Altiplano Cundiboyacense | |
|---|---|
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| Coordinates:5°25′08″N73°25′17″W / 5.41889°N 73.42139°W /5.41889; -73.42139 | |
| Location | Bogotá,Cundinamarca &Boyacá Colombia |
| Range | Andes |
| Part of | Eastern Ranges |
| Offshore water bodies | Water bodies |
| Age | Miocene-recent |
| Orogeny | Andean |
| Geology | Geology |
| Area | |
| • Total | 25,000 km2 (9,700 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 2,600 m (8,500 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 4,000 m (13,000 ft) |
| Volcanic field | Paipa-Iza volcanic complex |
| Last eruption | Late Pliocene |
TheAltiplano Cundiboyacense (Spanish pronunciation:[altiˈplanokundiβoʝaˈsense]) is a high plateau located in theEastern Cordillera of theColombianAndes covering parts of the departments ofCundinamarca andBoyacá. The altiplano corresponds to the ancient territory of theMuisca. The Altiplano Cundiboyacense comprises three distinctive flat regions; theBogotá savanna, the valleys ofUbaté andChiquinquirá, and the valleys ofDuitama andSogamoso. The average altitude of the altiplano is about 2,600 metres (8,500 ft) above sea level but ranges from roughly 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft).
Altiplano inSpanish means "high plain" or "high plateau", the second part is a combination of thedepartmentsCundinamarca andBoyacá.
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The limits of the Altiplano are not strictly defined. The high plateau is enclosed by the higher mountains of the Eastern Ranges, with theSumapaz mountains in the south andChingaza to the east. TheTenza Valley is located to the east of the Altiplano and theOcetá Páramo andChicamocha Canyon are situated to the northeast.
The Altiplano is subdivided into three major valleys, from northeast to southwest:
The average temperature on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense is 14 °C (57 °F), ranging from 0 °C (32 °F) to 24 °C (75 °F). The driest months of the year are from December to March, while rain is more common in April, May, September, October and November. From June to August strong winds are present.Hail is common on the Altiplano.[1]
The Altiplano Cundiboyacense is surrounded by and contains various Andean unique ecosystems;páramos. 60% of all páramos in the world are situated in Colombia. (Specifically, in the department of Boyacá with the most relative area of páramos).[2] Boyacá is the department where 18.3% of the national total area is located.[3] To the south theSumapaz Páramo (largest in the world) forms a natural boundary of the Altiplano. Chingaza contains páramo vegetation, as does the most beautifulOcetá Páramo in the northeast.[4] On the Altiplano the microclimate of the surroundings ofLake Iguaque produces a páramo.
Regional geology
The Altiplano Cundiboyacense is formed as part of the uplift of theEastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes since Neogene times. Hydrothermal activity in fractures of the forming Andean chain left its trace in the form of the manyemeralds found in the western and eastern parts of the Altiplano. From the Early Cretaceous until the Eocene, the region of the present-day Altiplano was dominated by a marine environment, as part of the long inland sea of northern South America. In these warm tropical seas a fauna ofichthyosaurs andpliosaurs developed, with important finds (Kronosaurus boyacensis (El Fósil),Muiscasaurus, with four nostrils) in thePaja Formation ofVilla de Leyva.[5] During the Late Eocene-Early Oligocene (35-30 Mya) epochs, South America became detached from its longest connected former member ofPangea;Antarctica. The isolation of the South American paleocontinent led to a large biodiversity of New World species.
The dominating group of top predators and scavengers for decades of millions of years on the continent were theterror birds. Fossils of terror birds have been found throughout South America, with a major collection from currentArgentina, where the biggest terror bird,Kelenken, roamed the paleopampas in the early Miocene. The forming Andes created a hilly landscape in the regions bordering the former sea inlet from the proto-Caribbean. Other land animals in the Tertiary were thexenungulateEtayoa bacatensis, evidence for which has been found in 1987 in theBogotá Formation of the southern Altiplano.
The biodiversity and former tranquility of the isolated ecosystem changed during the Pliocene, when thePanama Block emerged from the seas and formed a transferable connection with formerly isolated North America. ThisGreat American Biotic Interchange led to a drastic rearrangement of South American fauna. Migrating species from North America replaced many formerly successful South American animals, among which the terror birds.[6]
The Late Pleistocene of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense has been analysed in detail through various methods based on fossils found on the Altiplano.Pleistocene megafauna inhabited theglacial highlands of the eastern Andean chain. The climate in the glacials and stadials led to the formation of various prehistoric lakes in the valleys of the Altiplano. The Ubaté-Chiquinquirá Valley in the northwest of the Altiplano was covered with a lake, of which the currentLake Fúquene is a retreating remainder. To the extreme northeast, inSoatá, another Pleistocene lake was present. The largest paleolake in the latest Pleistocene wasLake Humboldt or Lake Bogotá covering theBogotá savanna. The lake, some 4,000 square kilometres (1,500 sq mi) in size, at that time would have been seventy times larger than the biggest lake of Colombia; present-dayLake Tota. Lake Tota is the remnant of a Pleistocene glacial lake higher up the Altiplano to the east. Lake Humboldt is thought to have existed until around 30,000 years ago with as modern remaining water bodiesLake Herrera,wetlands of Bogotá and theBogotá River. Lake Humboldt had an irregular shoreline with an island in the centre; the present-daySuba Hills.
