Santa Rita Mountains in the context of "Madrean sky islands"

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⭐ Core Definition: Santa Rita Mountains

The Santa Rita Mountains (O'odham: To:wa Kuswo Doʼag), located about 40 miles (60 km) southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend 26 miles (42 km) from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastwards into the Patagonia Mountains, trending northwest by southeast. The highest point in the range, and the highest point in the Tucson area, is Mount Wrightson, with an elevation of 9,453 feet (2,881 m), The range contains Madera Canyon, one of the world's premier birding areas. The Smithsonian Institution's Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory is located on Mount Hopkins. The range is one of the Madrean sky islands.

The Santa Rita Mountains are mostly within the Coronado National Forest. Prior to 1908 they were the principal component of Santa Rita National Forest, which was combined with other small forest tracts to form Coronado. Much of the range lies within the Mt. Wrightson Wilderness, managed by the Coronado National Forest. The Santa Rita Mountains were severely burned in July 2005 in the Florida Fire.

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Santa Rita Mountains in the context of Sky island

Sky islands are isolated mountains surrounded by radically different lowland environments. The term originally referred to those found on the Mexican Plateau and has extended to similarly isolated high-elevation forests. The isolation has significant implications for these natural habitats. Endemism, altitudinal migration, and relict populations are some of the natural phenomena to be found on sky islands.

The complex dynamics of species richness on sky islands draws attention from the discipline of biogeography, and likewise the biodiversity is of concern to conservation biology. One of the key elements of a sky island is separation by physical distance from the other mountain ranges, resulting in a habitat island, such as a forest surrounded by desert.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Sky island
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
O'odham language → Tucson, Arizona → Patagonia Mountains → Mount Wrightson → Madera Canyon (Arizona) → Smithsonian Institution → Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory → Mount Hopkins (Arizona) → Madrean sky islands → Coronado National Forest → Santa Rita National Forest →