Serra de São Mamede () is 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 ...

Portalegre District Portalegre District ( ) is located in the east of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Portalegre. As of 2021, it is the least populous district of Portugal. It borders Spain. Municipalities The district is composed of 15 municipalit ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. This range is named after

Saint Mammes Saint Mammes of Caesarea (Mamas, Mammas, Mammet, Mema; ; ; ; ; ) was a child-martyr of the 3rd century, who was martyred at Caesarea. His parents, Theodotus and Rufina, were also martyred. Life Born in prison to parents who had been jailed ...

. Together with the Serra de Arraiolos, the Serra de São Mamede is one of the few places in the Alentejo region where there might be snow in the winter. This mountain range separates the

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

of the

Tagus The Tagus ( ; ; ) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales between Cuenca and Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally westward, and empties into the Atlantic Ocean in Lisbon. Name T ...

to the north from the basin of the

Guadiana The Guadiana River ( , , , ) is an international river defining a long stretch of the Portugal-Spain border, separating Extremadura and Andalusia (Spain) from Alentejo and Algarve (Portugal). The river's basin extends from la Mancha and the e ...

to the south. The main rivers that have their sources in this range are the Sever and

Nisa NISA may refer to: * National Independent Soccer Association, a third tier United States soccer league * National Intelligence and Security Agency of Somalia * Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, part of the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade a ...

, flowing towards the Tagus, as well as the Caia River and its tributary, the

Arronches Arronches () is a municipality in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 3,165, in an area of 314.65 km2. The municipality is located by the Serra de São Mamede in Portalegre District. The present Mayor is Fermelinda Carvalho ( PSD) and the ...

, flowing towards the

. The town of

Marvão Marvão (), officially the Very Noble and Ever Loyal Town of Marvão (), is a municipality in Portalegre District in Portugal. The population in 2020 was 2,972 (and dropping at a rate of around one inhabitant per week), in an area of 154.90 ...

is an ancient fortified town located on a ridge of the range. Its emblematic castle is an archetype of medieval castle-building. It dates back to the times of the ''

Reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

'', the reconquest of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

from the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

. Besides Marvão, Portalegre,

Castelo de Vide Castelo de Vide () is a municipality in Portugal, with a population of 3,407 inhabitants in 2011, in an area of . History It is unclear when humans settled Castelo de Vide, although archaeologists suggest the decision came from the morphology of ...

and

Alegrete Alegrete () is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in Rio Grande do Sul located in southern Brazil. Its medium altitude is . Its estimated population in 2020 was 73,028 inhabitants and the total area is (the largest Municipalities of Braz ...

are other important towns in the area of the range.

Description

The Serra de São Mamede stretches for about 25 km in a NE/SW direction between

and La Rabaza,

Cáceres Province Cáceres is a Spanish surname and placename and may refer to: * Province of Cáceres, in Spain ** Cáceres (Spanish Congress Electoral District), which covers the province * Cáceres, Spain, the capital of Cáceres Province, not a bishopric * Cáce ...

Extremadura Extremadura ( ; ; ; ; Fala language, Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is a landlocked autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, Spain, Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central- ...

, at the border with

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. It rises in the area of the Alto Alentejo to the west of the parallel Sierra de San Pedro across the border and is relatively lower than the latter. Its highest point is high

Pico de São Mamede Pico may refer to: Places The Moon * Mons Pico, a lunar mountain in the northern part of the Mare Imbrium basin Portugal * Pico, a civil parish in the municipality of Vila Verde * Pico da Pedra, a civil parish in the municipality of Ribei ...

, the highest summit in Continental Portugal south of the

. Other important peaks are ''Fria'', ''Pico de Marvão'' and the ''Penha da Castelo de Vide''.

Physiographic Physical geography (also known as physiography) is one of the three main branches of geography. Physical geography is the branch of natural science which deals with the processes and patterns in the natural environment such as the atmosphere, h ...

ally this range is part of the western end of the greater

Montes de Toledo The Montes de Toledo is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in the Iberian Peninsula. They divide the drainage basin of the Tagus from the basin of the Guadiana. The highest peak is La Villuerca, which is high. Description The Montes de ...

, one of the main mountain systems of the

. The climate of the range is between the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

and the

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

Shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally o ...

and trees such as

cork oak ''Quercus suber'', commonly called the cork oak, is a medium-sized, evergreen oak tree in the section Quercus sect. Cerris, ''Quercus'' sect. ''Cerris''. It is the primary source of cork (material), cork for wine bottle stoppers and other uses, ...

and

Pyrenean oak ''Quercus pyrenaica'', also known as Pyrenean oak, or Spanish oak is a tree native to southwestern Europe and northwestern North Africa. Despite its common name, it is rarely found in the Pyrenees Mountains and is more abundant in northern Portu ...

are prevalent in the areas covered with natural vegetation. Some of the higher altitudes have rocky outcrops where shrub grows between the crags. Holm oak is found on

xeric Deserts and xeric shrublands are a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Deserts and xeric (Ancient Greek 'dry') shrublands form the largest terrestrial biome, covering 19% of Earth's land surface area. Ecoregions in this habita ...

sites and

Sweet chestnut The sweet chestnut (''Castanea sativa''), also known as the Spanish chestnut or European chestnut, is a species of tree in the family Fagaceae, native to Southern Europe and Asia Minor, and widely cultivated throughout the temperate world. A ...

grows at higher elevations. On the lower slopes there are large areas of

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

and

maritime pine ''Pinus pinaster'', the maritime pine or cluster pine, is a pine native to the south Atlantic Europe region and parts of the western Mediterranean. It is a hard, fast growing pine bearing small seeds with large wings. Description ''Pinus pinast ...

, as well as scattered patches planted with non-native species such as

eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are trees, often Mallee (habit), mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalyp ...

. The

Serra de São Mamede Natural Park Serra (Latin for "saw") may refer to: People and fictional characters * Serra (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Serra (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Serra (footballer), Portuguese footballer Jos� ...

is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

located within the limits of the range. The park features one of the largest

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

colonies in Europe. The

griffon vulture The Eurasian griffon vulture (''Gyps fulvus'') is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. It is also known as the griffon vulture, although this term is sometimes used for the genus as a whole. It is not to be confuse ...

and

Bonelli's eagle Bonelli's eagle (''Aquila fasciata'') is a large bird of prey. The common name of the bird commemorates the Italian ornithologist and collector Franco Andrea Bonelli. Bonelli is credited with gathering the type specimen, most likely from an expl ...

are also found in the range.

Geology

Quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tecton ...

and Dolomite are predominant, especially in the higher levels of the range.

Granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

is present in the southwestern area of the mountains between Portalegre and Fortios.Serra de São Mamede - Geologia

References

External links

*
Sierra de Montánchez - Tourism

Hiking in the Serra de São Mamede

As Águas Subterrâneas da Serra de São MamedeSerra de São Mamede - Portalegre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Serra de Sao Mamede Mountain ranges of Portugal Geography of Portalegre District Montes de Toledo Natura 2000 in Portugal

Description

Geology

See also

References

External links