The Altiplano Cundiboyacense is regarded one of eleven archaeological regions of Colombia.[7] The earliest evidence of human occupation in the region has been found inPubenza, to the west of the Altiplano, dating to 16,000 yearsBP. On the Altiplano, the oldest findings are dated at 12,400 ± 160 years inEl Abra.[8] Slightly younger occurrences of settlement byhunter-gatherers have been discovered atTibitó, with an estimated age of 11,740 +/- 110 years BP andTequendama dated at 10,920 ± 260 years BP.[8] In the earliest ages of human population prehistoric animals as theCuvieronius,Haplomastodon andEquus amerhippus were living on the Altiplano.[9]
Later dated excavations have revealed a transition from a hunter-gatherer society living inrock shelters to open area settlements withChecua andAguazuque as examples. Variousburial sites at Checua have been dated between 8200 and 7800 years BP.[10] During the earliest phases, the first humans lived together with Pleistocene now extinctmastodons, as the fossil remains ofHaplomastodon waringi,Neochoerus andOdocoileus inSoatá indicate.[11]
The main part of the diet of the people was formed bywhite-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Other mammals includedlittle red brocket (Mazama rufina),guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus),nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus),white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari),crab-eating fox (Dusicyon thous),spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus),ocelot (Felis pardalis),puma (Felis concolor),lowland paca (Agouti paca),Agouti taczamawskii,Dasyprocta,ring-tailed coati (Nasua nasua), western mountain coati (Nasuella olivacea),common opossum (Didelphis marsupialis) andcollared anteater (Tamandua tetradactyla).[12]
Various archaeological sites withpetroglyphs orpictographs have been discovered on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, among others inBojacá,Bogotá,Chía,Usme,Cogua,Cota,Facatativá,Nemocón,Madrid,Mosquera,Sáchica,Sibaté,Soacha,Subachoque,Suesca,Sutatausa,Tenjo,Tocancipá,Zipacón,Zipaquirá.[13][14]
The ages between 3000 and 1000 years before present corresponds to theHerrera Period, and the era between 1000 BP and 1537, the year of theSpanish conquest, to theMuisca Confederation.[8]
TheMuisca were the inhabitants of the centralAndean highlands ofColombia before the arrival of the Spanishconquistadors. They were organised in a looseconfederation of differentrulers; thezipa ofBacatá, with his headquarters inFunza, thezaque ofHunza, theiraca of the sacred City of the SunSugamuxi, theTundama ofTundama, and several independentcaciques. The leaders of the Confederation at the time of conquest werezipaTisquesusa,zaqueQuemuenchatocha,iracaSugamuxi andTundama in the northernmost portion of their territories. The Muisca were organised in small communities of circular enclosures (ca in their languageMuysccubbun; literally "language of the people"), with a central square where thebohío of thecacique was located. They were called "Salt People" because of their extraction ofsalt in various locations throughout their territories, mainly inZipaquirá,Nemocón andTausa. For the main part self-sufficient in their well-organisedeconomy, the Muisca traded with the European conquistadors valuable products asgold,tumbaga (acopper-silver-gold alloy) andemeralds with their neighbouringindigenous groups. In theTenza Valley, to the east of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense where the majority of the Muisca lived, they extracted emeralds inChivor andSomondoco.
The economy of the Muisca was rooted in theiragriculture with main productsmaize,yuca,potatoes and various other cultivations elaborated on elevated fields (in their language calledtá). Agriculture had started around 3000 BCE on the Altiplano. The agriculture of the Muisca was performed on small-scale cropfields, part of more extensive lands, and in a rather egalitarian manner; the highersocial classes did not have access to more agricultural products than the lower class Muisca people.[15] Their main difference was in the construction of their houses and access to meat.
