The Mesa de Maya is a prominent volcanic tableland rising to above the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
in southeastern
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
. A narrow finger of the mesa extends eastward through the northeastern corner of
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
and a few miles into
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
where it is known as
Black Mesa. The elevation of the Mesa de Maya ranges from at its easternmost extension to in the west.
The high mesas eastward from
Raton, New Mexico
Raton ( ) is a city and the county seat of Colfax County, New Mexico, Colfax County in northeastern New Mexico. The city is located just south of Raton Pass. The city is also located about 6.5 miles south of the New Mexico–Colorado border and 85 ...
and
Trinidad, Colorado
Trinidad is the home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Las Animas County, Colorado, United States. The population was 8,329 as of the 2020 census. Trinidad lies north of Raton, New Mexico, and s ...
are sometimes collectively called the Mesa de Maya,
Raton Mesa
Raton Mesa is the collective name of several mesas on the eastern side of Raton Pass in New Mexico and Colorado. The name Raton Mesa or Mesas has sometimes been applied to all the mesas that extend east for along the Colorado-New Mexico border f ...
s, or the Raton mesa region. All the mesas are volcanic in origin caused by lava flows which solidified into
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
. Over time the softer
sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...
surrounding the basalt eroded leaving several distinct large elevated tablelands with precipitous sides which include the Mesa de Maya.
Description
![Mesa de Maya, Colorado](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Mesa_de_Maya%2C_Colorado.jpg)
Mesa de Maya originated from a basaltic lava flow 180 million years ago. Originating in Colorado at a place named Piney Mountain, the lava flow measures 55 miles long, from one-half (1 km) to wide, and thick. The uneroded portion of the lava flow consists today of the Mesa de Maya and Black Mesa.
Mesa de Maya's westernmost extension is 11 miles northeast of
Branson, Colorado
The Town of Branson is a Statutory Town located in Las Animas County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 57 at the 2020 United States Census. Branson is the southernmost town in the State of Colorado, located just from the New Mex ...
in
Las Animas County, Colorado
Las Animas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,555. The county seat is Trinidad. The county takes its name from the Mexican Spanish name of the Purgatoire River, originally c ...
. The mesa has two parts. The principal part is about 24 miles long, extending southeast, and six miles wide with elevations from sloping downward to the east to . The top of the mesa is grassland, mostly
shortgrass prairie
The shortgrass prairie is an ecosystem located in the Great Plains of North America. The two most dominant grasses in the shortgrass prairie are blue grama (''Bouteloua gracilis'') and buffalograss (''Bouteloua dactyloides''), the two less domina ...
and
steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate grasslands, ...
vegetation; the slopes leading to the top are mostly forested, primarily by
juniper
Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...
and
pinyon pine
The pinyon or piñon pine group grows in southwestern North America, especially in New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah. The trees yield edible nuts, which are a staple food of Native Americans, and widely eaten as a snack and as an ingredient in New ...
with a few
ponderosa pine
''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the ...
s and
quaking aspen
''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, mountain or golden aspen, tr ...
in cooler and wetter locations. Mesa de Maya is the only place in Colorado where
mesquite
Mesquite is a common name for several plants in the genus ''Prosopis'', which contains over 40 species of small leguminous trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas.
They have extremely long roots to seek water from very far under grou ...
is found. North Carrizo Creek has its headwaters on the Mesa de Maya.
From the core area of the Mesa de Maya the second part, a long finger about one mile wide and called Black Mesa, extends another southeastward into New Mexico and Oklahoma running between North Carrizo Creek and the
Cimarron River and terminating at the junction of the two streams. The highest point of Black Mesa in New Mexico is and in Oklahoma is . A
Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US.
Founded in 1951, The Natu ...
preserve of gives access to the summit of Black Mesa in Oklahoma. This is the only part of the Mesa de Maya and Black Mesa that is accessible to the public. All other parts of the Mesa are privately owned cattle ranches.
Wildlife is abundant on and around the Mesa de Maya. Several ranchers supplement their income by permitting hunts of trophy
elk
The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...
on their lands.
Mule deer
The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer.
Unlike the related whit ...
,
black bear
Black bear or Blackbear may refer to:
Animals
* American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species
* Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species
Music
* Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...
,
cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...
,
bighorn sheep
The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns might weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspec ...
,
pronghorn
The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American a ...
, and
golden eagles
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known birds of ...
are found. Several ranchers also permit bird watchers and naturalists to visit their lands for a daily fee.
Only one public road (dirt) crosses the mesa at approximately its midpoint, and no large towns or cities are nearby. A few ranch families are the only residents near the mesa. The nearest settlements to Mesa de Maya are
Kim, Colorado
The Town of Kim is a Statutory Town in Las Animas County, Colorado, United States. The population was 74 at the time of the 2010 United States Census. , the town included a complete school system (grades K-12), a post office, and a general store ...
and
Kenton, Oklahoma
Kenton is a town in Cimarron County, Oklahoma, United States. Kenton is the westernmost town in Oklahoma. From Kenton, it is approximately south to Amarillo, Texas, northwest to Colorado Springs, Colorado, northwest to Denver, Colorado, southw ...
, both of which receive of precipitation annually, mostly in the three summer months. That total is probably representative of the precipitation on the mesa.
Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site
In 2003, the Army proposed to expand the existing
Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site
The Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site (also Pinon and Pinyon) is a 235,896 acre (955 km2) U.S. Army base in southeastern Colorado. The Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site (PCMS) is a training site for Fort Carson. In 2003, the U.S. Army announced a plan t ...
(PCMS) by as much as 6.9 million acres (27,923 km
2) of land owned by private citizens and the
Comanche National Grassland
Comanche National Grassland is a National Grassland located in southeastern Colorado, United States. It is the sister grassland of Cimarron National Grassland and contains both prairie grasslands and canyons. It is separated into two sections ...
in southeastern Colorado. The proposed expansion would include the Mesa de Maya in Colorado and make PCMS three times larger than any other military base in the United States. Two citizens organizations were founded to oppose the expansion: The Pinyon Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition and Not l More Acre. They characterized the proposed expansion as "one colossal land grab." The impetus for these organizations came from ranchers and local citizens who wished to preserve private property and the traditional ranching economy of southeastern Colorado. In 2013, the proposed PCMS expansion was cancelled.
["Mark Udall Welcomes the U.S. Army'd Decision on the Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o94-Jd5L7DM, accessed 29 July 2015]
References
{{Coord, 37.11, -103.56, type:landmark_region:US-CO_dim:30000, display=title
Landforms of Las Animas County, Colorado
Landforms of Union County, New Mexico
Landforms of Cimarron County, Oklahoma
Mesas of New Mexico
Mesas of Colorado
Eastern Plains
Mesas of Oklahoma