Mount Danxia () is a noted scenic

mountainous A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

area in

Renhua County Renhua County ( postal: Yanfa; ) is a county in the northernmost portion of Guangdong province, in China, bordering Jiangxi to the northeast and Hunan to the northwest. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Shaoguan. Renhua ...

, in the northern part of

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

province. It is described on the local signage as a "world famous

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

geopark of China". It was inscribed as part of the

China Danxia The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red bed characterized by steep cliffs". It is a unique type of petrographic geomorphology found in China. Danxia landform is for ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

in 2010 because of its unique geographical in formations and spectacular scenery.

Description

The Danxia area is formed from a reddish

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

which has been eroded over time into a series of outcrops surrounded by spectacular cliffs and many unusual rock formations known as the

Danxia landform The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red Bed (geology), bed characterized by steep cliffs". It is a unique type of petrography, petrographic geomorphology found in Chi ...

. There are a number of temples located on the mountains and many scenic walks can be undertaken. There is also a river winding through the mountains on which boat trips can be taken.

Geology

Mount of Danxia is identified by multi-layered red sedimentary rocks of

and conglomerate, and the area of was formed by the fluvial deposition through the basin 140-65 million years ago. The weather in Danxia area assist the oxidation reaction in rocks, and turned the color of them into red. Then these sediments were uplifted and condescend by water, and being accreted during the process. Finally, the area of Danxia was formed. Since six million years ago, the basin of Danxia area has experienced several intermittent rises, which average increase of about per 10,000 years. With the favor of water washing by the river, the mount of Danxia is cut into many layers, and formed the mount of Danxia nowadays.

Rock formations

Among other attractions that make the Danxia range interesting, the area has the following characteristic stone formations: *Yang Yuan Stone, (' "male/father stone") bearing a remarkable resemblance to a

phallus A phallus (: phalli or phalluses) is a penis (especially when erect), an object that resembles a penis, or a mimetic image of an erect penis. In art history, a figure with an erect penis is described as ''ithyphallic''. Any object that symbo ...

*Yin Yuan Stone or ' hole, which somewhat resembles a

vulva In mammals, the vulva (: vulvas or vulvae) comprises mostly external, visible structures of the female sex organ, genitalia leading into the interior of the female reproductive tract. For humans, it includes the mons pubis, labia majora, lab ...

. *Breasts Stone, human breast-shaped rocky outcrops on a cliff hanging above the ground. *Sleeping Beauty, a rocky range resembling a sleeping maiden.

Climate

Mount Danxia is located on the southern side of the

Nan Mountains The Nanling (), also known as the Wuling (), is a major mountain range in Southern China that separates the Pearl River Basin from the Yangtze Valley and serves as the dividing line between south and central subtropical zones. The main rang ...

, and it is in the

subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones immediately to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Ge ...

southern margin, which is the

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

Temperature

The annual average temperature of Danxia Mountain is , the extreme minimum temperature is , the extreme maximum temperature is , and the maximum monthly average day is . The hottest month is July which has an average temperature of , and the coldest month has an average temperature of . The average temperature in autumn is higher than spring's.

Sunshine

The total annual hour of sunshine in Danxia Mountain is 1,721 hours annually, the solar radiation is , and the average sunshine hours are 4.7 hours per day. More sunshine from July to September, less from February to April.

Precipitation

The yearly average

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

is , and the precipitation period is 172 days annually. The precipitation from March to August is about the 75% of total precipitation in a year, and the most concentrated precipitation is from April to June, which is about 48% precipitation of a year. The maximum annually precipitation in history is 1994, and the minimum precipitation is in 1963.

Humidity

The average

absolute humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity depe ...

of Danxia mount is 19.8mb, and the

relative humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...

is 81%.

Natural resources

Plants

The flora of Danxia Mountain is mainly composed by the tropical and subtropical flora, but lacks the typical tropical genus, and the amount of the

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

is relatively large. The landform of DanXia has significant effects on the growth of plants. Since the mount of DanXia has many deep valleys, grooves, the environment of Danxia is moisture, which in favor of the growth of moss. Also, The special landscape and the humid monsoon climate permit the growth of evergreen broadleaf forests, endemic plants, endangered and new species such as

Danxia Viola Danxia may refer to: * Mount Danxia, scenic mountain in Guangdong, China * Danxia landform The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red Bed (geology), bed characterized b ...

Danxia orchid Danxia may refer to: * Mount Danxia, scenic mountain in Guangdong, China * Danxia landform The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red Bed (geology), bed characterized b ...

Danxia Firmiana Danxia may refer to: * Mount Danxia, scenic mountain in Guangdong, China * Danxia landform The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red Bed (geology), bed characterized b ...

and

Danxia Chiritopsis Danxia may refer to: * Mount Danxia, scenic mountain in Guangdong, China * Danxia landform The Danxia landform () is a set of landscapes found in southeast, southwest and northwest China that "consist of a red Bed (geology), bed characterized b ...

Animals

Various wild animals exist in the mount of Danxia, including 88 species of mammals, 288 species of birds, 86 species of reptiles, 37 species (or subspecies) of amphibians, 100 species or subspecies of fish, and 1023 species of insects. Also, there are 59 species of animals, in Danxia mountain, enlisted in the "Red List of China Species"; 73 species of animals enlisted in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

; 66 species enlisted in

CITES CITES (shorter acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of inte ...

Ancient heritage

On the margin of the southwest Danxia basin, a cracked skull was found, and the evidence shows that it is the skull of a

Maba man Maba Man () is a pre-modern hominin whose remains were discovered in 1958 in caves near the town called Maba, near Shaoguan city in the northern part of Guangdong province, China.''Wu R. K.'' et ''Pang R.-C.'' Fossil human skull of early Paleoan ...

, which is around 30,000 years old.

Features

File:Sunset from Xuanjitai 3.jpg, Rocky summits File:丹霞山 06 (cropped).jpg, Craggy face File:Danxia 0746.JPG, Red cliff File:Slot Canyon at Danxiashan.jpg, Slot canyon File:Danxiashan yangyuanshi.jpg, Yang Yuan Stone File:Female Stone 2.jpg, Yin Yuan Stone

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Danxia Mountains of Guangdong Global Geoparks Network members Danxia landform Tourist attractions in Guangdong Shaoguan Geoparks in China