Kaibab Plateau

Last updated

Kaibab Plateau
Buckskin Mountain, Buckskin Plateau, Kaibab Mountain
Kaibab Plateau 2006-04-30 MODIS 250m.jpg
Kaibab Plateau viewed from space, April 2006
Highest point
Elevation 8,701 ft (2,652 m) [1]
Prominence 3,580 ft (1,090 m) [2]
Isolation 70.44 mi (113.36 km) [3]
Listing List of mountain peaks of Arizona
Coordinates 36°7′36″N112°0′32″W / 36.12667°N 112.00889°W / 36.12667; -112.00889 [1]
Naming
Etymology Southern Paiute word meaning "mountain lying down"
Geography
USA Arizona relief location map.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Kaibab_Plateau
Location in of the Kaibab Plateau
Usa edcp relief location map.png
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Kaibab_Plateau
Kaibab_Plateau (the United States)
Location Coconino County, Arizona and Kane County, Utah in the United States

The Kaibab Plateau is a plateau almost entirely in Coconino County, Arizona (but extending slightly north into Kane County, Utah) in the Southwestern United States. [4] The high plain is also known as the Buckskin Mountain, Buckskin Plateau, and Kaibab Mountain. [1]

Contents

Description

View of the Vermillion Cliffs (to the northeast) from the Kaibab Plateau, June 2008 Kaibab Plateau 100 2838 0225 edited-1.jpg
View of the Vermillion Cliffs (to the northeast) from the Kaibab Plateau, June 2008

The plateau, part of the larger Colorado Plateau, is bordered on the south by the Grand Canyon and reaches an elevation of 9,200 feet (2,800 m). The plateau is divided between Kaibab National Forest and the "North Rim" portion of Grand Canyon National Park. Tributary canyons of the Colorado River form the plateau's eastern and western boundaries, and tiers of uplifted cliffs define the northern edges of the landform. Winter snowfall is often heavy (sometimes exceeding 17 feet [5.2 m]), and this creates opportunities for backcountry Nordic skiing and snow camping. [5]

This broad feature is heavily forested with aspen, spruce-fir, ponderosa pine, and pinyon-juniper woodland, and stands in sharp contrast to the arid lowlands encircling it. The cool forests of the plateau are home to the Kaibab squirrel, which is endemic to the region. Other fauna includes deer, turkey, cougar, and bobcat. The Kaibab deer are particularly important because of the changes in their population during the early 1900s. This particular fluctuation is a great example of population engineering and the effects humans can have on nature.

Physiography

The Kaibab Plateau consists of approximately 1,152 square miles (2,980 km2) which are above 6,000 feet (1,800 m). The highest point has an elevation of 9,200 feet (2,800 m), [2] [6] a topographic prominence of 3,580 feet (1,090 m), [2] and a topographic isolation of 70.44 miles (113.36 km). [3] The plateau is bounded on the south by the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, the elevation in this southern area of the plateau varies from 8,800 feet (2,700 m) to slightly less than 6,000 feet (1,800 m).

The most extensive platform of the plateau is the Esplanade, which is called "Sand Rocks" by local cowboys. This area was formed as a result from weathering of the Hermit shale, which left a hard layer of Permian sandstone exposed. This red sandstone is one of the outstanding features of the plateau.

The plateau's western boundary is the Kanab Creek Canyon which high perpendicular walls form a natural barrier to the movement of most animals. The northwestern boundary of the plateau is marked by a fault line north of the Snake Gulch which is approximately sixteen miles to the east of the Kanab Creek. The eastern boundary is marked by the so-called Houserock Valley, which is a marble platform caused by a monoclinical fold, which strata dips down 2,000 to 3,000 feet. [7]

Climate

The climate of the Kaibab Plateau consists of rain and thunderstorms in late summer during the summer monsoon season, snow, heavy at times, in winter, and drier weather in early summer. There was an average annual precipitation of 26.57 inches (67.5 cm) for the period 1925 to 1936. During winter, snow is heavy and often accumulates at a depth of 8–10 feet (2.4–3.0 m). June is the driest month of the year, followed by May and early July.

