The Pacaraima or Pakaraima Mountains (, ) are 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 ...

primarily in southwestern

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

, and into

northern Brazil The North Region of Brazil ( ) is the largest region of Brazil, accounting for 45.27% of the national territory. It has the second-lowest population of any region in the country, and accounts for a minor percentage of the national GDP. The regio ...

and eastern

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

Geography

The range extends from west to east for over . Its highest peak is

Mount Roraima Mount Roraima (; ) is the highest of the Pacaraima chain of tepuis (table-top mountain) or plateaux in South America. It is located at the junction of Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. A characteristic large flat-topped mountain surrounded by cliff ...

at above sea level, a

tepui A tepui , or tepuy (), is a member of a family of table-top mountains or mesas found in northern South America, especially in Venezuela, western Guyana, and northern Brazil. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the ...

surrounded by cliffs high. It is geologically part of the Guayana Shield and biogeographically part of the Guayana Highlands.The mountains form the divide between the Orinoco Valley to the north and the

Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributary, tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries ...

to the south. They also serve as a natural boundary in the east–west direction, where they extend to form a border marker between Brazil and southeastern Venezuela and between Brazil and west central Guyana.

Geology

The Pacaraimas are a sandstone plateau underlain by a horizonal

precambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of t ...

marine strata that arose in post-cretaceous time. Erosion of the sandstone (the Roraima Supergroup) results in dramatic escarpments, the individual remnants of which are called

tepuis A tepui , or tepuy (), is a member of a family of table-top mountains or mesas found in northern South America, especially in Venezuela, western Guyana, and northern Brazil. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the ...

, Mount Ayanganna and Mount Wokomung are some of the more well-known examples. Numerous rivers originate in these mountains and on their way down they plunge spectacularly to form some picturesque waterfalls. A beautiful example of this is the

Kaieteur Falls Kaieteur Falls is one of the most powerful single-drop waterfalls in the world. It is located on the Potaro River in Kaieteur National Park, central Essequibo Territory, Guyana. It is 226 metres (741 ft) high when measured from its plunge ...

in Guyana. The headwaters of the

Mazaruni River The Mazaruni River is a tributary of the Essequibo River in northern Guyana. Its source is in the remote western forests of the Pakaraima Mountains and its confluence with the Cuyuni River is near Bartica. As it descends from the Guiana Highland ...

and Ireng River are sourced in the Pacaraimas.

Ecology

The Pacaraimas are mostly forested, with occasional savannas especially at the base of Roraima and on the Brazilian side of the range. The savannas are made up of grasses and the occasional '' Curatella americana'' trees below 6500 ft. These areas are prone to fire, either man-made for agriculture or cattle ranching or during times of drought. Difficulty in breaching the steep slopes has made data collection a challenge, however the relative isolation of these flat-topped mountains produces an array of endemic flora with a "great potential for high species diversity". The Rapateaceae family is one of the most commonly represented of flowering plants amid the tepui plateaus.

Conservation

Logging and mining interests pose a threat to the biodiversity of the Pacaraimas. The Monte Roraima National Park protects part of the range in

Roraima Roraima ( ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. Located in the country's North Region, it is the northernmost and most geographically and logistically isolated state in Brazil. It is bordered by the state of Pará to the southeast, Amazonas t ...

, Brazil.

Settlement

The mountains are a traditional home to Patamona and Macushi people. The Macushi village of Tipuru is considered the oldest village in the South Pakaraima Mountains. It has the oldest church and school in the region. Landmarks are of special significance to indigenous people, and are intertwined with oral histories and culture. According to Macushi cosmology, mountains and other landforms were created by mythical creator brothers when they cut down ''Wayaka'', the "tree of life". These brothers transformed people, animals, and other things into rock formations, thus giving them special mythological origins.

References