Monterrey is a town and municipality in the

Department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of Casanare,

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

. It is located approximately 105 kilometers south-west of the city

Yopal Yopal () is a municipality and capital city of the department of Casanare in Colombia. History During the period of the Spanish colonization of the Americas, the land on which Yopal stands was occupied by the indigenous Achagua people. The ...

, the capital of the Casanare department. The town was founded on 6 September 1953. It was recognized as a municipality in 1960. The town is roughly 879.57 km² and has approximately 14,831 inhabitants.

History

Previous to the Spanish conquest, this area was largely under the influence of the

Muisca The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an indigenous people and culture of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia, that formed the Muisca Confederation before the Spanish conquest. The people spoke Muysccubun, a language of the Chibchan langu ...

civilization. The social, cultural and productive organization was the most developed in what is now known as Colombia. The process of conquest began in 1499 and lasted until 1550. Following the conquest, the new government, whose powers were bestowed by Phillip II, subjugated the region and its native peoples. The administrative existence of Monterrey began as outlined in the

Constitution of Cúcuta The Constitution of Cúcuta, also known as Constitution of the Gran Colombia and Constitution of 1821, was the founding document and constitution of the Republic of Colombia (historiographically called Gran Colombia), unifying the territories o ...

, which in 1821 divided the country into departments, these into provinces, the provinces into cantons and the latter into parishes. Beginning as a municipality of Boyacá, following the

Colombian Civil War There have been several Colombian Civil Wars in Colombian history: *War of the Supremes (1839–1841) *Colombian Civil War of 1851 *Colombian Civil War of 1854 *Colombian Civil War (1860–1862) *Colombian Civil War of 1876 *Colombian Civil War (188 ...

and the

Constitution of Rionegro The constitutional history of Colombia is the process of formation and evolution of the different constitutions that Colombia has had since its formation. Pre-Columbian and Spanish times The indigenous nations that inhabited the present t ...

of 1863, Boyacá was divided into 6 new departments, and Casanare was recognized for the first time as an independent department of the Orinoquía Region.

Geography

Location

Located in the foothill's east of the local mountain range Cuchilla Palmichal, Monterrey sits 105 km from

. The town has heights ranging from 300

meters above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

on the lower banks of the Túa River and the urban centre. The area maintains and average temperature of 25°C

Geomorphology

Monterrey possesses varied geological reliefs which offers a diversity of mountain landscapes, piedmont, upland, hills, and valleys. Montañas de Monterrey

Mountain landscape

The region corresponds to a folded structural system whose height and shape is caused by the action of tectonic forces on a set of

sedimentary Sedimentary rocks are types of rock (geology), rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic matter, organic particles at Earth#Surface, Earth's surface, followed by cementation (geology), cementation. Sedimentati ...

rocks of different composition, which are being affected by denudative phenomena. The mountains are located on the western side of the municipality. Due to tectonic activity of the region, the topography can be abrupt, with slopes greater than 45%. Heights of the mountains range from 800 to 2000

MASL The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a North American professional indoor soccer league. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. MASL is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. MASL players ...

also due to unstable tectonics. Monterrey is home to many Monoclinal ridges corresponding to elongated forms in the form of asymmetric blades that protrude due to their height within the mountainous system. They are escarpments whose structural slopes are regular due to the uniformity and hardness of the rocks that conform it, corresponding to elongated blades of high slope and edges associated with sandstone.

Paisaje en la carretera interdepartamental

Paisaje en la carretera interdepartamental

Upper landscape

The uplands are located in the southern part of Monterrey and in some small isolated areas in the centre of the urban area, with heights ranging from 300 to 600

. The areas are characterized by flat, geologically recent areas which have been raised and tilted. Diffuse runoff and laminar surface erosion is present. The uplands are surrounded by dissected terraces. The topography is characterized by flat and wavy slopes up to 12%. It's

lithology The lithology of a rock unit is a description of its physical characteristics visible at outcrop, in hand or core samples, or with low magnification microscopy. Physical characteristics include colour, texture, grain size, and composition. Lit ...

presents surface gravels and ridges which cover the box formation. The drainage is dense, dendritic, or sub-parallel. Panorámica de Monterrey desde la vereda el porvenir ubicada en la montaña

Panorámica de Monterrey desde la vereda el porvenir ubicada en la montaña

Plain landscape

In Monterrey, the plains are located in two small areas: the Southeast and Northeast. The plains present deposits of sedimentation of fine material, brought in from the rivers originating in the mountainous areas. The plains are largely flat terrain.

