Rio Grande del Norte National Monument
| Rio Grande del Norte National Monument | |
|---|---|
|
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
|
|
Rio Grande Gorge
|
|
 
|
|
| Location | Taos County, New Mexico, United States |
| Nearest city | Taos, New Mexico |
| Coordinates | 36°40′0″N 105°42′0″W / 36.66667°N 105.70000°WCoordinates: 36°40′0″N 105°42′0″W / 36.66667°N 105.70000°W |
| Area | 242,455 acres (98,118 ha) |
| Established | March 25, 2013 |
| Governing body | U.S. Bureau of Land Management |
| Website | Rio Grande del Norte National Monument |
The Rio Grande del Norte National Monument is an approximately 242,455-acre (98,118 ha) area of public lands in Taos County, New Mexico, proclaimed as a national monument on March 25, 2013 by President Barack Obama under the provisions of the Antiquities Act. It consists of the Rio Grande Gorge and surrounding lands, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The monument includes two BLM recreation areas, a portion of the Rio Grande designated as a Wild and Scenic River, and the Red River Wild and Scenic River.
The monument includes portions of the Taos Plateau volcanic field, cut by the gorges of the Rio Grande and the Rio San Antonio. Significant volcanic peaks include Cerro de la Olla, Cerro Chiflo, and Ute Mountain which, at 10,093 feet (3,076 m) ft, is the tallest peak entirely within the national monument. San Antonio Mountain, which at 10,890 feet (3,320 m) is the tallest peak in the volcanic field, is only partially within the bounds of the monument. The volcanoes and the rhyolite-basalt plateau, as well as the course of the Rio Grande, are the result of spreading along the Rio Grande rift, that transects north-south from Colorado to Mexico. Large springs, some of them hot, are believed to be the outflow from flooded lava tube systems. Ecosystems vary from willow and cottonwood stands along the rivers to sagebrush plains on the plateau, transitioning to pinyon pine in the hills and ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir in the mountains. The monument provides habitat for a variety of resident and migrant birds. Large mammals include elk, mule deer, pronghorn and bighorn sheep, as well as predators such as cougar, bobcat, river otters, black bears and coyotes. The plateau provides winter range for many of the larger grazing animals.
...
Wikipedia