Ajo Mountains
The Ajo Mountains are up to 1466 m (Mount Ajo) high mountain range in the Sonoran Desert in the south of the US state Arizona . The name is derived from the city of Ajo, northwest of the mountain range, and is derived from the name Tui Aja De Mu Vari by the Tohono O'Odham . Members of this tribe have been crossing the mountain range in search of food for ages. Like the Bates Mountains adjoining to the west, they are clods of tertiary basalts tilted against each other . Their erosion rubble forms the slope foot areas (Spanish: Bajada), the valleys and plains. The steep western slope of the Ajo Mountains lies within the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument . The mountain ridge stretches for a length of about 35 km from north-northwest to south-southeast.
vegetation
The rocky slopes of the Ajo Mountains are characterized by evergreen bushes of jojoba bushes ( Simmondsia chinensis ) and willow-leaved Mexican jumper beans ( Sapium biloculare ), as well as various agaves . The solitary juniper ( Juniperus monosperma ) occurs as a relic of the pluvial age on the highest mountain ridges . The ajo oak ( Quercus ajoensis ), an endemic species of the Ajo Mountains, has developed in remote, humid canyons . The middle and upper slope areas of the Bajadas have a high proportion of coarse debris and are the locations of the Palo Verde cactus bushes, the most species-rich community in the North American deserts. Palo Verde ( Cercidium microphyllum ) is the dominant tree species there. It is accompanied by desert ironwood ( Olneya tesota ) and mesquite ( Prosopis velutina ). All three woody plants belong to the butterfly family (Fabaceae) and, through symbiosis with soil bacteria, are able to bind and collect atmospheric nitrogen and release it to the soil after they die. The bayadas of the Ajo Mountains are rich in cacti. The saguaro cactus ( Carnegia gigantea ), which grows several meters high and whose seeds germinate in the shade of the bushes, are common. In the root area of the woody plants, the nutrient concentrations are increased and the growing conditions for cacti are better.
Wildlife
The ridges of the Ajo Mountains are the habitat of the bighorn sheep.
Development
The Ajo Mountains are accessible to visitors by a 34 km long drivable circular route (Ajo Mountain Drive). From a rest stop in the middle of the trail, trails lead into Estes Canyon and up the mountains.