Flora and fauna

Flora

Most of the native vegetation in the municipality has been removed or deforested by its inhabitants. The undergrowth consists of numerous

shrubs A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

, woody vines,

herbaceous plants Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

and

epiphyte An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

. The following vegetation is the most abundant in the area: *

Gallery forests A gallery forest is one formed as a corridor along rivers or wetlands, projecting into landscapes that are otherwise only sparsely treed such as savannas, grasslands, or deserts. The gallery forest maintains a more temperate microclimate above th ...

Dacryodes ''Dacryodes'' is a genus of about 60 species of trees in the family Burseraceae. The generic name is from the Greek ' meaning "tear(drop)", referring to how resin droplets form on the bark surface. Description ''Dacryodes'' species grow as shrub ...

Tapirira ''Tapirira'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Anacardiaceae The Anacardiaceae, commonly known as the cashew family or sumac family, are a family of flowering plants, including about 83 genera with about 860 known species. Members ...

Mauritia flexuosa ''Mauritia flexuosa'', known as the moriche palm, ''ité'' palm, ''ita'', ''buriti'', ''muriti'', ''miriti'' (Brazil), ''canangucho'' (Colombia), ''acho'' (Ecuador), or ''aguaje'' (Peru), is a Arecaceae, palm tree. It grows in and near swamps and ...

Socratea exorrhiza ''Socratea exorrhiza'', the walking palm or cashapona, is a Arecaceae, palm native to rainforests in tropical Central America, Central and South America. It can grow to 25 metres in height, with a stem diameter of up to 16 cm, but is more ty ...

Spondias ''Spondias'' is a genus of flowering plants in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae. The genus consists of 17 described species, 7 of which are native to the Neotropics and about 10 are native to tropical Asia. They are commonly named hog plums, Spa ...

Guarea ''Guarea'' is a genus of evergreen trees or shrubs in the family Meliaceae, native to tropical Africa and Central and South America. At their largest, they are large trees 20–45 m tall, with a trunk over 1 m diameter, often buttressed at the ba ...

Cecropia ''Cecropia'' is a Neotropical genus consisting of 61 recognized species with a highly distinctive lineage of dioecious trees. The genus consists of pioneer trees in the more or less humid parts of the Neotropics, with the majority of the speci ...

Wildlife

The municipality of Monterrey, like most of the foothills of the Colombian plains has very little wildlife due to extensive hunting and intense human interference over forests and ecosystems, turning natural habitats into pastures and agricultural crops.

Birds

Monterrey hosts a varied and unique range of aviary life. The most common species of bird in the region are the

Roadside hawk The roadside hawk (''Rupornis magnirostris'') is a relatively small bird of prey found in the Americas. This vocal species is often the most common raptor in its range. It has many subspecies and is now usually placed in the monotypic genus ''Ru ...

. The following species of birds are also found: *

Herons The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...

Scarlet Ibis The scarlet ibis (''Eudocimus ruber'') is a species of ibis in the bird family Threskiornithidae. It inhabits tropical South America and part of the Caribbean. In form, it resembles most of the other twenty-seven extant species of ibis, but its ...

Crow A crow is a bird of the genus ''Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifical ...

Jay A jay is a member of a number of species of medium-sized, usually colorful and noisy, passerine birds in the Crow family (biology), family, Corvidae. The evolutionary relationships between the jays and the magpies are rather complex. For examp ...

Gray Heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern ...

* Tawny *

Parrots Parrots, also known as psittacines (), are birds of the roughly 398 species in 92 genus (biology), genera comprising the order (biology), order Psittaciformes (), found mostly in tropics, tropical and subtropics, subtropical regions. The order ...