Storms occur several times each week until early September. The highest portions of the plateau are usually touched by snow, and snowstorms usually occur between May and September. [7]

Kaibab deer

Kaibab deer from the DOCUMERICA series, a program sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency to photograph subjects of American environmental concern during the 1970s, May 1972 image DEER IN KAIBAB NATIONAL FOREST, NEAR THE NORTH RIM OF GRAND CANYON - NARA - 544114.tif
Kaibab deer from the DOCUMERICA series, a program sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency to photograph subjects of American environmental concern during the 1970s, May 1972 image

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Kaibab Plateau was witness to an interesting experiment in what some might call population engineering. The plateau's pre-1905 population of mule deer was estimated to be around 4,000. This number was never confirmed by any kind of count or survey, and has become an accepted number mainly because no other estimate is available. The average carrying capacity of the land was unknown, in part because this concept was not widely used by naturalists at the time. Years later, Aldo Leopold estimated that the capacity had been about 30,000 deer.[ citation needed ]

The idea in 1906 was simply to protect and expand the herd, so on November 28, President Theodore Roosevelt created the Grand Canyon National Game Preserve. Overgrazing by herds of sheep, cattle, and horses had taken place on the plateau since the 1880s. During that time, many predators were also killed by ranchers and bounty hunters. By the time Roosevelt established the game preserve, ranchers had moved most domestic livestock elsewhere. The primary change brought by the creation of the game preserve was to ban deer hunting. Government efforts, led by the United States Forest Service, began to protect the deer's numbers by killing off their natural predators once again; to this end, between 1907 and 1939, 816 mountain lions, 20 wolves, 7388 coyotes and over 500 bobcats were reportedly killed. [8]

The deer population experienced a great increase in numbers during the early decades of the 20th century. One estimate put the population as high as 100,000 deer inhabiting the range in 1924. Again, there was no systematic survey to support this estimate, which may have been exaggerated to twice the actual number. Shortly after that time, however, the deer population did begin to decline from over-browsing. By the mid-1920s, many deer were starving to death.

After a heated legal dispute between the federal government and the state of Arizona, hunting was once more permitted, to reduce the deer's numbers. Hunters were able to kill only a small fraction of the starving deer. The range itself was damaged, and its carrying capacity was greatly reduced.

Prey and predator population dynamics

X Fire Tree Planting Restoration Project, Kaibab National Forest, April 2012 Hoedad2-Kaibab-Nat-Forest.jpg
X Fire Tree Planting Restoration Project, Kaibab National Forest,
April 2012

Once ecologists began to study the area and reflect on the changes that had occurred there, they began to use the Kaibab deer as a simple lesson about how the removal of the deer's natural predators, which had been done in the interest of preserving the deer population, had allowed the deer to over-reproduce, and quickly overwhelm the plateau's resources. Some ecologists suggested that the situation highlighted the importance of keeping a population in balance with its environment's carrying capacity.

The more meaningful lesson of the Kaibab suggests that human efforts to protect wildlife and preserve wild areas must be balanced with ecological complexity and social priorities that are difficult to predict. Changes take place, sometimes rapidly, but their effects linger for decades. Today, the Arizona Game Commission manages the area, controlling the numbers of deer as well as predators, and issues hunting permits to keep the deer in balance with the range. [9]

Kaibab Lake in the Williams Ranger District, Kaibab National Forest, August 2020 Kaibab Lake Campground.jpg
Kaibab Lake in the Williams Ranger District, Kaibab National Forest, August 2020

Although the story of the Kaibab deer rose to fame in the 1920s due to their sudden increase and decrease in population, the story can also be used to demonstrate the way in which scientific studies and ideas about history can help educate current students. The first interpretation of the deer story as demonstrated in textbooks was that predator control had destroyed the deer's population growth. It was thought that initially the high number of deer predators were obtruding the growth of the deer's population, therefore rules were put in place in order to minimize the predator population and allow the deer to increase their population size. However, as scientific studies continued, ecologist Graeme Caughley suggested that predator control alone could not have caused the Kaibab irruption, but rather factors like climate, grazing by other animals, and preservation policies actually had more significant impacts on the deer [10]

Caughley's opinion led to confusion by teachers and scientists over what to include and teach in ecology and biology classes, therefore this story stopped being used as an example of prey and predator population dynamics. This is important to the development of scientific studies because it shows that events—-like the Kaibab deer controversy—-do not have a definitive start and beginning but include other opinions and approaches which teachers use to showcase the richness of controversy.

