Sierra de los Tuxtlas
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The Sierra de los Tuxtlas (Tuxtla Mountains) are a range of volcanic mountains lining the southeastern Veracruz Gulf coast in southcentral Mexico.
Peaks in this range include Volcano Santa Marta and Volcano San Martín, both rising above 1700 meters. San Martín is the only recently-active volcano in the range, erupting in 1664 and again in May 1793. It is a broad alkaline shield volcano with a one kilometer wide summit. Hundreds of smaller cinder cones are prevalent throughout the Sierra.
Other, extinct volcanoes include San Martin Pajapan (1,160 meters) and Cerro El Vigia (800 meters).
The Sierra de Los Tuxtlas volcanoes are an insular anomaly. The volcanoes are separated from the nearest volcano in the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt to the west by about 150 miles (250 km), and from the Central American Volcanic Belt to the southeast by almost 200 miles (330 km).
[edit] Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve
The upper flanks of the San Martin and Santa Marta volcanoes are covered with a neotropical rainforest, while the lower portions are covered with stunted pastures. Much of the Sierra de los Tuxtlas are in the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve.
