The Tatacoa Desert is the second largest arid zone in Colombia after the Guajira Peninsula. It occupies more than 330 square kilometers. This region is located north of Huila Department, 38 km from the city of Neiva and 15 km (9 mi) from Natagaima in Tolima. It is renowned as a rich deposit of fossils and a tourist destination. The Tatacoa Desert has two distinctive colors: ochre in the area of Cuzco and gray in the Los Hoyos area.
The Tatacoa, or the Valley of Sorrows, as it was called in 1538 by the conquistadorGonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, is not a barren desert but rather a tropical dry forest. The name "Tatacoa", also given by the Spanish, refers to its rattlesnakes. During the Tertiary Period, it was wetter, with thousands of flowers and trees, but has been gradually drying up to become an arid zone.
The Tatacoa covers 330 square kilometers around the town of Villavieja. The area is heavily eroded and crossed by dry canyons that develop transiently in the winter months. These shapes are created on clay surfaces, creating labyrinthine gullies in the landscape that can reach 20 meters deep.
Fauna and floraedit
There is relatively little runoff, and animal and plant life is adapted to the conditions of low humidity and high temperatures. The plants in this area are adapted to climatic conditions through the development of horizontal roots of up to 30 meters and vertical roots up to 15 meters deep that facilitate access to water. Wildlife includes turtles, rodents, snakes, spiders, scorpions, eagles, alligators and wildcats, and cacti reaching between four and five meters high.[citation needed]
Tatacoa Desert
Tourismedit
In addition to its geography, its atmospheric conditions are ideal for astronomy. Tatacoa has little pollution or noise, attracting tourists who stay there to enjoy the scenery and tranquility.[1]
Referencesedit
^Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Tatacoa Desert - UNESCO World Heritage Centre". whc.unesco.org. Retrieved 2018-05-09.
Desert Tatacoa article in Wikipedia in Spanish.
External linksedit
Desert Tatacoa: Official tourism site (in Spanish)
Tatacoa Desert: an astronomical observatory (in Spanish)
Photos
Tatacoa Desert: An Amazing Natural Destination (English)
tatacoa, desert, second, largest, arid, zone, colombia, after, guajira, peninsula, occupies, more, than, square, kilometers, this, region, located, north, huila, department, from, city, neiva, from, natagaima, tolima, renowned, rich, deposit, fossils, tourist,. The Tatacoa Desert is the second largest arid zone in Colombia after the Guajira Peninsula It occupies more than 330 square kilometers This region is located north of Huila Department 38 km from the city of Neiva and 15 km 9 mi from Natagaima in Tolima It is renowned as a rich deposit of fossils and a tourist destination The Tatacoa Desert has two distinctive colors ochre in the area of Cuzco and gray in the Los Hoyos area Tatacoa DesertGeographyCountryColombiaDistrictHuilaCoordinates3 14 N 75 10 W 3 23 N 75 17 W 3 23 75 17 The Tatacoa or the Valley of Sorrows as it was called in 1538 by the conquistador Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada is not a barren desert but rather a tropical dry forest The name Tatacoa also given by the Spanish refers to its rattlesnakes During the Tertiary Period it was wetter with thousands of flowers and trees but has been gradually drying up to become an arid zone Contents 1 Geography 1 1 Fauna and flora 2 Tourism 3 References 4 External linksGeography edit nbsp A cactus in the desert The Tatacoa covers 330 square kilometers around the town of Villavieja The area is heavily eroded and crossed by dry canyons that develop transiently in the winter months These shapes are created on clay surfaces creating labyrinthine gullies in the landscape that can reach 20 meters deep Fauna and flora edit There is relatively little runoff and animal and plant life is adapted to the conditions of low humidity and high temperatures The plants in this area are adapted to climatic conditions through the development of horizontal roots of up to 30 meters and vertical roots up to 15 meters deep that facilitate access to water Wildlife includes turtles rodents snakes spiders scorpions eagles alligators and wildcats and cacti reaching between four and five meters high citation needed nbsp Tatacoa DesertTourism editIn addition to its geography its atmospheric conditions are ideal for astronomy Tatacoa has little pollution or noise attracting tourists who stay there to enjoy the scenery and tranquility 1 References edit Centre UNESCO World Heritage Tatacoa Desert UNESCO World Heritage Centre whc unesco org Retrieved 2018 05 09 Desert Tatacoa article in Wikipedia in Spanish External links editDesert Tatacoa Official tourism site in Spanish Tatacoa Desert an astronomical observatory in Spanish Photos Tatacoa Desert An Amazing Natural Destination English Backpacking In The Tatacoa Desert in Spanish 3 14 02 N 75 10 17 W 3 23389 N 75 17139 W 3 23389 75 17139 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Tatacoa Desert amp oldid 1170439662, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
