The Serra de Moixeró is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

running across the north of

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

(

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

), part of the Pre-Pyrenees. Along with the adjacent Serra del Cadí, Pedraforca and parts of Tosa d'Alp and Puigllançada, it forms part of the

Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park The Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park () is a natural park (Spain), natural park to the north of Catalonia, Spain, near the border with Andorra. The park was established in 1983 and encompasses of mountainous terrain in the comarca, comarques of Alt Ur ...

, established in 1983. The Serra de Moixeró is often confused as a part of the Serra del Cadí, despite the fact that these two ranges are separated by the Tancalaporta pass. The confusion is widespread enough that Cadí Tunnel, which connects

Cerdanya Cerdanya (; , ; , ) or often La Cerdanya is a natural region, natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it was one of the Catalan counties, counties of Catalonia. Cerdanya has a ...

with the rest of Catalonia beneath the Serra de Moixeró, was erroneously named for the adjacent range.

Geography

Since Moixeró is considered older than the Cadí range (it formed during the Variscan orogeny of the Paleozoic era), it is considered the start of the "axial"

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

, beginning at the Pass of Pendís (1,760 m). From there, it continues to Tosa d'Alp and Puigllançada, to beyond the Pas of Toses. Along with the adjacent ranges, it divides the watersheds of the Llobregat and Segre rivers. The range's most significant peaks are the Turó de Pratagre (2,012 m), Moixeró (2,078 m), the plateau of Moixeró (2,063 m), the Penyes Altes de Moixeró (2,276 m), the Serrat de la Miquela (2,161 m), Soquetes (2,181 m), and the pass of Jou (2,000 m), near the foothills of Tosa d'Alp. The northern slopes of the ridge descend gradually to the plain of

, with numerous streams descending the slopes. The southern slopes of the Serra de Moixeró are located in

Berguedà Berguedà () is an inland Comarques of Catalonia, comarca in the Comarques Centrals, central region of Catalonia, Spain. It lies partly in the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, and partly in the Catalan Central Depression. The capital is the city of Berg ...

, and are drained by the Gréixer stream, a tributary of the Bastareny. This river cuts perpendicularly to the range, which has created a series of descending plateaus parallel to the east–west direction of the ridge. Uniquely, around the Gréixer, the principal stone is variegated effusive

rhyolite Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture (geology), texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained matri ...

; in most of the rest of the range, Devonian limestone are found at peaks while carboniferous

schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a l ...

is more plentiful at lower elevations and to the east.

Climate and vegetation

At lower elevations, the most common

flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...

on Moixeró includes

red pine ''Pinus resinosa'', known as red pine (also Norway pine in Minnesota), is a pine native to Eastern North America. Description Red pine is a coniferous evergreen tree characterized by tall, straight growth. It usually ranges from in heigh ...

and

fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

, with small scattered stands of

beech Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...

. After 1,800 metres black pine becomes more common, and after 2,000 metres, the ridges are mostly covered with mountain meadows or simply whitish rocks, depending on the local climate.

References

External links

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Cadí–Moixeró Natural Park
{{DEFAULTSORT:Serra del Cadi Moixero