The predominant agricultural product of the Muisca wasmaize and they hadnumerous words in their language,Muysccubun for the plant, kernels and processing of it.[16] Evidence for maize cultivation predates the Muisca; already in the Herrera Period maize cultivation has been identified based onpollen analysis.[17] Thecacicazgos wereself-sufficient in their agricultural products and surpluses of maize (abitago) were traded for more tropical climate fruits such aspineapples,avocados andIpomea batatas.[18][19] The Muisca used terraces for their agriculture on the often flooded highlands and a system ofirrigation anddrainage was developed.[20] They cultivated their crops in rows of mounds.[21][22]
A delegation of more than 900 men left the tropical city of Santa Marta in April 1536 and went on a harsh expedition through the heartlands of Colombia in search ofEl Dorado and the civilisation that produced all that precious gold. The leader of the first and main expedition underSpanish flag wasGonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, with his brotherHernán second in command.[23] Several other soldiers were participating in the journey, who would later becomeencomenderos and take part in the conquest of other parts of Colombia. Other contemporaneous expeditions into the unknown interior of the Andes, all searching for the mythical land of gold, were starting from laterVenezuela, led byBavarian and other German conquistadors and from the south, starting in the previously foundedKingdom of Quito in what is nowEcuador.[23]
The conquest of the Muisca on the Altiplano started in March 1537, when the greatly reduced troops of De Quesada entered Muisca territories inChipatá, the first settlement they founded on March 8. The expedition went further inland and up the slopes of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense into laterBoyacá andCundinamarca. The towns ofMoniquirá (Boyacá) andGuachetá andLenguazaque (Cundinamarca) were founded before the conquistadors arrived at the northern edge of theBogotá savanna inSuesca.[24] continued toLenguazaque that was founded the next day,[25][26] En route towards the domain ofzipaTisquesusa, the Spanish foundedCajicá andChía.[27][28] In April 1537 they arrived atFunza, where Tisquesusa was beaten by the Spanish. This formed the onset for further expeditions, starting a month later towards the easternTenza Valley and the northern territories ofzaqueQuemuenchatocha. On August 20, 1537, thezaque was submitted in hisbohío inHunza. The Spanish continued their journey northeastward into theIraca Valley, where theiracaSugamuxi fell to the Spanish troops and theSun Temple was accidentally burned by two soldiers of the army of De Quesada in early September.[23]
Meanwhile, other soldiers from the conquest expedition went south and conqueredPasca and other settlements. The Spanish leader returned with his men to the Bogotá savanna and planned new conquest expeditions executed in the second half of 1537 and first months of 1538. On August 6, 1538, Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada foundedBogotá as the capital of theNew Kingdom of Granada, named after his home region ofGranada, Spain. That same month, on August 20, thezipa who succeeded his brother Tisquesusa upon his death;Sagipa, allied with the Spanish to fight thePanche, eternal enemies of the Muisca in the southwest. In the Battle of Tocarema, the allied forces claimed victory over the bellicose western neighbours. In late 1538, other conquest undertakings resulted in more founded settlements in the heart of the Andes. Two other expeditions that were taking place at the same time; of De Belalcázar from the south and Federmann from the east, reached the newly founded capital and the three leaders embarked in May 1539 on a ship on the Magdalena River that took them to Cartagena and from there back to Spain. Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada had installed his younger brother Hernán as new governor of Bogotá and the latter organised new conquest campaigns in search ofEl Dorado during the second half of 1539 and 1540. His captain Gonzalo Suárez Rendón foundedTunja on August 6, 1539, and captainBaltasar Maldonado, who had served under De Belalcázar, defeated thecacique ofTundama at the end of 1539. The lastzaqueAquiminzaque was decapitated in early 1540, establishing the new rule over the formerMuisca Confederation.[23]
Present-day, due to the large population andagriculture of the Altiplano, the original vegetation is at risk.[29]
| Timeline of inhabitation of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia | |
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Most important city of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense is the Colombian capitalBogotá. Other cities are, from northeast to southwest:
The Altiplano Cundiboyacense hosts a number of rivers and lakes.
| Latin America | Valley of Mexico | Altiplano Cundiboyacense | Altiplano Boliviano |
|---|---|---|---|
.svg)  M C B |  | |  |
| Paleolake | Lake Texcoco | Lake Humboldt | Lake Tauca |
| Human occupation (yr BP) | 11,100 –Tocuila | 12,560 –El Abra | 3530 –Tiwanaku |
| Pre-Columbian civilisation | Aztec | Muisca | Inca |
| Today |  Mexico City | Bogotá, Tunja |  Lake Titicaca Salar de Uyuni |
| Elevation | 2,236 m (7,336 ft) | 2,780 m (9,120 ft) | 3,800 m (12,500 ft) |
| Area | 9,738 km2 (3,760 sq mi) | 25,000 km2 (9,700 sq mi) | 175,773 km2 (67,866 sq mi) |
| References |
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