In the summers of 2002 and 2003, forest ecologist Dan Binkley and associates undertook a careful analysis of the age structure of aspen stands on the Kaibab. Their work shows that few aspen sprouted successfully on the plateau in the 1920s. They ruled out browsing by domestic livestock or exceptionally dry conditions as causes of that change and concluded that the age structure of aspen in the area was probably due to a period of severe overbrowsing by a large population of deer. This, they write, is consistent with the original assessment of the rapid rise in deer population as a result of persistent predator control. Their contribution of original research is a refreshing addition to the ongoing discussion of predator-prey interactions on the Kaibab. [Binkley, Dan, et al., 2006. Was Aldo Leopold right about the Kaibab deer herd? Ecosystems 9: 227-241]

The Kaibab deer controversy has revolutionized the way science is taught in textbooks, and the way students question ecology and biology. In addition, students now learn that human intervention can lead to big repercussions regarding specific animal's population and development in certain regions.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Canyon</span> Steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States

The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, up to 18 miles (29 km) wide and attains a depth of over a mile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mogollon Rim</span> Escarpment of the Colorado Plateau in Arizona, US

The Mogollon Rim is a topographical and geological feature cutting across the northern half of the U.S. state of Arizona. It extends approximately 200 miles (320 km), starting in northern Yavapai County and running eastward, ending near the border with New Mexico. It forms the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau in Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geology of the Grand Canyon area</span> Aspect of geology

The geology of the Grand Canyon area includes one of the most complete and studied sequences of rock on Earth. The nearly 40 major sedimentary rock layers exposed in the Grand Canyon and in the Grand Canyon National Park area range in age from about 200 million to nearly 2 billion years old. Most were deposited in warm, shallow seas and near ancient, long-gone sea shores in western North America. Both marine and terrestrial sediments are represented, including lithified sand dunes from an extinct desert. There are at least 14 known unconformities in the geologic record found in the Grand Canyon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaibab National Forest</span> Protected area in northern Arizona

At 1.6 million acres the Kaibab National Forest borders both the north and south rims of the Grand Canyon, in north-central Arizona. It is divided into two major sections: the North Kaibab Ranger District and the South Kaibab and are managed by the United States Forest Service. The South Kaibab is further divided into two districts, the Tusayan Ranger District, and the Williams Ranger District. Grand Canyon National Park separates the North Kaibab and the South Kaibab. The South Kaibab covers 1,422 square miles (3,680 km2) and the North Kaibab stretches over 1,010 square miles (2,600 km2). Elevations vary on the forest from 5,500 feet in the southwest corner to 10,418 feet at the summit of Kendrick Peak on the Williams Ranger District. The forest as a whole is headquartered in Williams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Peaks</span> Mountain range in Arizona, United States

The San Francisco Peaks are a volcanic mountain range in the San Francisco volcanic field in north central Arizona, just north of Flagstaff and a remnant of the former San Francisco Mountain. The highest summit in the range, Humphreys Peak, is the highest point in the state of Arizona at 12,633 feet (3,851 m) in elevation. The San Francisco Peaks are the remains of an eroded stratovolcano. An aquifer within the caldera supplies much of Flagstaff's water while the mountain itself is in the Coconino National Forest, a popular recreation site. The Arizona Snowbowl ski area is on the western slopes of Humphreys Peak, and has been the subject of major controversy involving several tribes and environmental groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coconino National Forest</span> United States protected area in Arizona

One of six National Forests in Arizona, the Coconino National Forest is a 1.856-million acre United States National Forest located in northern Arizona in the vicinity of Flagstaff, with elevations ranging from 2,600 feet to the highest point in Arizona at 12,633 feet. Originally established in 1898 as the "San Francisco Mountains National Forest Reserve", the area was designated a U.S. National Forest by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt on July 2, 1908, when the San Francisco Mountains National Forest Reserve was merged with lands from other surrounding forest reserves to create the Coconino National Forest. Today, the Coconino National Forest contains diverse landscapes, including deserts, ponderosa pine forests, flatlands, mesas, alpine tundra, and ancient volcanic peaks. The forest surrounds the towns of Sedona and Flagstaff and borders four other national forests; the Kaibab National Forest to the west and northwest, the Prescott National Forest to the southwest, the Tonto National Forest to the south, and the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest to the southeast. The forest contains all or parts of nine designated wilderness areas, including the Kachina Peaks Wilderness, which includes the summit of the San Francisco Peaks. The headquarters are in Flagstaff. The Coconino National Forest consists of three districts: Flagstaff Ranger District, Mogollon Rim Ranger District, and Red Rock Ranger District, which have local ranger district offices in Flagstaff, Happy Jack, and Sedona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona Strip</span> Part of Arizona north of the Colorado River

