The Serra de Monchique (Monchique Range) is a chain of mountains in the western part of the
Algarve
The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese).
The region has it ...
region of
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, about 20 km inshore. The chain's highest point is the peak of
Fóia, at 902 m. 774 m high Picota is another notable peak.
Description
The Monchique Range is the southwesternmost mountain range of the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
. It is covered in forest and parts of the range have been transformed into
eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...
,
pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
and
acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
plantations which are detrimental to the native forest cover.
The range is named after the town of
Monchique
Monchique () is a municipality of southern Portugal, in Faro District (province of Algarve). The population in 2011 was 6,045, in an area of 395.30 km2.
The Municipality of Monchique is situated in the Serra de Monchique and together with t ...
, located in the area.
Caldas de Monchique
Caldas de Monchique is a spa town in the Monchique Mountains in the Algarve region of Portugal. It has been famous since Roman times for its waters, which supposedly have healing properties. It was also used as a seasonal retreat for Portuguese r ...
is a well-known
spa town
A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits.
Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. H ...
with
geothermal springs
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by cir ...
also located in this range.
Rivers
Seixe,
Aljezur
Aljezur () is a town and municipality of the District of Faro and Algarve region, in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 5,884, in an area of 323.50 km². The municipality comprises 4 parishes.
History
Aljezur Do árabe al jazair, plur ...
and
Odiáxere have their sources in this range.
Geology
The Monchique Range is part of the Late-Cretaceous Iberian Alkaline Igneous Province and is related to the
Mount Ormonde seamount
A seamount is a large geologic landform that rises from the ocean floor that does not reach to the water's surface (sea level), and thus is not an island, islet or cliff-rock. Seamounts are typically formed from extinct volcanoes that rise abru ...
in the
Gorringe Bank. The inselberg is formed primarily of nepheline-syenites (
foyaite, for which 'Foia' is the type locality). At c.63 km
2 Monchique the fourth largest miaskitic nepheline-syenite intrusion so far discovered. It is assumed to be of '
laccolith
A laccolith is a body of intrusive rock with a dome-shaped upper surface and a level base, fed by a conduit from below. A laccolith forms when magma (molten rock) rising through the Earth's crust begins to spread out horizontally, prying ap ...
ic' form, from its regular contact altitude to the Breijera formation (
country rock
Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal s ...
).
Pegmatite
A pegmatite is an igneous rock showing a very coarse texture, with large interlocking crystals usually greater in size than and sometimes greater than . Most pegmatites are composed of quartz, feldspar, and mica, having a similar silicic com ...
s of similar foyaitic composition are seen within the mass at two locations and an associated dyke swarm of
lamprophyre
Lamprophyres () are uncommon, small-volume ultrapotassic igneous rocks primarily occurring as dikes, lopoliths, laccoliths, stocks, and small intrusions. They are alkaline silica-undersaturated mafic or ultramafic rocks with high magnesium oxid ...
s and
picrites extends some 3 km from the mountain. the psammite/shale/marl country rocks of the Breijera formation are well exposed to the west of Serra de Monchique, forming jagged outcrops and dramatic gorges, which since the destructive introduction of
eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...
farming in 1976, now run dry most of the year round.
Ecology
Serra de Monchique is threatened by continued aggressive eucalyptus 'cash-crop' farming, recent publications have shown the water table to be lowering significantly and many endemic species to be on the brink of extinction, including
the Bonellis Eagle, the
Iberian emerald lizard
The Iberian emerald lizard (''Lacerta schreiberi''), also known commonly as Schreiber's green lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to the Iberian Peninsula.
Etymology
The specific name, ''schreiberi ...
and many more listed under
European Union protection.
Picota - Monchique 3.jpg, View of Monchique
Monchique () is a municipality of southern Portugal, in Faro District (province of Algarve). The population in 2011 was 6,045, in an area of 395.30 km2.
The Municipality of Monchique is situated in the Serra de Monchique and together with t ...
Picota viewpoint, Via Algarviana, Monchique, Portugal (PPL1-Corrected) julesvernex2.jpg, View of the rough Algarvian terrain and the Atlantic Ocean
Monchique hills seen from the Picota viewpoint, Via Algarviana, Portugal (PPL3-Altered) julesvernex2.jpg, Eucalyptus plantations
Cascata do Barranco dos Pisões.jpg, Stream at Barranco de Pisões
See also
*
Geography of Portugal
Portugal is a coastal nation in western Europe, located at the western end of the Iberian Peninsula, bordering Spain (on its northern and eastern frontiers: a total of ). The Portuguese territory also includes a series of archipelagos in the Atla ...
*
Geology of the Iberian Peninsula
The geology of the Iberian Peninsula consists of the study of the rock formations on the Iberian Peninsula, which includes Spain, Portugal, Andorra, and Gibraltar. The peninsula contains rocks from every geological period from the Ediacaran to t ...
References
External links
*
Around Monchique and the mountains
{{Authority control
Mountain ranges of Portugal
Natura 2000 in Portugal