Landa de Matamoros - Environment

Environment

The municipality is part of the Sierra Gorda region, which is centered on northern Querétaro state. This region is a branch of the Sierra Madre Oriental, consisting of mountain chains that parallel the Gulf of Mexico. This land was sea bed 100 million years ago, which formed ancient sedimentary rock, mostly limestone, which easily erodes. This makes the area part of the Huasteca Karst. Landa de Matamoros is completely within the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve of Querétaro, which was established in 1997. Of the biosphere's nucleus, 1,250 hectares are within the municipality. Over eighty five percent of the territory is mountainous and rugged with inclines of over 25%. These are mostly found in the south, southeast and northeast. Main elevations include Cerro de Tejocote (2720 masl), La Cebadilla (2560 masl), Cerro Grande de San Juan (1580 masl), Piedra Encimada (1620 masl), La Barca (1380 masl) and Los Orujos (1260 masl). There are a limited number of small valleys, including Plan de Hongos, Tilaco, Tres Lagunas, Valle de Guadalupe and Acatitlán de Zaragoza. These areas are mostly covered by forests. Semi flat areas are those with gradients under 25%, with accounts for about 3.5% of the territory. Much of this area is either forested or arid. Flat lands with gradients of less than 5% correspond to about 11.2% of the municipality. This is where most agriculture takes place, mostly during the rainy season. Most of the flatter areas of the municipality have rich sedimentary deposits of topsoil over a bed of limestone, which was former seabed. The limestone and other sedimentary rock erode fairly easily, which has led to the formation of caverns and pit caves (locally called "sótanos") dispersed throughout the municipality. The pit caves generally run from 400 to 600 meters in depth. Many have straight drops of between 50 and 100 meters, and end with a flat bottom with vegetation and wildlife. The largest is the Tilaco pit cave, 649 meters deep.

The territory is a part of the Pánuco River basin. In the north the main rivers are the San Juan and the Tangojo, which the Tancuilín is the most important within the south. The Moctezuma River runs along the municipality's border with Hidalgo. Other flowing water includes the Río Verdito and a number of fresh water springs and arroyos, most of which run only during the rainy season. As most residents of the municipality do not have potable water piped to their homes, there are large water storage facilities in Encino Solo, Landa, Tres Lagunas, Otates, Santa Inés, Malpaís and Acatitlán de Zaragoza from which trucks deliver water to home storage facilities. Many homes also have their own systems to catch rainfall and runoff during the rainy season.

Most of the municipality is covered in various types of mostly deciduous forest, with leaves fully or partially fall during the dry season and the very cold weeks in December and January. Forests of pine, red and white cedar and sweetgum are prominent in the higher elevations. In the hot and dry areas, various cactus and other arid area plants such as cats claw, biznaga cactus, maguey, organ cactus, and nopals can be found. Landa has one of the few mesophile forests in the state of Queretaro, which is mostly found in steep canyon areas between 800 and 2000 masl. Between 600 and 800 meters, the mesophile forest blends with tropical rainforest such as in the bottom of the Tancuilin Canyon. A study of flora in the municipality counted 774 species of vascular plants, with the most diversity found in old growth areas where the thick tree canopy traps moisture. These areas have trees that measure thirty to forty meters in height. Most of the plant species are classified as herbs, followed by bushes, then trees, reeds, epiphyte and parasitic plants. Ninety one percent are classified as tropical vegetation. The variety of species here represents about 25% of the plant diversity in Mexico. A recently discovered species, named Physalis queretaroensis, is a rare plant restricted to the municipality. It is related to P. volubilis, which is restricted to Jalisco and Michoacán, but differs in form and insertion of the leaves and vestiture. It is an herb that grows about seventy cm in height in the forest areas of oak, pine and mesophile forests in altitudes between 1700 and 1850 masl.

However, much of the forest is fragmented and highly disturbed. The best-conserved areas are in the canyons and steep inclines that are hard to access, such as the Tancuilín Canyon around Neblinas and El Humo. Another area with is well preserved are the highest elevations of the mountains including the area around La Joya del Hielo, La Florida and La Yesca up to Puerto Hondo. In other areas, forests are broken up with patches of farmland or pasture. Despite being in the biosphere reserve, destruction of the environment still proceeds, even in areas considered to be nuclei such as La Joya del Hielo and Llano Chiquito. Landa de Matamoros, along with Arroyo Seco, have begun controlled pasturing using electric fences, which also allows forage plants to recover. They are also developing hydroponic forage, which is grown in water, without soil.

This mesophile forest is found in the wettest part of the Sierra Gorda, where the moisture can reach the east facing slopes. Most of the area is classed as moist and semi hot. (A) C (fm) by the Koppen classification, or moist and semi hot, with most rain falling in the summer rainy season but rain and fog can be found at other times too, especially in the highest elevations. The average annual rainfall is 920mm although this has varied significantly in recent years. Temperatures vary widely depending on altitude. The high mountains areas are the coldest, experiencing freezing temperatures regularly, with the lower flatter lands having more tropical or arid land characteristics. The average annual temperature is 22C, with May as the hottest month, with temperatures rising as high as 43C. In January, there can be temperatures as low as -2C. In the 2000s, areas of the state have experienced hard freezes on several occasions, with temperatures as low as -10C. These freezing temperatures are due to cold fronts coming from the north and west. These usually only produce fog and light rain, with stronger ones causing freezing temperatures. Freezing temperatures have caused emergency conditions requiring interventions by civil authorities and have also led to loss of pasture for cattle. During the rainy season, large storms can cause severe flooding along rivers such as the Moctezuma and Tancuilín. In 2010, flooding damaged crops in El Naranjo and El Lobo, with dozens of hecatares of corn damaged. The rugged geography makes roads vulnerable to landslides, with rocks up to 1.5 tons falling onto Highway 120. Recent years of drought have stressed the trees of the area and have made them vulnerable to insects. Wildlife includes pumas, bobcats, coyotes, foxes, armadillos, badgers, rabbits, white-tailed deer, squirrels, roadrunners, various lizards, and a wide variety of birds including macaws and parrots.

The varied terrain has made for a number of natural attractions. The community of Río Verdito has a waterfall located above the El Lobo-Agua Zarca road. The location has various natural pools of water and places to camp. The Tancuilín River has canyons. The community of Tangojo on the Moctezuma River is noted for the fishing of tilapia, carp and river shrimp called acamaya. There are also facilities for kayaking and rappelling. The Santa Martha rest stop is on the Landa de Matamoros Xilitla highway at KM 230.5. It is a forested area with pines and cedars. The area has picnic tables. La Joya del Hielo occupies a small depression high in the mountains. This makes its vegetation unique, especially with the abundant presence of magnolia trees. It is considered to be one of the nucleus areas of the biosphere reserve.