The Arizona Strip is the part of Arizona lying north of the Colorado River. Despite being larger in area than several U.S. states, the entire region has a population of fewer than 10,000 people. Consisting of northeastern Mohave County and northwestern Coconino County, the largest settlements in the Strip are Colorado City, Fredonia, and Beaver Dam, with smaller communities of Scenic, Littlefield and Desert Springs. The Kaibab Indian Reservation lies within the region. Lying along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon creates physical barriers to the rest of Arizona. Only three major roads traverse the region, I-15 crosses the northwestern corner while Arizona State Route 389 and U.S. Route 89A crosses the northeastern part of the strip, US 89A crosses the Colorado River via the Navajo Bridge, providing the only direct road connection between the strip and the rest of the state. The nearest metropolitan area is the St. George, Utah metro area, to which the region is more connected than to the rest of Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coconino Plateau</span> Geographic feature in Coconino County, Arizona, US

The Coconino Plateau is found south of the Grand Canyon and north-northwest of Flagstaff, in northern Arizona of the Southwestern United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaibab Limestone</span> Geologic formation in the southwestern United States

The Kaibab Limestone is a resistant cliff-forming, Permian geologic formation that crops out across the U.S. states of northern Arizona, southern Utah, east central Nevada and southeast California. It is also known as the Kaibab Formation in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. The Kaibab Limestone forms the rim of the Grand Canyon. In the Big Maria Mountains, California, the Kaibab Limestone is highly metamorphosed and known as the Kaibab Marble.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Colorado</span> Overview of the geography of the U.S. State of Colorado

The geography of the U.S. State of Colorado is diverse, encompassing both rugged mountainous terrain, vast plains, desert lands, desert canyons, and mesas. Colorado is a landlocked U.S. state. In 1861, the United States Congress defined the boundaries of the new Territory of Colorado exclusively by lines of latitude and longitude, stretching from 37°N to 41°N latitude, and from 102°02'48"W to 109°02'48"W longitude. Starting in 1868, official surveys demarcated the boundaries, deviating from the parallels and meridians in several places. Later surveys attempted to correct some of these mistakes but in 1925 the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that the earlier demarcation was the official boundary. The borders of Colorado are now officially defined by 697 boundary markers connected by straight boundary lines. Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah are the only states that have their borders defined solely by straight boundary lines with no natural features. The southwest corner of Colorado is the Four Corners Monument at 36°59'56"N, 109°2'43"W. This is the only place in the United States where four states meet: Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacob Lake, Arizona</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Arizona, United States

Jacob Lake is a small unincorporated community on the Kaibab Plateau in Coconino County, Arizona, United States, at the junction of U.S. Route 89A and State Route 67. Named after the Mormon explorer Jacob Hamblin, the town is known as the "Gateway to the Grand Canyon" because it is the starting point of Route 67, the only paved road leading to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon some 44 miles (71 km) to the south. The town itself consists of the Jacob Lake Inn which maintains motel rooms and cabins, a restaurant, lunch counter, gift shop, bakery, and general store; a gas station/garage; campground; and a visitors center run by the U.S. Forest Service. In the summer months, there is also a nearby center for horse rides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kanab Creek Wilderness</span> Protected area in the Kaibab National Forest

Kanab Creek Wilderness is a 75,300-acre (305 km2) wilderness area located along the Coconino/Mohave County line in the U.S. state of Arizona, approximately 30 miles (48 km) south of Fredonia. 68,600 acres (278 km2) of the Wilderness are located in the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest, the remaining 6,700 acres (27 km2) are administered by the Arizona Bureau of Land Management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Arizona</span> Geographical features of Arizona