Hawk Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. Th ...

Woodpecker Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. ...

Partridges A partridge is a medium-sized galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They are sometimes grouped in the Perdic ...

Ruddy ground-dove The ruddy ground dove (''Columbina talpacoti'') is a small New World tropical dove. It is a resident breeder from Mexico south to Brazil, Peru and Paraguay, and northern Argentina, and on Trinidad and Tobago. Individual birds can sometimes be see ...

Tyrannus savana The fork-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus savana'') is a passerine bird of the tyrant flycatcher family, and is the member of a genus typically referred to as kingbirds. Named for their distinguishingly long, forked tail, fork-tailed flycatchers are ...

Yellow Oriole The yellow oriole (''Icterus nigrogularis'') is a passerine bird in the family Icteridae. It should not be confused with the green oriole, sometimes alternatively called the Australasian yellow oriole (''Oriolus flavocinctus''), which is an Old ...

Green oropendola The green oropendola (''Psarocolius viridis'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is found in wooded habitats in the Amazon basin and Guianas of South America, and is generally common. Uniquely among the oropendolas, the green orope ...

Blue-gray tanager The blue-gray tanager (''Thraupis episcopus'') is a medium-sized South American songbird of the tanager family, Thraupidae. Its range is from Mexico south to northeast Bolivia and northern Brazil, all of the Amazon Basin, except the very south. ...

Mammals

The most common are the

armadillo Armadillos (meaning "little armored ones" in Spanish) are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. The Chlamyphoridae and Dasypodidae are the only surviving families in the order, which is part of the superorder Xenarthra, along wi ...

Capybara The capybaraAlso called capivara (in Brazil), capiguara (in Bolivia), chigüire, chigüiro, or fercho (in Colombia and Venezuela), carpincho (in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay) and ronsoco (in Peru). or greater capybara (''Hydrochoerus hydro ...

Lowland Paca The lowland paca (''Cuniculus paca''), also known as the spotted paca, is a large rodent found in tropical and sub-tropical America, from east-central Mexico to northern Argentina, and has been introduced to Cuba and Algeria. The animal is cal ...

Deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

Bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

Anteater Anteater is a common name for the four extant mammal species of the suborder Vermilingua (meaning "worm tongue") commonly known for eating ants and termites. The individual species have other names in English and other languages. Together with ...

Sloth Bear The sloth bear (''Melursus ursinus'') is a myrmecophagous bear species native to the Indian subcontinent. It feeds on fruits, ants and termites. It is listed as Vulnerable species, vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, mainly because of habitat loss ...

Bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...

Squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...

Pheasant Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family (biology), family Phasianidae in the order (biology), order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera na ...

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

, and others.

Culture and local folklore

Monterrey is home to large pockets

Llanero A (, ‘plainsman’) is a South American herder. The name is taken from the Llanos grasslands occupying eastern Colombia and western-central Venezuela. During the Spanish American wars of independence, lancers and cavalry served in both ar ...

and

Joropo The joropo is a musical style resembling the fandango, and an accompanying dance. It originated in Venezuela and is also present in the eastern Colombian plains. It has African, Native South American, and European influences. There are differe ...

culture. The town often engages in Beach bullfighting, and since 1997 a Summer Festival has been held on the beaches of the Túa River. It is customary to carry out activities of beach sports, adventure spots, and horse riding. The festival hosts musical groups from the region, as well as special performances by native folklorists and grand orchestras. File:Festival de verano.jpg, The Summer Festival File:Festival de Verano.jpg, The Summer Festival File:Toreopla.jpg, Bullfighting on the beach File:Cruzando el río Tùa a caballo.jpg, Crossing the river on horseback File:Folclor LLanero.JPG, Folklore performance

External links

Monterrey official website
*(in Spanish
Casanare official websiteResults and projections (2005-2020) of the 2005 census, DANE
. Retrieved on 14 February 2019

References

Municipalities of Casanare Department {{Casanare-geo-stub