{"id":3534,"date":"2012-07-12T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-07-12T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnhp.colostate.edu\/southern-colorado-landscapes-part-2\/"},"modified":"2021-06-09T14:24:26","modified_gmt":"2021-06-09T14:24:26","slug":"southern-colorado-landscapes-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnhp.colostate.edu\/cnhpblog\/2012\/07\/12\/southern-colorado-landscapes-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Southern Colorado Landscapes: Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

During a June flight with Lighthawk<\/a> volunteer pilot Steve Paul, CNHP’s Ren\u00e9e Rondeau got a tour of many of the ecosystems in the southern Colorado (Part 1, the San Luis Valley<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The Sangre de Cristo Mountains <\/b><\/p>\n

The Sangre de Cristos are a steep, narrow mountain range along the eastern boundary of the San Luis Valley. The prominent massif of Blanca Peak anchors the central part of the range. Further south, the southern Sangre de Cristos are called the Culebra Range, and form the western boundary of the Park Plateau in northern New Mexico.<\/p>\n

These mountains support narrow bands of shrubland, woodland, and forest types with increasing elevation, and include alpine and barren rock habitats at the highest elevations.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nSlopes below Blanca Peak illustrate how vegetation types change with elevation in the Sangre de Cristos, from pinyon-juniper<\/a> at the bottom to alpine at the top.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nAbove the pinyon-juniper, stands of aspen<\/a> and mixed conifer<\/a> dominate.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nNear Whiskey Pass, spruce-fir<\/a> forest clusters below the alpine tundra<\/a>.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nSecond verse, same as the first. Once over the mountain ridge, on the east side of the Sangre de Cristos, we head back down through the different forest types. The Spanish Peaks are visible in the upper right.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n
\nBack down at the pinyon-juniper. The view north along the Stonewall, a volcanic dike that goes on for nearly 30 miles.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nMore to come in part 3, as Ren\u00e9e and Steve venture into northern New Mexico.\ufeff<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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