lago de Texcoco) was a natural lake within the "Anahuac" or Valley of Mexico. Lake Texcoco is best known as where the Aztecs built the city of Tenochtitlan, which was located on an island within the lake. After the Spanish con ...

in the

Valley of Mexico The Valley of Mexico ( es, Valle de México) is a highlands plateau in central Mexico roughly coterminous with present-day Mexico City and the eastern half of the State of Mexico. Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, the Valley of Mexico wa ...

. The eastern slopes drain into the upper

Balsas River The Balsas River (Spanish Río Balsas, also locally known as the Mezcala River, or Atoyac River) is a major river of south-central Mexico. The basin flows through the states of Guerrero, México, Morelos, and Puebla. Downstream of Ciudad Al ...

, also known as the Atoyac. The southernmost portion of the park is drained by the Cuautla and Nexapa rivers, which are tributaries of the Balsas. The Balsas empties southwards into the Pacific Ocean. The surface waters and groundwater from the park are important sources of fresh water for the Mexico City metropolitan area, to the west in the Valley of Mexico, and the cities of Puelbla and

Tlaxcala Tlaxcala (; , ; from nah, Tlaxcallān ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tlaxcala ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tlaxcala), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 60 municipaliti ...

to the east in the upper basin of the Balsas.

Flora and fauna

The predominant plant communities in the park are montane conifer forests and alpine grasslands."Programa de Manejo Parque Nacional Iztaccíhuatl Popocatépetl". National Commission on Natural Protected Areas (''Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas''), Government of Mexico. December 2013. Accessed 17 November 2021

/ref> Conifer forests extend from the lower limits of the park up to 4000 meters elevation. These include pine-fir forests and pine forests. Pine-fir forests are found from 3000 to 3700 meters elevation. Characteristic trees are

oyamel fir ''Abies religiosa'', the oyamel fir or sacred fir, (known as in Spanish) is a fir native to the mountains of central and southern Mexico (Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, Sierra Madre del Sur) and western Guatemala. It grows at high altitudes of i ...

(''Abies religiosa'') and the pines ''

Pinus ayacahuite ''Pinus ayacahuite'', also called ayacahuite pine and Mexican white pine, (family Pinaceae) is a species of pine native to the mountains of southern Mexico and western Central America, in the Sierra Madre del Sur mountains and the eastern end of ...

Pinus montezumae ''Pinus montezumae'', known as the Montezuma pine, is a species of conifer in the family Pinaceae. It is native to Mexico and Central America, where it is known as ocote. The tree grows about 35 m high and 80 cm in diameter; occasion ...

'', and ''

Pinus hartwegii ''Pinus hartwegii'' ( syn. ''P. rudis'', ''P. donnell-smithii''), Hartweg's pine or pino de las alturas, is a pine native to the mountains of Mexico and Central America east to Honduras. It is named after Karl Theodor Hartweg, who described it in ...

''. Pine forests grow between 3400 and 4000 meters elevation. ''

'' is the predominant tree, with '' Ribes ciliatum,

Lupinus montanus ''Lupinus'', commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet etc., is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur ...

Acaena elongata ''Acaena'' is a genus of about 60 species of mainly evergreen, creeping herbaceous perennial plants and subshrubs in the family Rosaceae, native mainly to the Southern Hemisphere, notably New Zealand, Australia and South America, but with a f ...

'', and the grasses ''

Festuca ''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on every ...

'' spp. and ''

Calamagrostis ''Calamagrostis'' (reed grass or smallweed) is a genus of flowering plants in the grass family Poaceae, with about 260 species that occur mainly in temperate regions of the globe. Towards equatorial latitudes, species of ''Calamagrostis'' general ...

'' spp. in the understory. Alpine and sub-alpine grassland, known as

Zacatonal The Zacatonal is a montane grassland and shrubland ecoregion of central Mexico. Geography The Zacatonal consists of several enclaves of grassland and shrubland occupying the highest peaks of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, covering about . Zac ...

, is found between 3500 and 4350 meters elevation. It consists of grasses and herbaceous plants with occasional woody junipers, growing no more than 50 cm high. Characteristic species include the grasses ''Festuca'' spp., '' Calamagrostis tolucensis'', '' Muhlenbergia quadridentata'', and ''

Agrostis tolucensis ''Agrostis tolucensis'' is a species of grass which is found in South America, the United States, and Mexico. Description The plant is perennial and caespitose with culms being long and wide. It eciliate membrane have a ligule which is long ...

'', together with ''

Juniperus monticola ''Juniperus monticola'', or mountain juniper, is a species of conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is found only in Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, ...

''. Areas above 4350 meters, which include the peaks of Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl, are mostly barren rock and permanent ice and snow. 48 species of wild mammals have been recorded in the park, including

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

s (''Lynx rufus'') coyotes (''Canis latrans''), foxes,

American badger The American badger (''Taxidea taxus'') is a North American badger similar in appearance to the European badger, although not closely related. It is found in the western, central, and northeastern United States, northern Mexico, and south-centr ...

s (''Taxidea taxus berlandieri''), skunks, racoons, bats, rabbits, gophers, squirrels, mice, and shrews. The endangered

volcano rabbit The volcano rabbit (''Romerolagus diazi''), also known as teporingo or zacatuche, is a small rabbit that resides in the mountains of Mexico.Hoth, J., A. Velázquez F. Romero, L. León, M. Aranda and D. Bell, 1987. The Volcano Rabbit- a Shrinking ...