Arizona is a landlocked state situated in the southwestern region of the United States of America. It has a vast and diverse geography famous for its deep canyons, high- and low-elevation deserts, numerous natural rock formations, and volcanic mountain ranges. Arizona shares land borders with Utah to the north, the Mexican state of Sonora to the south, New Mexico to the east, and Nevada to the northwest, as well as water borders with California and the Mexican state of Baja California to the southwest along the Colorado River. Arizona is also one of the Four Corners states and is diagonally adjacent to Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecology of the Rocky Mountains</span> Ecology of the Rocky Mountain range in North America

The ecology of the Rocky Mountains is diverse due to the effects of a variety of environmental factors. The Rocky Mountains are the major mountain range in western North America, running from the far north of British Columbia in Canada to New Mexico in the southwestern United States, climbing from the Great Plains at or below 1,800 feet (550 m) to peaks of over 14,000 feet (4,300 m). Temperature and rainfall varies greatly also and thus the Rockies are home to a mixture of habitats including the alpine, subalpine and boreal habitats of the Northern Rocky Mountains in British Columbia and Alberta, the coniferous forests of Montana and Idaho, the wetlands and prairie where the Rockies meet the plains, a different mix of conifers on the Yellowstone Plateau in Wyoming and in the high Rockies of Colorado and New Mexico, and finally the alpine tundra of the highest elevations.

The Great Western Trail is a north-south long distance multiple use route that runs from Canada to Mexico through five western states in the United States. The trail has access for both motorized and non-motorized users and traverses 4,455 miles (7,170 km) through Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana. It was designated a National Millennium Trail in 1999.

The Moccasin Mountains is an 11-mile-long (18 km) mountain range located at the Arizona–Utah border in Mohave County, Arizona, and a small north section in Kane County, Utah.

Buckskin Mountain is a 16-mile (26 km) mountain ridge that spans from Coconino County, Arizona to Kane County, Utah in the United States, that is divided almost equally between the two counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kanab Plateau</span> Plateau in Arizona, United States

The Kanab Plateau is a 45-mile long plateau located at the north of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States. The plateau is adjacent west of the Kaibab Plateau of the North Rim, with a basin containing the Kanab Creek watershed in between. The basin is the site of the Kanab Creek Wilderness, with Snake Gulch at its north perimeter, and at the base of the Kanab Plateau, forming its southeast border.

The Marble Canyon Dam, also known as the Redwall Dam, was a proposed dam on the Colorado River in Arizona. The dam was intended to impound a relatively small reservoir in the central portion of Marble Canyon to develop hydroelectric power. Plans centered on two sites between miles 30 and 40 in the canyon. At one point a 38-mile (61 km) tunnel was proposed to a site just outside Grand Canyon National Park to develop the site's full power generation potential, reducing the Colorado River to a trickle through the park.

Saddle Mountain Wilderness is a protected wilderness area managed by the Kaibab National Forest north of Grand Canyon National Park in the U.S. state of Arizona. Established in 1984 under the Arizona Wilderness Act, the area on the Kaibab Plateau includes its namesake summit, a prominent ridge shaped like a saddle that reaches an elevation of 8,424 feet. Elevations in the northern part of the wilderness on the edge of Marble Canyon start at about 6,000 feet and rise to 8,000 on the southern ridge which forms the Nankoweap Rim of the Grand Canyon.

References

  1. 1 2 3 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Kaibab Plateau
  2. 1 2 3 Kaibab Plateau High Point, Arizona at Peakbagger.com
  3. 1 2 "Kaibab Plateau AZ". ListsOfJohn.com.
  4. ↑ Kaibab Plateau at Peakbagger.com
  5. ↑ "Land Use History of North America: Colorado Plateau: Kaibab Plateau, Arizona". Archived from the original on December 19, 2005 – via Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ "Kaibab Plateau & North Rim Lookout". SummitPost.org.
  7. 1 2 Rasmussen, D. Irwin (July 1941). "Biotic Communities of Kaibab Plateau, Arizona". Ecological Monographs. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley. 11 (3): 229–275. doi:10.2307/1943204. JSTOR   1943204.
  8. ↑ Young, Chris. "A history of the Kaibab deer".
  9. ↑ "Grand Canyon officials to make another run at corralling and reducing bison herd". Los Angeles Times . Associated Press. September 2, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  10. ↑ Young, Chris, A Textbook History: Use of the Kaibab Lesson in Teaching Biology
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.