Mountain Ranges, Deserts and Landforms of Czechia

Geography

Although commonly referred to as a mountain chain, the Carpathians do not form an uninterrupted chain of mountains, but consist of several orographically and geologically distinctive groups. The northwestern Carpathians begin in Slovakia and southern Poland. They surround Transcarpathia and Transylvania in a large semicircle, sweeping towards the southeast, and end on the Danube near Orșova in Romania. The total length of the Carpathians is over 1,500 km (930 mi).

The mountain chain's width varies between 12 and 500 km (7 and 311 mi). The highest altitudes of the Carpathians occur where they are widest, in the Transylvanian plateau and in the southern Tatra Mountains group.

Geology

The area now occupied by the Carpathians was once occupied by smaller ocean basins. The Carpathian mountains were formed during the Alpine orogeny in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic by moving the ALCAPA (Alpine-Carpathian-Pannonian), Tisza and Dacia plates over subducting oceanic crust.

The mountains take the form of a fold and thrust belt with generally north vergence in the western segment, northeast to east vergence in the eastern portion and southeast vergence in the southern portion. Currently, the area is the most seismically active in Central Europe.

The external, generally northern, portion of the orogenic belt is a Tertiary accretionary wedge of a so-called Flysch belt (the Carpathian Flysch Belt) created by rocks scraped off the sea bottom and thrust over the North-European plate.

Ecology

The ecology of the Carpathians varies with altitude, ranging from lowland forests to alpine meadows. Foothill forests are primarily of broadleaf deciduous trees, including oak, hornbeam, and linden. European beech is characteristic of the montane forest zone. Higher-elevation subalpine forests are characterized by Norway spruce (Picea abies). Krummholz and alpine meadows occur above the treeline.

Wildlife in the Carpathians includes Eurasian brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos), Eurasian wolf (Canis lupus lupus), Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), European wildcat (Felis silvestris), Tatra chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra tatrica), European bison (Bison bonasus), and golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos).

Geography

The Bohemian Forest consists of densely forested mountains with an average elevation of 800–1,400 metres (2,600–4,600 ft). On the Bavarian side, the highest peak is Großer Arber at 1,456 metres (4,777 ft). On the Bohemian and Austrian side, the highest peak is the Plöckenstein or Plechý in Czech at 1,378 metres (4,521 ft). The most eastern peak is the Sternstein at 1,125 metres (3,691 ft). The range is one of the oldest in Europe, and its mountains have eroded into round forms with few rocky parts. Typical for the Bohemian Forest are plateaus of about 1,000–1,200 metres (3,300–3,900 ft) elevation with fairly harsh climatic condictions and numerous peat bogs.

History

According to archaeological findings, the Bohemian Forest was not significantly populated during the Paleolithic era or the Stone Age, dating as far back as 9000 BC. Initial settlements of a more permanent character first appeared in southwest Bohemia during the Bronze Age between 3,000 and 1,000 years BC. In the 1st century AD, the northern part of the forest was inhabited by Gallo-Romans and by Germanic tribes.

The Celts were gradually forced out by Germanic tribes (the Marcomanni), and Celtic settlements fell in disrepair. With the subsequent departure of the Marcomanni, the Bohemian Forest continued to evolve without human influence. The forests only changed their character after the arrival of the Slavs in the region in the 6th century, who sought refuge there.

Geography

The Ore Mountains are one of the most geologically researched mountain ranges in the world. The Ore Mountains are a Hercynian block tilted so as to present a steep scarp face towards Bohemia and a gentle slope on the German side. They were formed during a lengthy process.

During the folding of the Variscan orogeny, metamorphism occurred deep underground, forming slate and gneiss. In addition, granite plutons intruded into the metamorphic rocks. By the end of the Palaeozoic era, the mountains had been eroded into gently undulating hills (the Permian massif), exposing the hard rocks.

In the Tertiary these mountain remnants came under heavy pressure as a result of plate tectonic processes during which the Alps were formed and the North American and Eurasian plates were separated.

History

The term Saltusbohemicus ("Bohemian Forest") for the region emerged in the 12th century. In the German language the equivalent names Böhmischer Wald, Beheimer Wald, Behmerwald or Böhmerwald were used, in Czech the name Český les. The last-mentioned names are used today for the mountain range along the Czech Republic's southwestern border.

From earlier research, other names for the Ore Mountains have also appeared in a few older written records. However, the names Hircanus Saltus (Hercynian Forest) or Fergunna, which appeared in the 9th century, were only used in a general sense for the vast forests of the Central Uplands.

Economy

The German part of the Ore Mountains is one of the major business locations in Saxony. The region has a high density of industrial operations. Since 2000, the number of industrial workers has risen against the Germany-wide trend by about 20 percent. Typical of the Ore Mountains are mainly small, often owner-managed, businesses.

The economic strengths of the Ore Mountains are mainly in manufacturing. 63 percent of the industrial workforce is employed in the metalworking and electrical industry.

Only of minor importance is the formerly dominant textile and clothing industry (5 percent of industrial net product) and the food industry.

Tourism

When several Ore Mountain passes were upgraded into chaussees in the 19th century, and the Upper Ore Mountains were accessed by the railway, tourism began to develop. One of the early promoters of tourism in the Ore Mountains was Otto Delitsch. In 1907, a memorial was erected to him in Wildenthal. In many places mountain inns and observation towers were erected on the highest peaks. At that time, skiers used the ridges with their guaranteed snow. Today, steam-worked narrow gauge railways dating to that era, such as the Pressnitz Valley Railway, are popular tourist attractions.

In 1924 the Fichtelberg Cable Car became the first cable car in Germany, and it still takes visitors to the highest mountain in Saxony.