(''Romerolagus diazi'') lives in high-elevation grasslands on four central Mexican volcanic peaks, including Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl. Other limited-range species include the

Orizaba long-tailed shrew The Orizaba long-tailed shrew (''Sorex orizabae'') is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in the states of Federal District, México, Michoacán, Morelos, Puebla, Tlaxcala, and Veracruz in Mexico. It is named after Pico ...

(''Sorex orizabae'') and Phillips's kangaroo rat (''Dipodomys phillipsii''). 161 species of birds have been recorded in the park. 75% of the birds are resident, while the remaining 25% are migratory or occasional visitors. Resident birds include the

red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members with ...

(''Buteo jamaicensis formosus''),

peregrine falcon The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (Bird of prey, raptor) in the family (biology), family Falco ...

(''Falco peregrinus''),

long-tailed wood partridge The long-tailed wood partridge (''Dendrortyx macroura'') is a bird species in the family Odontophoridae, the New World quail. It is endemic, found only in Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The long-tailed wood partridge shares the genus ''Den ...

(''Dendrortyx macroura''), white-naped swift (''Streptoprocne semicollaris''),

Aztec thrush The Aztec thrush (''Ridgwayia pinicola'') is a species of bird in the family Turdidae. It is found mainly in Mexico, but vagrants are occasionally seen in the United States. Its natural habitat is montane forests. The IUCN Red List denotes it as ...

(''Ridgwayia pinicola''), Sierra Madre sparrow (''Xenospiza baileyi''),

bumblebee hummingbird The bumblebee hummingbird (''Selasphorus heloisa'') is a species of hummingbird in tribe Mellisugini of subfamily Trochilinae, the "bee hummingbirds". It is endemic to Mexico, but has occurred as a vagrant in the United States. Taxonomy and ...

(''Selasphorus heloisa''), gray-barred wren (''Campylorhynchus megalopterus''),

spotted wren The spotted wren (''Campylorhynchus gularis'') is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The spotted wren has sometimes been considered conspecific with Boucard's wren (''Campylorhync ...

(''Campylorhynchus gularis''),

russet nightingale-thrush The russet nightingale-thrush (''Catharus occidentalis'') is a species of bird in the family Turdidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. Description Crown, back and wings brown. Face ...

(''Catharus occidentalis''),

rufous-backed thrush The rufous-backed thrush (''Turdus rufopalliatus'') is a songbird of the thrush family. It is endemic to the Pacific slope of Mexico. It is also known as the rufous-backed robin. Description This species resembles its widespread relative the A ...

(''Turdus rufopalliatus''),

ocellated thrasher The ocellated thrasher (''Toxostoma ocellatum'') is a species of bird in the family Mimidae. It is endemic to Mexico. Taxonomy and systematics The ocellated thrasher has two subspecies, the nominate ''T. o. ocellatum'' and ''T. o. villai''. ...

(''Toxostoma ocellatum''),

blue mockingbird The blue mockingbird (''Melanotis caerulescens'') is a species of bird in the family Mimidae. It is endemism, endemic to Mexico, but has occurred as a vagrant in the southern United States. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry for ...

(''Melanotis caerulescens''), and Striped sparrow (''Oriturus superciliosus'').BirdLife International (2021) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Volcanes Iztaccíhuatl - Popocatépetl. Accessed 20 November 2021

/ref> Native

amphibian Amphibians are tetrapod, four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the Class (biology), class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terres ...

s include the ridged tree frog (''Dryophytes plicatus'') and four salamanders – '' Pseudoeurycea leprosa'', '' Pseudoeurycea cephalica'', common splayfoot salamander (''Chiropterotriton chiropterus''), and mountain stream salamander (''Ambystoma altamirani'').

History

A decree by President

Lázaro Cárdenas Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940. Born in Jiquilpan, Michoacán, to a working-class family, Cárdenas joined the M ...

on November 8, 1935 established a national park on Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl. The decree established the park's lower boundary at the 3000-meter contour, excluding the town of

Río Frío de Juárez Río Frío de Juárez, originally Río Frío (Cold River), a Mexican populated place, is located in the municipality of Ixtapaluca in the State of Mexico. Río Frío de Juárez is located at the highest point on the highway between Mexico City to ...

. A new decree on 13 March 1937 confirmed that the forest lands of the Hacienda of Zoquiapan, in what is now the northern part of the park, were included in the park. On February 11, 1948, President

Miguel Alemán Valdés Miguel Alemán Valdés (; 29 September 1900 – 14 May 1983) was a Mexican politician who served a full term as the President of Mexico from 1946 to 1952, the first civilian president after a string of revolutionary generals. His administr ...

issued a decree that reset the boundary of the park at the 3,600 meter contour, decreasing the park in size. The Mexican Government created an industrial unit for forest exploitation (''Unidad Industrial de Explotación Forestal'') to supply wood pulp to the San Rafael paper factory from trees harvested in the former park lands. A secretarial agreement abolished the industrial unit for forest exploitation on February 11, 1992. The park is administered by the

National Commission of Protected Natural Areas National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

(CONANP), a federal agency of the

Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources The Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (in Spanish: ''Secretaría del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, SEMARNAT'') is Mexico's environment ministry. Its head, the Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources, is a member ...

. The park was closed to the public from March 2020 to March 2021 because of the

COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico The COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have reached Mexico in February 2020. Howe ...

Geography

Flora and fauna

History

See also

Notelist

References

Further reading