Gramos ( or Γράμμος; ; , , or ) is a

mountain chain A mountain chain is a row of high mountain summits, a linear sequence of interconnected or related mountains,Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, p 87. . or a contiguous ridge of mountains within a larger mo ...

situated on the border of

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

and

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. Part of the larger northern

Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; ; ; ) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly long, with a maximum elevation of (Smolikas, Mount Smolikas). Because it runs along the border of Thessaly and Epiru ...

mountain range, its highest peak, ''Maja e Çukapeçit'', rises at an elevation of .

Geography

From the Albanian side, Gramos lies on the eastern edge of

Kolonjë Kolonjë is a municipality in Korçë County, southeastern Albania. It was created in 2015 by the merger of the former municipalities Barmash, Çlirim, Ersekë, Leskovik, Mollas, Novoselë, Qendër Ersekë and Qendër Leskovik. The seat of ...

municipality, bounded in the northwest by the Morava mountain and in the southeast by Kamenik. It continues beyond the state border, into Greece, extending along the boundaries of

Ioannina Ioannina ( ' ), often called Yannena ( ' ) within Greece, is the capital and largest city of the Ioannina (regional unit), Ioannina regional unit and of Epirus (region), Epirus, an Modern regions of Greece, administrative region in northwester ...

and

Kastoria Kastoria (, ''Kastoriá'' ) is a city in northern Greece in the modern regions of Greece, region of Western Macedonia. It is the capital of Kastoria (regional unit), Kastoria regional unit, in the Geographic regions of Greece, geographic region ...

regional units, neighboured by the Smolikas chain to the south and Voio to the east.

Geology

The mountain mass consists mainly of

paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...

flysch Flysch () is a sequence of sedimentary rock layers that progress from deep-water and turbidity flow deposits to shallow-water shales and sandstones. It is deposited when a deep basin forms rapidly on the continental side of a mountain building ep ...

, with smaller amounts of lower flysch and

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

, resulting in a complex tectonic structure. Above heights of , various glacial features such as cirques and glacial valleys can be observed. The western and northwestern slopes of the mountain give rise to various branches of the

Osum The Osum is a river in southern Albania, one of the source rivers of the Seman. It is long and its drainage basin is . Its average discharge is . Its source is in the southwestern part of the Korçë County, near the village of Vithkuq at an a ...

and Devoll rivers. Conversely, the northeastern and southern slopes are drained by the branches of Aliakmonas and Sarantaporos rivers.

Biodiversity

Alpine meadows thrive in the northern and central regions, while the southern part is characterized by lush beech and conifer forests.

References

{{Authority control Geography of Korçë County Landforms of Ioannina (regional unit) Landforms of Kastoria (regional unit) Mountains of Albania Two-thousanders of Albania Albania–Greece border International mountains of Europe Mountains of Epirus (region) Mountains of Western Macedonia Natura 2000 in Greece

Geography

Geology

Biodiversity

See also

References